I have a Yaesu VX-6R and a pair of old Kenwood UHF/VHF handhelds a friend gave me when he was cleaning out some old things. I bought the Yaesu a few years ago and wanted something small, rugged, and waterproofish for SHTF as at the time my daily commute involved the Willamette and Columbia rivers among others. I figured there would be a way to ferry across the two big rivers but might have to cross some of the smaller ones on foot. There are a few places I could float/swim across the Willamette if needed. I also figured there would be repeaters that hadn't run out of power I could use for the 2-3 days it would take to get home.
I am looking for solutions to 3 SHTF case scenarios:
1) What to have at my house and how to keep effective antennas hidden as I don't want to advertise the presence
2) What to have in my vehicles. See below for info on my current thoughts.
3) What to take if I am on foot or have to exit a vehicle. During normal times this can be my Yaesu handheld. During some SHTF scenarios the repeaters would be down so HF would have more utility, so may take the mobile from the vehicle along with a lightweight battery, solar charger, and lightweight antenna. While much heavier and cumbersome than a handheld it might be what is needed to contact home or otherwise get assistance.
I'm thinking along the lines of a Yaesu 857D (I think we have discussed a bit via PM on SM) for vehicles and some get home scenarios. Because we are moving to snow country I'd like my wife to have the ability to do an APRS location in the event she gets stuck during a storm or otherwise needs me to know where to come and get her. The 857D doesn't have APRS, but it shines everywhere else. I've been doing some research to see if an external APRS locator can be added. There are plenty of mobile radios with APRS, but so far have seen none that allow for HF, since I also see utility with a portable HF antenna system when traveling and also as a backup for the home solution.
