For those not keen on using a marine radio, and maybe don’t even have one, SafeTrx app for smartphones is a neat new way of keeping you safe on the water.
Downloading the app to your smartphone is quick and easy and took us about 5 minutes.
The hardest part was choosing a password and remembering the boat rego!
Once downloaded, SafeTrx can be activated to monitor your journey 24/7.
If you fail to log off at your allocated return time, SafeTrx will endeavour to contact you and your family contacts to establish your well-being.
Once you’re confirmed overdue, SafeTrx will use your last recorded position and escalate a response using Search and Rescue teams to ensure help gets to you directly and quickly.
Karen demonstrates the ease of use of the app in this short video.
Position, speed and heading information is obtained from your smartphone GPS and transmitted periodically back to the SafeTrx servers where it is securely stored.
After the trip you can see exactly where you’ve been and if you’re feeling generous about your fishing spots, share your trip details on Facebook (we decided to pass on that functionality haha).
We did find one small problem when travelling remotely around Cooktown.
We forgot to “End Trip” at the boat ramp and by the time we remembered were out of radio range and had to backtrack to mobile reception in order to log off.
So it’s not suitable for remote area trips and in these instances we recommend a satellite phone to log on and off with Coast Guard/ VMR – we carry one at all times when we head bush.
If you wish to continue to use the app after the free number of trips there’s a small charge attached, however really, what price can you pay for safety?
Expecting friends and family, who can easily get sidetracked and forget, to monitor your safe return is a recipe for disaster.
If I’m ever treading water in shark and croc infested water, I want to be secure in the knowledge that when my recorded ETA has elapsed, a search and rescue escalation process will be implemented.
This is especially so for those coming home to an empty house e.g. live alone or if your loved ones are with you. It might take hours or even days for people to work out you’re missing.
Now I’m no expert on this app having only used it a few times, so if you have any questions or queries, pop over to the SafeTrx website and check it out.
http://coastguard.com.au/safetrx
Additional Safety Suggestions;
When your mate almost takes your head off with his lure, get him to watch this…
https://www.ryanmoodyfishing.com/safe-and-accurate-way-of-casting-a-lure-with-a-spinning-reel/
Store your rods safely while travelling with these handy cleats;
https://www.ryanmoodyfishing.com/dont-get-booked-this-xmas/
Or maybe you just want to watch some amazing fishing action! You can’t go past our Big Barra Series;
https://www.ryanmoodyfishing.com/big-barra-series/
If you are new to Ryan Moody Fishing, please have a look around. We have some great fishing tips and action for you.
