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Simple and effective satellite communications

Writer's picture: Mike LarsenMike Larsen

There are times when life brings us away from cell coverage and though that can be a welcomed opportunity to unplug, there are times when it can be essential to have basic communications. Though the new iPhones have a satellite capable emergency notification one may opt for a bit more robust or capable platform.



As an individual and organization that thrives in the pursuit of adventure, some of the Raven team found themselves aboard a boat managing support and logistics for ultra swimmer Jim “The Shark” Dreyer in his quest to swim 80 miles across Lake Michigan. The planning identified a 70-80 hour excursion from Wisconsin to Michigan where an estimated 90% of the trip would be with sketchy to nil cell coverage. Even with marine radio coverage the desire to have messaging and weather forecast capabilities became paramount to the planning process.



After extensive research and looking not only at the mission at hand, but future needs, the Bivy Stick (Amazon) became the device of choice. Once we had the device in hand and the quick and easy setup process was completed we were off and running with satellite communications for the adventure. The cool part about this device is that you can run it with a smartphone or as a standalone device. On its own the functions are limited to tracking, a programmable check in button and an emergency function. All of our test runs were flawless and the messaging was tailored to fit the specific information we anticipated needing along with intermittent location tracking to our support team ashore. I should note, since we were operating from a boat with amenities such as a generator we were not worried about battery life for either the Bivy stick or the phones.



When the time came to deploy the device it again performed with zero issues and allowed us to gather critical weather information from the support team. This information became extremely important as the mission had to be scrubbed about 12 hours into the swim due to increasing wind and wave conditions that were pushing the team off course and pushing our safety thresholds. After regular weather updates that were only possible via the Bivy stick and its messages via the smartphone app the difficult decision to abort the attempt was made and The Shark was taken aboard for the long journey back to Michigan.



The outcome was disappointing for the entire team but without having the ability to communicate off shore we would have pressed on and likely suffered damaged equipment, injury or worse. The Bivy stick became such a valuable tool that it is now a common part of the load out if local laws for our destinations allow.

It’s also a standard piece of kit for boat trips. We maintain service on the device at all times, although there appears to be an option to turn it on and off as needed. We maintain a readiness level to deploy rapidly and it’s one less thing we need to worry about if going somewhere that may have compromised cell service.

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