Wow, what a trip! The 30 mile stint each way was unexpected for me but my boat did great. I'm glad the winds were down the 3 days we fished though otherwise the trip back would have been brutal. Talking with Debbie and listening to her stories of friends stranded on the lake, hypothermia, etc. it definitely concerns me of the safety of our group as we go on these big adventures. Managing the waves/wind is one thing, but encountering boat trouble 30 miles upstream without cell phone coverage late in the day is another. cousinlll was able to make his way back because he had a kicker - most of us do not. I heard he was able to call but I'm assuming that was only when he got back up closer to Halls Crossing area when the cell coverage returns. All the boat maintenance in the world can't save us from some random unknown boat issue.
I pack a blanket and obviously warm clothes in case I'm stranded for the night. But that doesn't sound like fun. I packed a good VHF radio in case someone is monitoring channel 16 or other channel, but I'm unsure of coverage way up like in Good Hope Bay. I wish I would have turned it on to try it out but doubt there's anyone that far north listening or if the radio will travel that far (it was a step up from those cheap handhelds though).
And it sure would be nice since we do have multiple boats often within a few miles of each other to have a very basic way to message each other our location in case trouble arises - or at least to know people's approximately last location. My assumption is that if someone encounters boat trouble especially late in the day or deep in some canyon they may not see anyone before dark and then you're staying the night on shore somewhere. Being able to communicate with someone your situation and location would be ideal.
I'm thinking next year of renting a satellite phone - just glanced and looks like I can rent it for a week for $30-$60:
https://satellitephonestore.com/catalog/rent/satellite-phones
I'm interested what others in the group think not just about the satellite phones but in general the safety on a lake of that size....
Matt the Colorado River Rafting companies all use them.
You might want to contact a few just to learn what their experience has been with the ones they use.
I think the rental of a Satellite phone is possible. Cost would be $100-$200 per week depending on model you go for and if you pre-buy minutes. Probably wouldn't buy minutes and just pay out of the a$$ if I make a call. I know they can also send and receive SMS text to cellular so that would really help too.
Regarding VHF radios, I was unsure if a fixed mount 25W would help there, 'cause I don't know if anyone is listening. It sounds like a few folks say they have NPS repeaters all over the lake and quite possible just a fixed mount radio could work. You can visit the thread on wayne's word here: https://wayneswords.net/threads/vhf-radio-what-marinas-or-nps-stations-are-monitoring.1702/#post-15303
I have a handheld VHF radio but they limit to 5W output. Fixed mount I believe can go 25W and with 4-8ft antenna coverage would be much better. VHF radios would be more feasible to leave on all day and use to talk to other boaters in our group. Something to think about.....