At 01:54 PM 3/16/2011, neil n wrote:
>I'm studying up in an attempt to get my Amateur Radio license. (Basic)
>Assuming I pass, I would install a rig in my Westy. With all that is

A syncro with a ham rig could be an absolute godsend in an isolated
area, with a 2WD not far behind.  And 2-meter stuff is great if
there's a repeater in line of sight, but to really reach out and
touch someone hundreds or thousands of miles away and/or on the other
side of a mountain* you need an HF rig.  Of course it may be that
satphone rigs are obsoleting all that, but perhaps not.  Satphone is
for people with deep pockets.

*in which case of course the person you reach may be hundreds or
thousands of miles away, but you're talking to *someone.*

Yrs,
d