Tuesday, January 03, 2012
Iphone Flash Saves a Hiker, but a Quality Tactical Flashlight and GPS would 've been Better!
A hiker in Maryland on New Year's Eve almost had a bad end to the year, but was saved by his cell phone.Along with his trusted dog, a man was hiking through Gambrill State Park on Saturday when he got lost. As he was pretty far from civilization, the man took out his iPhone and tried to use the map app to find where he was going but had trouble getting an accurate reading. These GPS phones are great for finding your way along a number of city streets, but away from cell phone towers they become less and less reliable.
A good GPS device, such as the Bushnell BackTrack Personal Locator, would have been a far better option for finding his way home. I like it for hiking and hunting because you can mark a location, such as your car or home, and it will guide you back with an easy to read arrow. The GPS on an iPhone (which I have and love, BTW) is not the best bet for nature walks.
Once the man had crossed the same stream for the fourth time it became apparent that he was lost, so he called 911 and told the sheriff he was lost. As it's cold out, and it's serious business when someone gets lost in the woods, the sheriff sent out a search helicopter right away.
The man wasn't prepared with a good flashlight, so it might have proved difficult to find him in the failing light, but the flash from his iPhone gave the flight crew the chance to see him, and he and his dog were safely back home in no time.
This situation shows why you should have a quality flashlight with you where ever you go. Sure, this particular hiker was okay because of his phone, but if you're using the map function a lot and making calls you might run out of battery power before help arrives. Plus, though the flash is pretty bright (probably around 10 lumens), you can find far stronger flashlights with better battery power at Tactical Store!
For example, take a look at the Pelican 1850 L4 LED Mini System. Not only is there a compact and easy to carry flashlight with a 50 hour run time, but it also comes with a pocket knife and a compass! This is a fantastic kit for going out on a hike, and it's brand new to our store, so be sure to take a look!
Another great flashlight option comes from Olight. The Olight
Olight Intimidator" SR51 Intimidator is seriously powerful. It has a maximum output of 900 lumens! It's nearly 100 times as powerful as the flash on an iPhone, and I'd call that a fairly bright light. With 900 lumens of light you don't need to worry about it being bright enough for almost any purpose! And it weighs a mere 14.1 oz. That's pretty lightweight for so much power! The 10 hour battery life will last for all your lighting needs on a hunting trip!Don't go out into the woods unprepared. Make sure you have a top notch GPS and a super bright flashlight so that if any trouble occurs you can be sure you'll get where you're going safely and easily!
Labels: flashlights, olight, pelican
Posted by brian.coughlin at 11:32 AM Read Article 