cell phone reception - Estes Park

I was curious about cell phone reception in and around Estes Park i.e.. Lumpy Ridge, RMNP. Also heading southeast towards Lyons. What about Longs Peak area and on towards Nederland/Boulder canyon. I've never had a cell before and need one to work in some of these regions. I understand blockage due to obstructions and the like, but what about companies (Sprint,Verizon, etc), phones (do some get better reception in mountainous ares,what about dropped calls?), what about wireless internet for laptop?, etc. Any suggestions, hints, tips, are greatly welcomed (should I bring small bits of tinfoil for the antennae? haha), thanks for any input. Have a great day.

I think Cingular has a monopoly in the township of Ned, but it's crappy at best (i.e. stand outside your car, if lucky).

Of the big ones, I think only Verizon still allows you to connect to an Analog network, where available (if you have a tri-mode phone). There are certainly places in CO where you can get Analog but not digital reception, regardless of what they tell you.

Cell phone reception in Estes Park is great. I once had a friend take a call way up at Sundance Buttress! I tried using my cell up at Castle Rock last weekend which is just below Nederland and couldn't get squat(A car had rolled over). Also, for some reason, the area between Boulder and Lyons off Hwy 36 is really crappy.

keep crankin'!

Get Cingular for Estes Park, I had Verizon when I moved here and it only had service in town. I hated it. I had my cingular phone ring once while at the base of Notchtop. Also Nokia has the best reception among phone types. Just my advice.

Verizon: cell phone reception is pretty crappy in Boulder Canyon once you get past The Dome. There is a spot of service before Brick Wall. You can get a spot of service up near the parking area for Upper Dream. You can get service up high near the Lighthouse. There is a spot of coverage near the ice climbs/Cenotaph.

In Estes, service is still a bit of hit or miss. Lumpy generally gets decent coverage. You can get service at the base of the Lower East Face of Long's.

My old analog had like twice the power and so got better service going out from marginal areas.

You probably know this, but watch your battery...if you go into analog/search for service mode, you burn through old batteries pretty quickly.

I've carried a cell phone all over Rocky Mountain National Park (as a guideline for a camp while I was taking kids backpacking) and got service in a surprisingly large number of places. I started carrying it for climbs in the park just in case and found the hardest thing was to remember to keep it in a pocket close to your body so the battery wouldn't get cold early in the morning and die. I've also called Pagan Mountaineering from the base of Sister Superior in Castle Valley. Yay Sprint.

[Rant] Please, please, please, turn your cell phones off while you're at the crags. Our time away from the annoying contraptions of civilization is so rare and so special it's a shame to have this limited amout of time ruined by the ring of a cell phone or the yapping of an off work businessman. To say nothing of the mindless chatter ("Hey honey. Guess where I am?") that pervades our commom spaces now. If you feel the need to carry a cell phone for safety reasons, by all means do so. Just leave it off until you really need it. Also, if you carry a cell for safety reasons, does that mean that you won't climb in areas where there is no reception?
Mal [/Rant]

Malcolm Daly wrote:Our time away from the annoying contraptions of civilization is so rare and so special

I completely second Malcom's rant. I can't underscore how challenging it is to be somewhere remote and have someone's cell phone ring... worse yet, when they answer it. It's amazing how many people don't quite understand this concept. The backcountry and crag areas are not the same as ski areas. I suppose it may be more obvious to those of us whose work follows us on the phone, around the clock. Hey, it's one reason I spend time in places that don't get cell reception.

As an added bonus, if you turn it off, your battery won't be dead when you need it most.

However, I have become a firm believer in carrying a cell phone (OFF) in the back country for emergency reasons. Haven't really needed it yet for emergency (save getting an important weather forecast in Alaska when running thin on food), but repeatedly hear reports of folks calling for assistance with avalanche burials and other critical situations (from places I wouldn't have expected they'd have received reception). Of course, cell phones are important to respect as an additional tool: please don't let the phone create a false sense of protection or replace self-rescue skills and self-sufficiency. This seems to happen frequently on some big peaks that have cell reception.

Cheers!

Well said Malcolm.

I feel as though I'm being criticized for my post, so a little explanation. I've carried a cell phone up bigger climbs in the park for emergencies. On the east face of Longs, I will admit that I had the intention of calling a friend who was hiking and could spot weather. I called Pagan Mountaineering from Castle Valley because all the routes at Sister Superior had red tags at the bottom (turns out from an adventure race, I cleaned them up.) I don't take my cell to the crag so that I can call people and tell them where I am, and I climb places where there is no service. Why did you phrase your question at the end of your post so insultingly Malcolm? Unnecessary.

Winstoner,

I don't think the responses have anything to do with your post, in particular. Nor do I think they were directed at you, rather the discussion of the more general situation which people find a bit disturbing.

Thanks for everyone who has offered their input. It is greatly appreciated, but Winstoner you mentioned service, but what phone, service, etc. I truly understand the thought of leaving civilization behind. My intended use is this; I have three days off a week, but sometimes need to call into work in the mornings, during those days off. Therefore a cell phone I think would be more advantageous than trying to find pay phones, as they seem to be fewer and fewer around. But past 7.00a the phone is turned off until the next morning. In the back country, civilization is the last thing that I want to contemplate. Thanks for the input.

winstoner,
sorry if I offended. I meant none and I apologize for the unintended insult.

I made that comment because I run into a lot of people w/ cell phones at crags who use that safety excuse. In fact, it's the most common excuse but, when I ask them if that means that they wouldn't go to a crag that has no reception I just get a blank stare. These people usually get pissed when they run smack into their own hypocrisy.

In addition, a lot of us on this site have spent an awlful lot of time climbing with no possibility of communication whatsoever so naturally look at things like weather updates and such as being somewhat frivolous. I don't deny their usefulness in any way, but it is annoying and intrusive to us old dudes who got along without it for so long, when the guy next to us on Broadway (or wherever) is dialing up for an weather report.

Cell phones have also increased the number of frivolous rescue calls by a huge percentage. In the pre-cell phone days if you turned your ankle in the Boulderfield, your partner and whoever else was around would help you hobble out. Now, those twisted ankles bust out their cell phones and get a chopper ride to the hospital*. Again, that's a nice thing and it has undoubtedly saved some lives, but it's one more erosion of our way of life that used to be defined by adventure, self-determination and independence. In this day of decreasing opportunities to set our own path, we need to fight to keep every bit of it we can. So for me, no thanks. I'll leave my cell phone at home.

Again, I'm sorry. I meant no insult.

Mal

• BTW, I've been the beneficiary of a chopper ride to the hospital which saved my life. It wasn't a sprained ankle and we didn't call it in on a cell phone. You can read about it here:

http://www.trango.com/malacc.php

Why is this even a question? Turn the thing off. If you need it for a actual reason use it.

I witnessed a guy up at Morrison recently calling his buddy after every "send" he did. Awful.

FWIW, some of us working folks try to get out a bit and climb where we might be needed in a pinch. Also, some of us family folk do carry these things for family issues. Sometimes, these phones allow us to still get out & climb when without 'em we'd be stuck someplace less enjoyable. Peace.

I carry my cellphone everywhere. It's always on. Safety has nothing to do with it. I like to be in contact and enjoy talking to people.' No safety excuse here.

I'm also an old codger who's spent huge amounts of time WAY out there with no possibility of communication or rescue. Yes, the cell phone at the crag is frivolous, but please leave me some frivolity in life. Don't take away my cell phone and don't tell me I can't wear those saddle shoes.

Be tolerant, folks.

Sorry about being so defensive. Thanks for the lively discussion!

Leo Paik and rmsusa, when your cell phone goes off while I'm trying to enjoy my outdoor experience, I'm sorry, it annoys, bothers and otherwise interferes with my outdoor experience. It's not unlike having a dog constantly barking at the base of the crag. It certainly doesn't prevent me from climbing or being there, but it sure does diminish the quality of my experience. I guess I would consider it common courtesy to at least keep your cell phone ringer off and go away to have your private talks in private. After all, I could easily take a dump right next to you at the base of the crag but I don't. It's common courtesy that I leave the area, WAG Bag the poo and carry it out.

I would hope that both of you guys, who each have tons of outdoor climbing miles logged, would respect those people around you who have their own motivations to climb. Hell, if you come up to a gaggle of climbers who are all barking into their cell phones, by all means, go ahead and start yapping into yours. But if the people around you are quiet, if they seem to be grooving on the day and the outdoors, please respect their (our) peace.

[cheap shot] rmsusa, if you're so dis-satisfied with your climbing partner's communication skills that you have to make or answer a call, maybe you should reconsider who you're climbing with! [/cheap shot] Personally, I always take it as an insult when I'm hanging out with someone and they pick up the phone to chat with someone else. Must mean I'm pretty boring!

Sorry I let the curmudgeon out here.

Mal

Leo Paik and rmsusa, when your cell phone goes off while I'm trying to enjoy my outdoor experience, I'm sorry, it annoys, bothers and otherwise interferes with my outdoor experience

.........

Personally, I always take it as an insult when I'm hanging out with someone and they pick up the phone to chat with someone else. Must mean I'm pretty boring! Sorry I let the curmudgeon out here. Mal

Duly noted. Norms change and till a new one's established there will be friction. My personal opinion is that cell-phones will be so ubiquitous in a decade that no-one will think twice about it anywhere. Meanwhile, I'll just talk & talk & talk .......

If you're on the phone with a personal call & a customer appears at your door, what do you do? Bet you hang up to take the customer. Insulting to your caller? Cell phones have caller-id, so I let lots go to voicemail, but some have to be gotten. Nothing bad ever happened....

Oh.. there was that time when my partner was leading at the crux of (insert horrific climb). I got a call and got involved with the gf. With all the waving and gesticulating, he fell. I had my hands off the belay so he dropped (insert large distance) while I wasn't paying attention. We both had a good laugh about it on the way to the hospital. It was only a leg, after all.

We're all curmudgeons here! Can I still wear my saddle shoes?

Change the things you can. Change your attitude about things you can't.

Malcolm, with all due respect, I believe my cell phone has gone off/rung twice or at most three times at the cliffs, ever. Virtually no one has my number, and it'll ring only if it is truly ever needed. Mostly, I've used it to stay available for those who really need it. I understand what you're saying in principal, but in practice I've never disturbed your experience with my phone. I try to never bother anyone with it. The good news is that most good crags are not accessible by cell phone.

HEy Crankies,

I have a son...he is in Rockies right now and I want to know the cell service that works so I can speak with him.  This whole l turn your device off" doesn't work for people that are divided but still have a bond (son) that you won't be able to speak to.  Could you please answer the question?  Which is the best coverage for cell service?  Thanks for any help!