Sat Phone Hire?

Stu, I can't answer your question on Sat phone hire. It would certainly be the most reliable form of comms in an emergency, but........

CDMA coverage is available along much of the Eastern Beach. But not much inland. There is a tower at Happy Valley.
There are pay phones at each of the townships and most of the major camp sites.

If you are concerned about dingos, camp in one of the fenced camp sites. This is recommended if you have young children.

If you follow the official advice on dingos, and you are sensible, they are not a problem. Most people come home from Fraser disappointed that they haven't seen one.

We've been to Fraser twice in the past 6 months. Saw one dingo on each trip. Although we did see plenty of tracks around the camp site when we 'beach camped'.

Rather than dingos, I think you need to consider communications in the event of sickness or injury, particularly to one of the kids. We are happy to rely on CDMA, but we don't have kids with us.

I'll echo what Norm has said

There are fenced campsites with excellent facilities, if you are worried about dingos enough to warrant wanting to hire a sat phone, then I'd be thinking that a fenced campground is for you.

(I've spent more time on Fraser than I can count, never, ever had a problem with dingos, but with a 16 month old, you'll only find me camping in a fenced campground-end of story)

BTW Kyle Communications (now in Burpengary) hire sat phones

Stu,

I hired one for a cape trip but they are expensive. I would not incur the extra expense for Fraser.

I would look at CDMA or even buying one second hand Sat Phone then reselling it after your trip. There are some that you can use a digital sim card in, I think there is a reference on this forum which gets past the expensive connection costs but the call costs are higher.

Fraser is not too bad these days. help is pretty close. Use the money on something more useful...beer...

We offer a few CDMA/Sat phones fro hire from Noosaville. OzRoamer Camper Trailers

If you need rind us on 0414-522-295

Hi Stu.

When I go on wilderness landscape photography trips to the South Australian outback, traveling on an ATV (four wheel motorbike), I do take a sat phone but I also take my trusty dingo stick. It's one half of a hardwood tent pole, about a meter long and 30mm diameter.

The bike formally belonged to an aging farmer who carried his thistle hoe in a water pipe scabbard on the side of the bike. I keep my dingo stick in the scabbard, ready to draw at the drop of a hat.

When I first camped alone, way out in the desert, I took the dingo stick to bed with me, but have since become a bit more confident.

I'd far rather be fighting off a savage dingo with my trusty dingo stick than a satelite phone. You get a much better swing. I don't know how a sat phone would help in a dingo emergency unless you can get one that emits high frequency sound waves like a Shoo Roo.

It's for sure that the ranger isn't going to get out of bed, get in his 4x4 and do a dingo patrol, everytime someone gets spooked in the night.

Snuggle up close to the missus, put your arms around her and tell her she's safe with you.

Regards,
Laurie.
Wilderness Landscape Photography

Stu,
This is an "cut" from a trip story I wrote a couple of years ago, late 2003, it happened at Lake Boomanjin.

"We had our evening meal and were cleaning up when we noticed headlights on the track, sure enough a late model Pajero parks in the car park and two young couples start unloading their gear. We were only momentarily distracted, thinking that they were brave to be trying to set up after dark. Also their torchlights seemed to be low on battery, the beams were very dim. They had put their tents up and were bringing the rest of the gear in when one of them tripped over a log, landing heavily face first on a stump and gashing his cheek quite badly... our friends in the Defender came to the rescue to tend first aid and my wife assisted as nurse and used our first aid kit, which luckily was well stocked. (The "late" campers kit was a pack of band aids!) They worked on him for almost an hour before he settled down. This has taught me a couple HUGE lesson's;
1) With no phone service.... and no UHF contact with Rangers or anyone else... we might as well have been on Gilligan's Island, or in the middle of Australia. We will be travelling with either Satphone or HF radio in future even in semi-remote area's.
2) Our first aid kit, I am proud to say, had the necesary items in it, but it needs more and we are planning to add to it before our next trip.
3) And although we always set up camp by 4 pm at the very latest, this has reinforced that rule!"

If you read the info in the pack you get with the permit from QPWS, and LISTEN to the rangers when they come to talk with you, and APPLY the info to your camp, you'll be fine. If your kids are old enough to read, let them read the pack as well, and have them listen to the rangers. When our kids were smaller, we didn't let them out of our sight, but now they are a little older , we let them go a little way on their own, but only while BOTH are together. And if they see a dingo, they know NOT to approach it, or call it, or whistle etc......

I always hire a sat phone these days, I get mine from Lance at Satphone Hire although there is a guy on this board in BrisVegas who rents his out much cheaper, but I can't remember who he is. We have never needed to use it, but much better to know it's there.

Cheers

Brian

That'd probably be me Brian. ... :-))

Stu ... $40 + carton XXXX per month or part thereof + calls at cost .... + $500 if you break it, lose it, or have it swiped.

rjnicollAToptusnetDOTcomDOTau

Cheers

Rosco