I have never taken a radio--that's one of the things I go backpacking to get away from--along with phones and other gadgets! The one "gadget" I take is my camera.

It's far better to learn to read the clouds and various other weather signs! Weather forecasts here in the Pacific NW are pretty unreliable anyway, I've found. That's particularly true in mountains, which create their own local weather.

I do carry a Personal Locator Beacon in case of life-threatening emergency, but only because I go solo. Call it psychological weight-saving, if you will, getting friends and family off my back.