Archive for the ‘Handheld’ Category
Emergency Preparedness for Amateur Pilots
As an amateur pilot, I recognize the tremendous dangers inherent to my hobby. It’s not uncommon for mechanical problems to force pilots to bring their planes in for a crash landing. Luckily, I’ve never had to deal with such a catastrophic problem. I’m always paying careful attention to sounds of the engine and to my various instrument panels. Still, it pays to be careful.
In addition to the standard emergency kit I keep inside the cockpit, I also travel with a handheld GPS. That way, if I should have to land in a densely wooded area or some other place far away from civilization, I can bring up the coordinates and find a way to get help. Technology has improved our lives in many ways, but a GPS mapping device might actually be capable of saving lives in certain instances.
This New Hobby Is Really Cache-ing On
I had spent most of the afternoon walking around an unfamiliar part of town with one of my close friends, scanning the landscape for clues. We had originally come to this neighborhood for a quick bite to eat on the way to a ballgame, but something captured my attention in the meantime. I’ve become increasingly passionate about my new hobby – geocaching. Before long, I found the hidden box and added my name to a list of others on the ledger within.
Geocaching is a pastime that only requires a few essential tools: handheld GPS units, a sense of adventure and maybe some hiking boots. First someone hides a box called the cache in an undisclosed location. Then the coordinates and clues relating to its position are posted online for geocachers to follow. Sometimes the loot is hidden right in plain sight, but it’s always in a place where the average person would never think to look.