I was reading my ship-to-shore manual and it says with that proper antenna on high output the range is generally up to 25 miles. Have not tested that but sure m curious. if that is the case that will just about give you 50 miles of coverage. may have a 10 mile window with no coverage.

or you could do this and avoid the fresh water whales that are known to ram boats just south of Beaver Island.
https://www.ssbadger.com/

Maybe from a fly bridge. An antenna mounted on a go fast usually doesn't have that much range. A hand held only reaches about 5 miles.

Did the badger have a incident

Hand held correct me if I m wrong are 2 or 5 watt. Ship to shore are 25 watt on high power & 5 watt on regular. Should be 5 x s further.

Whats a PLB? I m new here..

personal life beacon or something like that.

When activated it transmits a signal on an emergency frequency so you can be found.

Not a bad idea.

I wasnt aware that lakers hitting other vessels was a semi-common occurrence.

The weather is looking good for this weekend - go for it. Tell some friends you're going, an idea of your planned route and times of departure/arrival, call when you get there/back,etc... an informal float plan of sorts. You'll have a blast, do it.

I agree...unfortunately I have prior obligations this weekend......isnt that how it always works? Great boat weather for when one is busy.

Boy can I relate to this.