Using DeLorme to get weather forecasts

[CharlieW]

I haven't seen this talked about much. Do DeLorme owners even know they can do this? It was a deciding factor for me when I bought my inReach a couple months ago.

I think there are other options but I'm currently using the service at http://wx2inreach.weebly.com/. It's just someone's pet project and donation-driven, so strictly use-at-your-own-risk. Basically, you just send a message to a gmail address and get one of several kinds of weather report sent back. Here are some examples (the first used my present coordinates):

(send) wx now io

Su 2pPtCldS11 76 10pLtRn42%S11 64 Mo 6aLtRn100%SW15 78 2pLtRn100%S8 75 10pLtRn42%S10 65 Tu PtCldS8 61/86 We PtCldS10 62/89 Th LtRn21%S11 63/90

(send) wx now io loc 47.99 -84.77

Mo 2pRn100%NE8mi45F 10pLtRn91%NE7mi43F Tu 6aLtRn100%N13mi38F 2pLtRn97%W13mi38F 10pClrW8mi32F We LtRn28%31/54F Th LtRn76%35/62F Fr LtRn73%40/61F

(send) wx now loc Mount-Whitney 4418

Su aSu-5 pSn1cm-4 nSn4cm-8 Mo aSu-6 pSn4cm-5 nSn9cm-8 Tu aCld-6 pSn9cm-5 nSn4cm-9 We aSu-7 pSu-6 nClrS20k-12 Th aSuS30k-12 pSn7cm-13 nSn4cm-17 Fr aSn4cm-15

I have the first as a preset so only the return message counts against me. Format of return is a bit different in the 3 because these are coming from different forecasting services. (The last is metric. If you are wondering, the top of Whitney forecast was from early May.) The forecast runs until it hits the DeLorme character limit (160 if I remember correctly). I'll be using this (for example) to decide whether or not to sleep on top of Whitney at the end of my JMT hike coming up soon. There is help at the website for decoding these if it isn't clear to you. I had no trouble understanding when I was way out of civilization and cell tower range in May this year.

There's more information at this post, but it's old so some details may be wrong:
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin ... d_id=92891
I believe they talk about a pay-for-service equivalent that might be a little safer.

[HikingGeek.com]

We used this feature on our High Sierra Trail hike last month. Great feature!

[gabe&mel]

I've been using this too and really like it.

Gabe

[austex]

Yup. Me too, I use mine. If I've been out of cell range for more than 3 days; conditions can and will change! Especially if you don't see anyone for a day or two and on early and late season trips.

[Mr Peabody]

thanks!

this is amazing- really useful. I don't have to ask people to send me the forecast anymore. I just donated as well.

[gabe&mel]

On my last trip to Tunemah, I did notice something a little strange. For a few days of weather checks the night time low and daytime high temperature seemed to be inverse. For Example on Thursday 7/30 the daytime high read 48º and the Thursday the nighttime low 71º.

The issue resolved in 2-3 days, and the % chance of precipitation seemed to stay relatively constant, but just thought I'd relay my experience.

Gabe

increach.tiff

[Mr Peabody]

^ I noticed the same thing while testing it this week. Local forecasts: the nighttime low should be the daytime high

[martinleroux]

Hi all, I'm the guy that set up this service. Good to hear that people find it useful. Sorry about the bug with highs and lows getting mixed up. The NWS made some changes to their forecast data format earlier this month and my code got confused. I've made some changes on my side and it should be working properly now. Please don't hesitate to contact me directly if you notice anything else that looks strange. You can use the form at http://wx2inreach.weebly.com/contact.html, or email me at wx2inreach [at] gmail [dot] com.

[maverick]

Hi Martin,

Welcome to HST! An intro would be welcomed, so we know who you are, do you represent DeLorme?. Also any additional info that you can supply, that would be to useful to HST DeLorme users, or possible potential buyers, would be welcome.

[gabe&mel]

Hi all, I'm the guy that set up this service. Good to hear that people find it useful. Sorry about the bug with highs and lows getting mixed up. The NWS made some changes to their forecast data format earlier this month and my code got confused. I've made some changes on my side and it should be working properly now. Please don't hesitate to contact me directly if you notice anything else that looks strange. You can use the form at http://wx2inreach.weebly.com/contact.html, or email me at wx2inreach [at] gmail [dot] com.

Thanks Martin, really appreciate the service you provide.

Gabe