Colorado "boondocking" with cell service? - Page 2

moorefc · 06-01-2016, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GrumpyBadger

Anyone by chance stumble across a particularly notable spot that would fit the bill?

Not sure how important it is in Co mountains, but which carrier you use may make a difference. Generally Verizon and AT&T are better, Sprint, T-Mobile, etc are pretty hopeless in the Rockies, Bitterroots, and West in our experience....

High point perching near a town works, however you can be exposed to lightning in the afternoons.

Which carrier do you use?

GrumpyBadger · 06-01-2016, 08:42 PM

Thanks for the additional info and links.

I have Verizon, and I've found over the years that they seem to have the best potential coverage for most of the places I go (if any at all, of course when we're talking about the open spaces of the West). I've just never attempted to work on a VPN from my camps before so have not paid much attention to cell service (usually didn't care since I was out to get away anyway).

Mr. Shuttle... I've lived on and off in CO for the past 25 years, so I am actually more familiar with the opportunities and boonie roads than I am in my native WI!! Never bumped across that CO trails website, though... cool! I can always use more info like that.

You guys have me all torn on those boosters, though. I'll have to think about it for a bit. I am thinking that weboost Drive 4G-X paired with a directional antenna rather than the cradle thingy... just because the Drive is purportedly a stronger unit. If this crazy trip "works" out (pun intended), I may choose to live (and work) more in the van!!

Pricey, too, unfortunately... but how do you put a price on mercilessly taunting your miserable home- and cubicle-bound co-workers? The lamentation and radiating envy energy will be tasty gravy on my feast of scenery and fresh air!!!

(yes, I'm a bit of an insufferable, smug bastage to work with! hee hee hee)

boywonder · 06-01-2016, 09:45 PM

I hot-spotted into a work meeting with the booster setup when I was remote camping in Moab in the Sovereign trail area....worked great, no one on the call ever suspected that I was camping.

I bought both of my setups on Ebay...the 3G setup has a beefy metal amplifier and kinda large antenna....that one was $50.....the 4G unit is the cradle type with small antenna....that one was around $75 I think.

The 3G unit has lots of amp gain and more antenna gain than the 4G, but it's 3G data rate. Works great for phone calls. It has a "Hershey bar" type phone antenna that you hold against the phone when making calls. The 3G stuff is super cheap used on Ebay.

The 4G smaller unit works quite well too.....and I spent less than $130 for both.....Both Wilsons

GrumpyBadger · 06-01-2016, 09:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boywonder

I hot-spotted into a work meeting with the booster setup when I was remote camping in Moab in the Sovereign trail area....worked great, no one on the call ever suspected that I was camping.

I hope you told them you were camping. Half the point of working from a campsite is telling your colleagues that you are infinitely cooler than they are and still productive. (the other half is... I am able to charge my time from a far better vantage point than the office!)

BrianW · 06-02-2016, 06:55 PM

I never tell folks at work when I telecommute from an oddball location, although it is very tempting. People already assume I must goof-off all day since I work from home, and I don't want to give any credence to that idea. (In fact, I probably put in more hours at home than the office people do.) My company (tech/software) is VERY telecommuting friendly, but some things are just better left unsaid IMO.

GrumpyBadger · 06-08-2016, 09:13 PM

Well... I went ahead and ordered the weBoost 4G-X booster, a cable, and the external directional antenna. Hopefully everything will be waiting for me when I get home next week from work travel... I'll have a whole ONE day to get it rigged somehow and test it before I roll west to CO.

Thanks for all the posts here... I'll update this when I get a chance to field test it in the Rockies.

Wirehead · 06-08-2016, 09:59 PM

Please be sure to only use it when you have too and turn it off when you get close to good coverage. Remember you are in effect a cellular repeater and you can and will interfere with the carriers if you are too close to a site. The carriers don't take to kindly to any kind of interference. Trust me on this.

GrumpyBadger · 06-08-2016, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wirehead

Please be sure to only use it when you have too and turn it off when you get close to good coverage. Remember you are in effect a cellular repeater and you can and will interfere with the carriers if you are too close to a site. The carriers don't take to kindly to any kind of interference. Trust me on this.

Reasonable points. I will only be using it when I am parked in a remote enough place where I am struggling to get signal. Otherwise I will not bother setting it up - it is not something that will be a "permanent" mount robust enough for rolling down the road. Definitely only for campsite use when I have to.

My bigger concern is that I am wasting a lot of money on something I may not get to use enough to make it worthwhile... but the whole van is unfortunately falling into that category due to my current irritating work arrangements.

(hopefully the booster will make it more possible for me to work from the remote(er) camps I like to go to!)

BrianW · 06-09-2016, 05:55 AM

The personal boosters really aren't powerful enough to spread outside the van much, so I wouldn't worry about interfering with the cell towers and such. I semi-permanently mounted mine in my van, using the upgraded 12-inch magnet mount antenna on my cab roof. I installed the amp on the cabinet behind the drivers seat, and added a 12v outlet there for the amp power. After reading this thread, I may try out a directional antenna too. Sounds like they work well.

GrumpyBadger · 06-28-2016, 10:03 PM

Well... currently field verifying the WeBoost cell signal booster setup that ShuttlePilot (Eric) talked about.

Seems to be holding its own. I probably had a more significant expectation of its boost capability (thought it would be stronger), but I think it is currently giving me the ability to VPN to work which I am quite certain I would not have without it. I also had better expectations of having usable signal in some places that just have zilch. Those pesky eye-sore cell towers don't seem to be in the cool remote canyons and gulches where the good remote camps are.

All that said, it's already paid for itself in my ability to work from some of my camps this week (though the power outage in Crested Butte yesterday that killed the cell towers sent me on an unnecessary camp relocation from a sweet camp spot to a pollen death field - I thought the booster failed so I moved).

So far so good overall!