J. Wayne Fears as seen on the Outdoor Wire
The accurate weather information is an important part of the hunting, angling and shooting world, especially in remote locations. Knowing when a storm is approaching can be life saving information. Just knowing the temperature can help you prepare to make a day outside more comfortable.
Not very long ago you had to guess at these weather conditions, but now, thanks to micro electronics, there are small pocket size weather stations that can take the guess-work out of knowing local weather conditions and more.
Here are some of the quality made, compact, handheld weather stations that make predicting weather change, knowing altitude, measuring wind speed, temperature, wind chill, time, and much more as near as your shirt pocket.
Two suggestions we recommend for any hand-held weather station, keep a fresh spare battery with the unit and be sure to protect the wind impeller as a bent, damaged or grit clogged impeller cannot give you good wind information. Many hand-held weather stations now have a wind impeller protector built into the body of the unit.
Gone are the days when a storm can sneak up on you in the high country or you miss a long shot at a 170 B&C class buck because you didn’t know the cross wind speed. Include one of these instruments on your next outing and you have a weather man in your pocket.
Speedtech WindMate 350 ($220) features a large wind impeller, wind direction vane and built in electronic compass, allowing the water resistant WindMate 350 to give accurate crosswind speeds and direction, making it ideal for the long range shooter. It is loaded with weather measurement features such as wind speed/direction, temperature, wind chill, barometric pressure, humidity and dew point, with altitude readings and a clock as an added bonus.
When there is a severe storm coming, indicated by a change in air pressure, a storm warning alarm will sound. Made to military specs, it features a tough water resistant plastic jackknife case. It weighs just over 3 ounces and is 5 ½ inches long. Contact: 703-430-8055; www.speedtech.com
Brunton ADC Pro ($180) is an easy to use, and read, water proof weather station. At a glance you can know the date, time, and weather forecast for your area, temperature, barometric pressure, and altitude. It has a wind impeller cover to protect it from dust and dirt. The impeller is designed to also serve as a basic compass.
The Brunton ADC Pro gives a wide range of valuable weather readings and alarms, including the weather forecast. It also features an alarm clock, water-flow meter, air density and much more.
You can even download information to your computer via the waterproof infrared data port. It is 4.5 inches long and weighs about 3 ounces.
Contact: 307-857-4700; www.brunton.com
Minox Windwatch Pro II ($229) offers weather information measured in units of your choice, wind speed in mph, km/h, knots, m/s, ft/s, or Beaufort and temperature in Centigrade and Fahrenheit with a measuring range from -24 degrees C to + 60 degrees C. It also is an accurate hygrometer, altimeter, barometer, clock, calendar, and stop watch. The wind impeller has a sliding cover which serves as an on/off switch. This unit is water repellent.
The large LC monitor is easy to read and backlit. The sliding cover, which protects the sensors when not in use, is quick and easy to use. It is only 4.6 inches long and weighs 2.3 ounces.
Contact: 866-469-3080; www.minox.com
Kestrel 4500 ($399) is not only waterproof, it also floats and its yellow color makes it easy to locate. It features an electronic compass and measures the temperature of air, water and snow, relative humidity, dew point, wind speed, cross wind, wind chill, heat stress index and barometric pressure. It also gives the time and altitude plus has a data logger feature.
It’s an easy to use unit with a tough cover which protects the entire unit. Also, the unit has a large sensitive impeller for measuring accurate wind speed. It is 6 inches long and weighs 8 ounces.
Contact: 610-447-1555; www.nkhome.com
As I stated in the beginning, most of these companies offer several models of weather stations so if you need more or less features just go to the company’s web site and look at the other models. Weather plays an important part in our outdoor sports. Using these highly accurate instruments, we can now stay on top of the weather conditions and changes that affect our success, even in the most remote locations.
