For what it's worth guys, I ended up buying a dedicated 10,000mah android device that is waterproof here:
https://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_733413.html?wid=1817324
According to the some tech sites, the phone is able to last up to 33 days on LTE, 55 Days on 3G, and 77 days on 2g.
Just waiting for it to arrive.
In the meantime, on my other android phone I was able to install gps tracking software that uses both GPS and cellular, AND wifi which actually works great when at home or parked around areas that have known networks.
I can control all aspects of the tracking in real time, even see the speed, the device is travelling at and where it's headed. I can also remotely control the device via vnc/teamviewer based services.
In addition to the awesome tracking stuff, I was able to set up tilt sensors and use the accelerometers to send me push notifications, emails, AND sms messages to my personal device.
Basically, the ultimate custom tracking unit.
The downside is, I still need to pick a mobile carrier and plan. Right now I have it all running on wifi.
Pretty stoked!!
When I finally get it the way I want it, I might make a tutorial if others are interested in doing similar stuff. I highly recommend if you're a techy like myself, you look into the Tasker app for android to utilize all those features for custom installs.