It is more fun to use a handheld ham radio when you can tell it to scan different frequencies and stop there if it hears anyone. Whatever your location there are places to hang out on certain frequencies. For example here are some of them around Milwaukee Wisconsin. The trouble is that wherever you go those places will change and it is hassle to program your handheld to know about them. Fortunately it can be done easily:
CHIRP makes it easy to program your handheld radios.