Using Satellite in State and National Parks

State and National Park attendance is on the rise. Over 3 million people visited Yellowstone and Glacier parks in 2024, a 9% increase over 2023 … people just want to get away.   Crowded airports and hotels can be a bit overwhelming these days, sometimes it’s best to load up the car and hit the highway to explore all of the beauty this great country has to offer.

2023 saw an increase in National Park attendance of 4% over 2022, with 93.4 visitors enjoying the great outdoors. According to the National Park Service, National Parks accounted for 28% of all nationally regulated park types, which include monuments, memorials and museums. The trend is moving to outdoor activities.

The beauty of all of this – and I mean this quite literally – is that these parks are spread out across the US. The top ten parks visited in 2023 are in North Carolina, Tennessee, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Colorado, California, Maine and Washington … most of these are within a days’ drive for half the country.

With all this outdoor travel comes the challenge of staying connected with family, work and friends. The fact is, we never have to be out of touch, regardless of how remote our destination. Satellite service is available everywhere on the planet, and not just for voice and text, but also for high-speed data! SOS services and tracking programs with databases that include thousands of trail maps for hiking, cycling, off-roading and skiing are available on a wide range of devices from multiple manufacturers.

Handheld devices such as Iridium’s 9555 handset offer voice and text service, while Iridium’s 9575 and Inmarsat’s Pro2 devices offer GPS and SOS features in addition to voice and text services. Iridium also offers a satellite hotspot feature in its GO! and GO! exec models, both units allowing multiple users to connect their smartphones via a Wi-Fi connection.

For those users requiring data services, the Inmarsat BGAN Explorer 510 unit functions as a hotspot device providing data speeds up to 464kbps, which is perfect for checking e-mails and light data use.

Users who really want to take advantage of the internet can go with the Starlink Mini, providing speeds from 120mbps as high as 220mbps. The Starlink device is available in a backpack kit that includes a powerbank and solar charger for a true off-the-grid experience.

Satellite technology has given us the freedom to be anywhere we want to go and still have access to the people and information we need. We wish you safe travels!