ORIGINAL: 8mm/06
rwilson makes a good point
Does anybody have some positive experience with radios that will reach 2-3 miles in rugged, hilly, ridges and valleys and wooded thrown in. Is there such a beast?
There really is no such beast. The handheld radios are line-of-sight devices, meaning if you can't see the other radio with binos or stronger. The signal will not get to the other radio even a mile away with a radio with a 5 mile range.