New backcountry app can text your exact location to 911 / Jackson Hole
JACKSON HOLE, WYO – Quick! Where do you find the GPS coordinates of your current location on your cell phone? Your smartphone knows where it is at all times but do you know how to access this data.
Having this information handy at the tips of your fingers might become crucial if you were ever stranded, lost, or injured in the backcountry. Now, a new app available from Teton County Search and Rescue may be the very piece of technology that saves a life some day.
BackcountrySOS is a simple-to-use smartphone app that allows you to quickly get your status and location information to emergency personnel via text. It even works even where there is no WiFi or a low signal as long as text-to-911 service is available (true in Teton County Wyoming and Idaho).
The app is available to download in iTunes for the iPhone. An Android version will be ready in a couple of months. It’s free and no registration is required.
Even with the best preparation, skills and behavior, sometimes accidents happen. If they do,
Low power. It will only use your phone’s GPS for the brief period where it fetches your location.
High contrast. The app is easy to read in bright sunlight, and won’t kill your vision at night.
No setup. You don’t need to setup an account or login. If it’s on your phone, the app is ready to use when you need it.
Data efficient. The app works as long as you have enough signal to squeeze out a text message. It will work in places where you can’t get data access or make a voice call.
Free access to the BackcountrySOS app is made possible by the generous support of the Teton County Search & Rescue Foundation as part of their BackcountyZero project.
-Buckrail