Golden Gate National Recreation

[WayneH]

Are GGNRAs consoles true consoles or just base radios? I'm accustomed to seeing up to several hundred radio IDs per console, one ID for each talkgroup the console can access.

That method wasn't carried over for the new P25 system as it's not needed. And the best way to confirm whether a RID is a base or console is to look for affiliations from it.

On a side note and many of you probably already know this--I'm sure the reason many of the radios are in the 700000 range is that they kept their radio ID from the old system.

Exactly, the radio ID's were engraved in to the cases so this keeps the asset control easier.

 

[inigo88]

Hey Wayne,

Don't forget that even though the Presidio Fire Department was disbanded, GGNRA still has a Fire Management Office at Rodeo Beach and they have (or had) several brush patrol type engines there. So I would guess that at least one of your unknown GGNRA talkgroups is delegated for "Fire/EMS" or "Fire Management."

 

[Retired911Guy]

Hey Wayne,

Don't forget that even though the Presidio Fire Department was disbanded, GGNRA still has a Fire Management Office at Rodeo Beach and they have (or had) several brush patrol type engines there. So I would guess that at least one of your unknown GGNRA talkgroups is delegated for "Fire/EMS" or "Fire Management."

Inigo is correct, Southern Marin Fire has been told that when the "new sys" is up, that they will be given new radios and will have a FIRE TG for them.

LOTS MORE INFO (Caution this is long, but provides lots of info)

TGs--------
501 LE-1
502 LE-2
503 LE Tac-1
504
505 radio ck -(unit & Disp CLEAR)Poss Fire-EMS
506 U.S. F&WS
507
508 1-15 unk
509 Techs Talking,TG538 4hits,501 PPD,didn't hear just saw log
517
518 Muir Woods-confirmed (Maybe S Bch also)
519 Maint -South units heard,maybe Park Wide or N-S as old sys
520
521
522 1-12 Unk (same RID's &518 as Desc as MWs 518)
523 Radio Techs
534 ? Disp answered TG 538 on 534 by mistake,8hits 1-24
535 1-12 unk,2hit 1-24
536 1-15
537
538 Alcatraz
539
540

Radio Techs-------
140 (boss tech?)
141
8400 tech - Radio ck from SRO 10-2(using TAM)

Radios--------
GGNRA 725xxx Handheld
GGNRA 726xxx Mobiles

Unit Numbers--------
100s Admin?
200s Maintenance
300s Non LE Rangers
400s Haven't Heard Yet
500s LE Rangers
600s Haven't Heard Yet
700s Heard 712 & 713 on Muir Beach,unsure type,but were talking enforcement type traffic (OLD SYS)
700s "721 this is Alice calling" no answer,so don't know who/what 721 is (OLD SYS)
800s Park PD

Non LE Units------
258 (519)Maint SF Bchs
259 (519)Maint SF Bchs
266 (538)Maint Alcatraz
269 (538)Maint Alcatraz
---
317 (518)Muir Woods TG, unk location
318 (518)Muir Woods TG, unk location
---
323 (538)Alcatraz
322x (538)Alcatraz
325x (538)Alcatraz
326x (538)Alcatraz
328 (538)Alcatraz
329x (538)329chris & 329steve talking to each other ?? whatever
332 (538)Alcatraz
334 (538)Alcatraz
---
370 (518)Talking to 371 (below)
371 (518)371 @ S Bch
379 (518)on Hwy 1 didn't say where.
---
712 Muir Bch, old sys (Handheld walking bch)
713 Muir Bch, old sys (Handheld walking bch)
721 "721 This is Alice calling" (no answer),Old sys
---
3230x (538)325 requested 551 LE to take report and picture of damage, 3230 said he could take care of that.
3232 (538) answered up when 326 called for any "staff" unit
Conf -> (518)140 tech said he was going to MWs to issue new radios, heard/saw 6-7 TG 518's pop up
Conf -> (518)Heard Ranger ask Maint unit to come to MWs to fix a gas leak at the ranger sta

???x = Double confirmed unit Location

Hyde St Security - (OLD SYS)(private Security?)
Alcatraz Security - (OLD SYS)"all rangers are off island, Alcatraz Sec on duty"(private Security?) 1-21

LE Rangers------
502 Out at the Headlands OD@1500 1-3
506 Same Veh as 508 1-3, MWs 1-6
508 Supervisor day & eve-grave 1-2/@Slide Rnch,M Bch,MWs,S Bch,41@1600-42@2400 1-3
509 Phleger Estate,Clear Pgleger enrt 56 1-3,S Bch 1-5
510?
511 Ft Funston,Swenny Ridge 1-7,"10-8" WDs,cityside 1-11
512 SMCO, Marin, Ft Chron 1-7, SF,HdLnds for Medical clears says back to SF 1-12
513 Muir Woods,Headlands 1-3,Ten Vly 1-4,MWs 1-8,O Bch 1-9
514
515
516 HdLands 1-7,YMCA 1-11
517 N from Headlands,MWS,HDLNDS 1-3,hdlnds,SBch 1-11
518 SMCO North 1-2,going South,now Headlands,@35 1-3, O Bch,enrt SMCO 1-9
519 Muir Woods 1-2,Headlands-Tenn Vly,Cityside,Ft Funston 1-3, O Bch,enrt North 1-9
520 enrt MV, S Bch,M Bch 1-11
521 in service,the Pier,O Bch 1-4,HdLnds,St Bch,M Bch 1-6, O Bch 1-7,Hdlnds,O Bch 1-11
522
523 Heading North,@MWs,Stn Bch 1-3,Ft Baker,HdLnds,St Bch 1-4,@56 1-11
524
525 Ft Berry 1-7
526 MWs, S Bch 1-5, Hdlnds,O Bch 1-6, S Bch,Ten Bch,cityside 1-7,Presido,OBch,MWs 1-11
527 ENC-Asked about horses by 506 1-3,CLEAR-Ten Vly,1-5,T Vly,Ft Baker,1-6
528
529
530 O Bch,Ft Point,MWs 1-2, @the Water,SMCO 1-3 HdLnds,M Bch 1-4
532
540 Enc 1-3,CLEAR-enrt city 1-6, enrt city "10-6 Echo 1217"?? 1-7,MBch 1-11
550x (538)Alcatraz (both 550 & 551 answer to LE supervisor)
551x (538)Alcatraz Also heard on (501) @Aquatic Park after Alcatraz closes

Presidio 1 (OLD SYS) Presidio Fire Chief (YES! there is a Presidio Fire Chief)****See Below

Park PD---------
K9-2 SF,Ten Vly 1-7
k9-3 SF
K9-5 SF
K9-6 SF,Vista Pt
811 S Bch(heard many times in Marin) 1-6, Ft Mason 1-7
812 S Bch 1-11
815 O Bch 1-7
809or819or899(talks way to fast) -many SF(past),Ft Baker 1-11

Codes-------
10-1 rec poorly
10-2 rec well
10-3 ?
10-4 Message Rec
10-6 Busy with? also used with "Hold me" with "that suspect 10-6
10-8 in service
10-9 Repeat
10-21 Phone Call
10-23 used as "23 the area checking"
10-24 Location
10-25 meet with
10-35 Disp and/or PPD HQ
10-41 on duty
10-42 off duty
10-56 (Also 56) Headlands Ranger HQ
10-76 enroute to
10-95 prisoner
10-97 radio check (this one really messes me up, I keep thinking 97 where??)

"hold me" busy at location/on scene?

35 Park LE Dispatch Building (also 10-35)
56 Headlands Rangers HQ (also 10-56)
223 SF ranger office?

****Presidio 1 (Fire Chief)
The Presdio trust hired the (or one of) Fire Prevention officers when the Trust
shut down Presidio Fire, to continue to manage fire prevention for the Trust's
assets, and them as everyone knows contracted to SFFD for FIRE protection.

3rd hand info- SFFD was NOT aware of the number of FALSE Fire Alarms 3-5 a week,
SFFD then notified the Trust that they would stop responding to the many Alarms
in the Presidio. The trust started to have Park Dispatch send Prevention 1 to the
alarms. Didn't take Prevention 1 long to figure out that he was being used as a
FireFighter, not a prevention officer and had NO FF backup or Supervisor. The
Trust made him the Presidio Fire Chief (with a pay raise I'm sure), and now he
is covered under Public Safety and is his own Supervisor. As far as backup is
concerned, I have heard Park PD units say that the Fire Chief says he's under control,
so maybe PPD is sent to fire alarms to check if the Chief is OK.

1st hand info- I have also heard (on old sys) copy "Chief" or "goodnight Chief" when
he says he's OD.

Dave

 

[jlanfn]

Inigo is correct, Southern Marin Fire has been told that when the "new sys" is up, that they will be given new radios and will have a FIRE TG for them.

On the radio tech channel today I heard chatter about whether SFFD will be able to use this system in case of an incident. The reply was, "Not at this time, but maybe later through a console patch."

Park PD---------
K9-2 SF,Ten Vly 1-7
k9-3 SF
K9-5 SF
K9-6 SF,Vista Pt
811 S Bch(heard many times in Marin) 1-6, Ft Mason 1-7
812 S Bch 1-11
815 O Bch 1-7
809or819or899(talks way to fast) -many SF(past),Ft Baker 1-11

They definitely have units in the 890s. I've heard "893" and possibly "894." They also have "Motor-88," a motorcycle unit.

What's going on with the other Bay Area national parks (Eugene O'Neill NHS, Point Reyes NS, WWII Home Front NHP, SF Maritime NHP, etc.)? Do GGNRA LE rangers cover them as well?

 

[Retired911Guy]

They definitely have units in the 890s. I've heard "893" and possibly "894." They also have "Motor-88," a motorcycle unit.

Yeah, I forgot to update my list, the 890s are Investigators and also have heard Motor-88

What's going on with the other Bay Area national parks (Eugene O'Neill NHS, Point Reyes NS, WWII Home Front NHP, SF Maritime NHP, etc.)? Do GGNRA LE rangers cover them as well?

only SF Maritime NHP, all others are separate agencies with the exception of maybe WWII Home Front NHP, don't know where that is and haven't heard any ref to it on GGNRA.

Also on your earlier question on the difference B/T Park PD and NPS, Think of Park PD being the Pavement, Parking Area and Residential Area LE, and the NPS being the OFF pavement LE.

Example: Last week heard PPD unit sitting in Ocean Bch parking lot asking if there were any Rangers that could come down to the Bch because many Citizens were burning Xmas trees out on the Bch.

Also Park PD does patrol the Marin area of the Park, as noted in my above post have 811 checking Muir Woods, Muir Beach and Stinson Bch. Also heard an 800 unit talking a car burg report at Muir Woods as opposed to a Ranger. (Pavement-Parking Lot)

Dave

 

[officer_415]

What's going on with the other Bay Area national parks (Eugene O'Neill NHS, Point Reyes NS, WWII Home Front NHP, SF Maritime NHP, etc.)? Do GGNRA LE rangers cover them as well?

I don't know about the others, but Point Reyes National Seashore is patrolled by NPS Rangers out of the Bear Valley Ranger Station. They have their own radio system, but they sometimes operate on the SO talkgroup on the Marin Emergency Radio Authority (MERA) trunked system.

 

[inigo88]

Dave, thanks for the great work!!!

What's going on with the other Bay Area national parks (Eugene O'Neill NHS, Point Reyes NS, WWII Home Front NHP, SF Maritime NHP, etc.)? Do GGNRA LE rangers cover them as well?

As said, Point Reyes National Seashore is a completely separate NPS entity from GGNRA. They are headquartered out of the Bear Valley Ranger Station in Olema, CA. (Where as GGNRA HQ is at Fort Mason in San Francisco.) They have their own mixed mode analog and P25 conventional system in the 163-174 MHz range and their own dispatcher at Bear Valley, and also operate on Marin County Sheriff Control 1. It's also important to realize that their law enforcement protection rangers use unit IDs in the "500" range just like GGNRA does, but they are completely different rangers. I have heard Point Reyes NPS LE rangers and GGNRA NPS LE rangers with the exact same unit ID on duty at the same time, and often wondered what would happen if Bear Valley sent a Point Reyes unit down to Stinson Beach (GGNRA) for mutual aid only for that ranger to have the same ID as his GGNRA counterpart.

GGNRA includes all land marked GGNRA on the map (from the Marin headlands to Ocean Beach all the way down to Sweeny Ridge in San Mateo County), as well as Muir Woods National Monument, Presideo (owned by Presideo Trust), Alcatraz Island, Ft Mason, Ft Point NHS, SF Maritime NHP and Stinson Beach.

According to a friend who used to volunteer there, SF Maritime NHP used a 400 MHz conventional frequency and mostly stayed off the old system, as did the NPS lifeguards at Stinson Beach (and I believe Muir Woods as well). I'm curious to see what these parts of the park will do now with the new system.

Here's a great GGNRA overview map that really shows how convoluted it all is: http://www.nps.gov/goga/planyourvisit/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&PageID=122184

GGNRA detailed map:
http://www.nps.gov/goga/planyourvisit/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&PageID=122191

I wasn't familiar with Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front NHP until you brought it up, but being in the middle of Richmond I have a feeling they use cell/nextel only. I'm also not sure about Eugene O'Neill NHS. Definitely neither are part of GGNRA. However John Muir NHS in Martinez (not to be confused with Muir Woods in Marin) had a talkgroup on the Lawrence Livermore National Lab system before GGNRA made the switch over to them, and Eugene O'Neill is not too far away from them.

Hope that helps.

 

[Retired911Guy]

well, mud in my own eye...

I fixed my antenna last night that I use to monitor the Feds and get much better reception today of Tam.

Now that I can heard all of what they are saying, I must correct part of my post.

TG 518 seems to be Maintenance North with Shops at Headlands, Muir Woods and Stinson Beach.

All the 300 units on TG 518 (that I have heard today) have been talking about construction, HEAVY construction, (Backhoes, Loaders, Dump Trucks, etc)

The 2 confirmations I referred to, could certainly meant going to Muir Woods SHOP to issue radios, and a 300 unit call another unit by and asking him to fix a gas leak @ Muir Woods.
Conf -> (518)140 tech said he was going to MWs to issue new radios, heard/saw 6-7 TG 518's pop up
Conf -> (518)Heard Ranger ask Maint unit to come to MWs to fix a gas leak at the ranger sta

So the question is are ALL 300 units Maintenance? Alcatraz is a very OLD facility and may require this many maintenance units, but where/who are the non LE Rangers???
323 (538)Alcatraz
322x (538)Alcatraz
325x (538)Alcatraz
326x (538)Alcatraz
328 (538)Alcatraz
329x (538)329chris & 329steve talking to each other ?? whatever
332 (538)Alcatraz
334 (538)Alcatraz

Also heard the below 300 units talking about call me at the shop, etc.
370 (518)Talking to 371 (below) (Maint-MWs Shop, talking to 379)
371 (518)371 @ S Bch
379 (518)on Hwy 1 didn't say where.

Muir Woods & Muir Beach Rangers? Well I heard the below on Muir Beach, and had previously heard 700 units on the OLD SYS as Rangers at Muir Woods. It would seem to be convenient to have the Muir Beach Rangers work out of the Muir Woods Ranger Station. AND, we have NOT heard much of them due to NEW System NOT covering the Inner Valleys of MWs and the Beach as far as HandHelds are concerned.
712 Muir Bch, old sys (Handheld walking bch)
713 Muir Bch, old sys (Handheld walking bch)
721 "721 This is Alice calling" (no answer),Old sys

So, here are the basic changes in my post, TG 518 seems to be North Maintenance and 300 units (pending Alcatraz verification) are Maint, but then that leaves the question of TG 519 and the 200 units?, maybe South units with 200 #'s and North units with 300#'s (and there are 200 & 300 units at Alcatraz on TG 538)

Should be easier for me to track units now with antenna fixed.

Dave

 

[inigo88]

All NPS "Protection" Rangers (sworn LEOs) were 400 (South) and 500 (North) on the old system, prior to the name change you seem to have found. The LE protection rangers responsible for patrolling Muir Beach and Muir Woods have always been 500 units.

The 700 units, as far as I know, are "interpretation" rangers. They are rangers who interact with park guests but are not sworn-law enforcement, do not carry guns, etc. I seem to remember 700 units being scattered all over (including at SF Maritime NHP), so I don't believe they are localized to one area.

900 should be the individual ID numbers for fire management personnel, and their rigs last time I checked were Chief 1100, U1136, E1166 and E1176.

 

[SCPD]

All NPS units with a "7xx" number should be base stations, at least that is the procedure in all the other Park Service sites I'm familiar with.

The situation of the units from GGNRA and Point Reyes having the same unit designator is not unusual in the National Park Service or U.S. Forest Service. When a unit transmits on the radio system of another site they add the name of their own site to their unit designator. For example, my unit designator at my last assignment on the Inyo National Forest was "Rec (Recreation) 21" and if I transmitted on the Yosemite National Park net I would add "Inyo" to my designator. So if I called "Yosemite" (Yosemite NP's dispatcher) I would say "Yosemite, Inyo Rec 21." If I worked a temporary assignment on the Angeles National Forest and needed to call one of their units with the same designator, I would say "Rec 21, Inyo Rec 21."

This situation is more common on fires where you might have several Forest Service engines with the same designator. So you might hear "Engine 21, Sierra Engine 21" on the Sequoia National Forest net. On tactical frequencies on a forest or other jurisdiction such as a Cal Fire incident you would hear "Sequoia Engine 21, Sierra Engine 21."

In the case mentioned involving a Point Reyes ranger and a GGNRA ranger, should the Point Reyes ranger transmit on the GGNRA radio system the protocol would be "5-1-2, Point Reyes 5-1-2." This is not unusual as personnel from one park or forest are often temporarily assigned to other parks or forests for special events, fires, prescribed fires, investigations and the like.

"Interpretive" or "Interpretation" personnel of National Parks, National Forests, the BLM and state parks do not translate English into German for visitors from that country. This is the most commonly understood meaning of the word. Rather these people "interpret" cultural history, geology, wildlife biology, ecology and other natural sciences. These are the folks in visitor centers, out leading a "nature walk," or giving a campfire talk.

Interpretive rangers don't use radios very much. Their work is less variable than it is for other functions as they have scheduled events or are working a particular location such as the General Sherman tree in Sequoia Kings Canyon NP's or Kaibab Point at Grand Canyon NP. For the most part they carry radios "in case." In case someone needs medical attention, in case they see a law violation, in case they see a fire, etc. and they will turn the radio on to contact dispatch. In some parks they call in when they complete a walk and start moving toward another location to see if there might be a change in schedule, e.g. "7-4-3 India (Lodgepole Visitor Center) , 6-3-7, I've finished the Wolverton walk and had 16 people, I'm coming back to Lodgepole now," "6-3-7, 7-4-3 please go to the Sherman Tree, Julie says 7 buses just arrived and she could use some help." Their radio procedure is not as crisp as it is with other functions so you can see why parks have been splitting up their radio systems into law enforcement, EMS, fire and administrative nets.

The nature of the work is such that they either have the radio turned down or off. Radio traffic is a distraction for people trying to listen to a presentation or have their question answered. Interpretation folks are not as practiced at listening to the radio while conversing with visitors at the same time as protection or other field going people.

National Parks have four functions besides administration (finance, human resources, etc.) who work for the Park Superintendent. They are "Resource and Visitor Protection," "Interpretation," "Maintenance," and "Resource Management." Each has a branch chief with that title with the exception of Protection where the title is "Chief Ranger." Fire management is usually included in protection. In smaller parks some of these might be consolidated, such as protection with maintenance or protection, maintenance and resources under the chief ranger. Very small park sites, such as Devils Postpile National Monument don't have any branches, with the park superintendent supervising all of the functions. Normally interpretation is not combined with the others. As a park ranger friend of mine, who worked for protection in the backcountry, said "the nature fakers and cops-and-robbers are just too different to have the same boss." He had nicknames for each function as follows: "the boys" (maintenance), "nature fakers" (interpretation), "cops and robbers" (protection) and "furs, feathers and fins" (resources). My nickname for resource management folks is "critters, dirt, twigs and sticks."

I hope this helps for those of you listening to the National Park Service.

 

[inigo88]

Someone told me this was printed on a sticker on their Motorola Spectra 400 MHz trunking radio at GGNRA (which has since been replaced by the LLNL system):

600 – Presidio & Alcatraz Interpretive Rangers
700 – Marin Headlands interpretive staff 
...
3300 - US Fish & Wildlife

Otherwise Exsmokey is right, every other National Park I've monitored has reserved 700 for base station use. GGNRA just does things a little differently apparently... What other parks do you know of that had their own Motorola trunking system? I can't think of any.

 

[SCPD]

Of all the different classifications of National Park Service sites the GGNRA ranks second in visitation, with the Blue Ridge Parkway taking the top spot. This is not surprising considering Blue Ridge is a ribbon of highway and a somewhat narrow strip of land almost 500 miles long. The impacts of such use are generally much less than a NRA or National Park. Third on the list is the most visited National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In annual visits the top three are Blue Ridge 19 million, GGNRA 13.5 million and Great Smoky at 9.3 million. The proximity to an urban area, which in Golden Gate's situation where much of it is actually inside a major urban area, lends some complexity that visitation numbers may not reflect. To put Golden Gates's use in perspective its total is more than that of Yosemite, Sequoia-Kings, Grand Canyon and Yellowstone combined. I didn't look it up but Lassen Volcanic National Park could probably added to that combined amount and still leave the total a few hundred thousand visits short of Golden Gate.

With this in mind it would seem as though the development of a unique radio system for Golden Gate is not a mere anomaly.

 

[officer_415]

For what it's worth, this is what the database says on the old SmartZone system:

100 Headquarters
200 Northern District
300 Fort Mason - Aquatic Park District
400 Ocean Beach District (Beach Patrol)
500 Marin Headlands District (NPS Rangers)
600 Muir Woods National Monument (NPS Rangers)
700 Base stations
800 US Park Police (Presidio)
900 Stinson Beach District

 

[Retired911Guy]

New TGs

505V...>(NEW) Fire-EMS
------->Presidio-1 heard re fire alarm

508Pos.>(NEW) Public Safety Tac?
------->LE units at cliff rescue,2 kids & Dog, rescue done by SFFD(not on this TG of course)

509Pos.>(NEW) Disp (Emerg?) Call Chl
------->Alcatraz Sec checking in after HRs, They did that on OLD SYS TG (272) Emerg Call Chl

518V...>(NEW) Maint-North (300 units all north side)
519V...>(NEW) Maint-South (200 units all south side)

535V...>(NEW) Headlands/Muir Woods 200 Non LE Units
------->Many Non LE rangers & Admin @ both Headlands & Muir Woods,Headlands Vistor Center,
--------Lighthouse rangers, heard NO Muir Bch nor Stinson Bch,see(539)

539pos.>(NEW)Stinson Beach ?
------->920,923,924, Could NOT determine who/where, however Stinson Bch Rangers/Lifeguards
--------were 900 on Old Sys Tac CHL

V=Verified by units IDs or Locations
Pos=Possible new TG Use

I need to work on the new 900s (539) that just came up today to see if I can figure out who they are,
and maybe more TGs soon, Want to go on road trip and chk what sites work best in what areas,
but have lots of Doc Appts this week, then under the knife again Monday, should have lots of time
to monitor sys after that, but Doc says I will need LOTS of pain pills, can't guarantee accuracy with
LOTS of pain pills, but should be fun...(I hope)

Unit Numbers--------
100s Admin? were admin old sys
200s Mixed -Maint South, Non LE Rangers North
300s Mixed -Maint North, Non LE Rangers (Alcatraz,have NOT heard any other Loc yet)
400s Haven't Heard Yet
500s LE Rangers
600s 629Ranger @ Ft Mason on (538) Alcatraz TG (Ft Mason/Aquatic Park 600s old sys on Tacs)
700s Heard 712 & 713 on Muir Beach,were talking "Bch Rules" type traffic (OLD SYS)(May be 500s now)
700s "721 this is Alice calling" no answer,so don't know who/what 721 is (OLD SYS)(Have NOT heard Alice on new sys)
800s Park PD
900s 920,923,924,TG(539) Could NOT determine who/where, however Stinson Bch Rangers/Lifeguards were 900 Old Sys Tac
1100 is the NPS Fire Management Chief and 1100s are seasonal NPS Engines
however they usually keep status with MCFD on MERA, or if a SMFD area call
will use MERA Southern Marin Local Fire TG (last yr heard an NPS engine scab
a car fire SB 101 south of the Waldo Tunnel on MERA Southern Marin Local Fire TG)
(Thanks Inigo for reminding me of the 1100s)

I set this next unit numbers part up by TG rather than unit # due to mixing of numbers on TGs
Also, some Maint units use same 3 digit number then their names, easier to remember,save numbers?

Non LE Units------

(518) Maint-North
311M (518)(TJ)calling 319-No answer (Heavy Construction)
319M (518)319 Joe-Dump truck Driver (Heavy Construction)
317 (518)Maint North, unk location
318 (518)Maint North, unk location
329M (518)329chris,329steve,329Nic talking water level OK,auto-alarm on,we're all set.
370M (518)Talking to 371 (below) (MWs Shop, talking to 379)
371M (518)371 @ S Bch shop 1-30,Working on signs @MWs Talk to Lynn-Adm on (535) 1-31
379M (518)on Hwy 1 didn't say where
----
(519) Maint-South
213 (519)Maint Unk Loc (213called 2 other 213s with other names)
251M (519)Maint South
258M (519)Maint South
259M (519)Maint South -259Lou & 259Jim
----
(535) Marin Headlands-Muir Woods (have NOT heard Muir Bch nor Stinson Bch)
Lynn Adm(535)MWs- Making Anouncement to all Muir Woods Staff,Heard many times now @ MWs
211R (535)Headlands- she'd by back @ Visitor Center about 20 min
220R (535)Headlands- Asked 229 eta back to the office, HLDS Visitor center said nothing going on here
225R (535)MWS- buses just showed up at Parking Lot, Lynn Admin said going into the woods now, will try to find her some help.
229R (535)Headlands- Answer to 220R (ETA) Above 5 min
2240 (535)Calling Nursery no answer, later calling 2241 no answer (just one of those days)
2241 (535)Above 2240 calling

Old Sys before Headlands/Muir Woods TG online
(definitely not carrying base stations around the beach with them, also heard 700 unit on old sys @ MWs)
712R Muir Bch, old sys (Handheld walking bch)
713R Muir Bch, old sys (Handheld walking bch)
721 "721 This is Alice calling" (no answer),Old sys
----
(538) Alcatraz
266 (538)Maint-South working @ Alcatraz? (this before Maint S TG came online)
269 (538)Maint-South working @ Alcatraz? (this before Maint S TG came online)
300xR (538)Alcatraz -Talking about VIP Vistors
321xR (538)Alcatraz -with Group of 30 Tourists
322xR (538)Alcatraz -with Group of 30 Tourists
323 (538)Alcatraz
324xR (538)Alcatraz talking to 551 re illegal photo shoots
325xR (538)Alcatraz -Ranger at Ferry Dock
326x (538)Alcatraz -Need the keys to the lighthouse
328x (538)Alcatraz
332 (538)Alcatraz
334 (538)Alcatraz
3230x (538)325 requested 551 LE to take report and picture of damage, 3230 said he could take care of that.
3220x (538) answered up when 326 called for any "staff" unit
---
(600s were Ft Mason & Aquatic Park on old sys and on Tac chl for all ops)
629R (538)said @ Ft Mason talking on(538)to 325 about VIP guests for ferry
629R (538)Get in 7pm positions, show them the GREEN ROOM
629R (538)about 130 VIPs still at dock, 325 says all altcatroopers hold your positions
----
(539) Unk - Maybe Stinson Beach
920 (539) Unk Who/Where (900s were Stinson Bch on old sys)
923 (539) Unk Who/Where (900s were Stinson Bch on old sys)
924 (539) Unk Who/Where (900s were Stinson Bch on old sys)
---
???x = Double confirmed unit Location
???R = Confirm Ranger Activity
???M = Confirm Maint Activity
----
Presidio 1 (OLD SYS) Presidio Fire Chief (Now on New Sys TG(505)
Hyde St Security - (OLD SYS)(private Security?)
Alcatraz Security - (OLD SYS)"all rangers are off island, Alcatraz Sec on duty"(private Security?)Now on New Sys TG (509)

no change to other info on last big post
Dave

 

[SCPD]

For those who like statistics those I quoted in my last post were from 2006. I wasn't looking at my usual source for this info. The rankings haven't changed much but Golden Gate's significance is greater using 2010 information. The numbers are in terms of visits and rounded to the nearest 100,000.

#1 Blue Ridge Parkway: 14.5 million
#2 Golden Gate NRA: 14.3 million
#3 Great Smoky Mtns. NP: 9.5 million
#4 Gateway NRA (N. York): 8.8
#5 Lake Mead NRA: 7.1 million

If the visitation of Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Sequoia-Kings and Death Valley are combined it is about 20,000 visits short of the Golden Gate NRA. GGNRA has the most complex radio system of any National Park unit and now you can see why.

I think that the Blue Ridge Parkway has a recently built digital, wide area, voted VHF repeater system. Considering its 470 some mile length, this radio system must be quite interesting. I would expect most of the linking is via VoIP, which makes it less interesting, at least to me. Grand Canyon's new system, not yet complete, is quite interesting. Five channels; Admin, Protection, EMS, Fire/SAR and a repeated tactical net each multi-casted from 6 electronic sites using voted mobile input. Making it more complex is the lack of phone circuit coverage for much of it, so VoIP is not an option in those areas. Covering the river of that canyon has to be one of the greatest challenges using 30+ MHz frequencies that any entity in the U.S. has. Even with all the above I think there will still be a good sized blind spot in the western portion of the park. I've taken some backpacking trips in that blind spot and it is wonderful!

 

[inigo88]

For what it's worth, this is what the database says on the old SmartZone system:

100 Headquarters
200 Northern District
300 Fort Mason - Aquatic Park District
400 Ocean Beach District (Beach Patrol)
500 Marin Headlands District (NPS Rangers)
600 Muir Woods National Monument (NPS Rangers)
700 Base stations
800 US Park Police (Presidio)
900 Stinson Beach District

That list came Bob Kelty's GRS Golden Gate book, and in this case he was wrong.

700 was interp rangers, not base stations. 400 was not limited to Ocean Beach, these were ALL the LE protection rangers south of the Golden Gate, while 500 was North LE protection rangers.

Another discrepancy is the 900 units. I never heard any Stinson Beach lifeguards on the trunked system (thy were always on 408.4 simplex CSQ), but I did once hear the Stinson Lifeguard tower come up on the old Fire/EMS TG - however I was never able to confirm whether the guards at Stinson used 900 unit IDs. However, the one time I heard 900 used was by two FIRE MANAGEMENT units in the viscinity of Montara in San Mateo county, who were doing a fuels survey of the vegetation there.

Therefore, I think the lifeguards at Stinson are likely a subset of the Fire Management Office (this is the case with the Lifeguards in Los Angeles & San Diego), and thus the 900 unit IDs are assigned individually to Fire/EMS personnel. When they're not attached to a rig (as in the case of the inspectors I heard or the lifeguards) they use their individual ID, while if they're driving one of the Type-6 Brush Patrol Engines they use the 1100 ID for that rig.

If this sounds familiar, it's because the Tomales Volunteer FD in Marin County uses the same system. Individual firefighters responding come up on the radio as 500 units, while those responding in the MCFD engines use the engine IDs (E1580 and E1560).

Dave, would your data back up this hypothesis?

 

[BlueZebra]

The paid Marin County Fire staff are on 1560 and 1580. Yes, the Tomales Volunteers have 500 series numbers when they are on portables. They staff 1590 regularly and 1561 occasionally. .

 

[Retired911Guy]

That list came Bob Kelty's GRS Golden Gate book, and in this case he was wrong.

700 was interp rangers, not base stations. 400 was not limited to Ocean Beach, these were ALL the LE protection rangers south of the Golden Gate, while 500 was North LE protection rangers.

Another discrepancy is the 900 units. I never heard any Stinson Beach lifeguards on the trunked system (thy were always on 408.4 simplex CSQ), but I did once hear the Stinson Lifeguard tower come up on the old Fire/EMS TG - however I was never able to confirm whether the guards at Stinson used 900 unit IDs. However, the one time I heard 900 used was by two FIRE MANAGEMENT units in the viscinity of Montara in San Mateo county, who were doing a fuels survey of the vegetation there.

Therefore, I think the lifeguards at Stinson are likely a subset of the Fire Management Office (this is the case with the Lifeguards in Los Angeles & San Diego), and thus the 900 unit IDs are assigned individually to Fire/EMS personnel. When they're not attached to a rig (as in the case of the inspectors I heard or the lifeguards) they use their individual ID, while if they're driving one of the Type-6 Brush Patrol Engines they use the 1100 ID for that rig.

If this sounds familiar, it's because the Tomales Volunteer FD in Marin County uses the same system. Individual firefighters responding come up on the radio as 500 units, while those responding in the MCFD engines use the engine IDs (E1580 and E1560).

Dave, would your data back up this hypothesis?

What is this, beat up Bob Kelty day?, I know you're trying to make a point that what's listed in the unit number list is not entirely correct now, it may have been when posted or when copied from a copyrighted publication, but I think the Bob Kelty did and still does us scanner fans a huge service with his publications.. My first guide of his was the 3rd addition published in 1986 and I've been buying them ever since, he still does publish 4 area editions and I still buy updated versions every couple of yrs to thank him for all of his service to us scanner geeks before RR existed. (due to so many recent changes in the Bay Area his 2011 edition is out of date) Not trying to make this an ad, just giving credit where credit is due.

I have NOT heard any 900 units since my first report of them so I have NOT been able to move at all as to who they are.

I wondering if, to keep RP site traffic level down, the new is system will leave Stinson Beach on the simplex Tac chl, and Ft Mason/Aquatic Park areas on the Simplex Tac chls they were on.

Have NOT heard any Stinson Beach, Ft Mason or Aquatic Park traffic on NEW Sys Sites, I had been told yrs ago that Disp had landline control of the S. Bch base station and could talk directly to S Bch units from the Simplex tac chl with antenna on top of the main 2 1/2 story life guard tower.

Also, the Park PD blg at Ft Mason where Park Disp is located would also cover Ft Mason and Aquatic Park Areas well with a rooftop antenna for the Tac chls they used to operate on, on the old system.

In a prior post I mentioned heard Ranger 629 saying he was at Ft Mason waiting for a VIP group of visitors for Alcatraz and he was was on the Alcatraz TG, but have never heard any other 600 unit on any other TG on RP Site. Today heard same guy (recognized voice) and same Radio ID as 329 working at Alcatraz. Maybe South Rangers move between Alcatraz and Ft Mason/Aquatic Park and change IDs 300s when on Alcatrz and 600s at Ft Mason/Aquatic Park but we don't hear them there because they're using the simplex Tac Chls. Just a thought.

Someone who lives on a hill that may be able to pickup Simplex Tac channel traffic should see if he hears anything on the old Tac chls. (hint, hint)

Never know what you may hear on the old sys, just a few minutes ago heard Park PD 811 giving status to dispatch on old LE1, disp said what-ya doing over here, 811 said new radio is broken, can't get it to work.

Also have double-triple-etc checked the below TGs and sumitted

Verified New TGs for GGNRA part of Lab System

505 Fire/EMS
509 Parkwide Dispatch Call Chl
518 Maint-North (300 units)
519 Maint-South (200 Units)
535 Marin Headlands/Muir Woods/Muir Beach Operations

Notes
505 Verified Presidio Fire Chief talking to Dispatch about taking fire alarm off-line due to malfunction
509 Same as old sys 272 except NOT "Emergency" call Chl, many different TG units call in with misc info, such as Alcatraz after hrs security AND some requests for LE.
518 Maint includes garbage collectors, tree/bush trimmers, blg Maint, gen repairs, to heavy construction (backhoes & dump trucks)
519 same as 518
535 Admin & Non LE Rangers, Don't know how to list this, most of Marin, EXCEPT Stinson Beach

Dave

 

[officer_415]

535 Admin & Non LE Rangers, Don't know how to list this, most of Marin, EXCEPT Stinson Beach

Maybe the equivalent of "Admin North" on the old system?

 

[Retired911Guy]

Maybe the equivalent of "Admin North" on the old system?

Well, yes that's where they were on the old system and maybe it was somewhat incorrectly named, yes there are admin personnel for both the Headlands and Muir Woods, but also ALL the non LE rangers who are not really admin. Maybe it was just misnamed by someone in the beginning and never changed.

I believe Wayne updated the DB on the Alcatraz TG and called it Alcatraz Operations, which is a correct description of it's use, I don't think "Admin North" is really correct for ranger operations. "North Operations" might be OK, but then that would suggest that it includes Stinson Beach which it doesn't seem to. See what I mean?
Just being picky

Dave