Busy F&G weekend

[JoshandBaron]

Me too. Gaia has been amazing in the town conservation areas closer to my house too. It's quite remarkable how accurate it is, really. That said, my iPhone battery is nearly useless if it gets below 20 degrees, so Gaia season has ended for me.

I think these people are using something like AllTrails that often gives an incomplete picture of what is actually happening on the ground. It's crowdsourced and marketed towards the less experienced so the crowd it's sourced from isn't reliable. There is no standard in the written descriptions and perceived difficulty is entirely subjective. Gaia and CalTopo are much more powerful tools that give a much more complete picture of what is going on without the noise of the hivemind.

 

[HockeyPuck]

It brings up a great conversation about the use of a cell phone as a valid source for mapping data (perhaps someone should start a new thread). We've all seen several news articles stating lost hikers were using a cell phone as their navigational device. I used to think "what a bonehead" but have recently changed my views on this subject.

I carry paper maps** and compass as my emergency source of navigation. They rarely come out of my backpack. I carry a GPSr as my (previous) primary source of navigation and found the TOPO maps I purchased (in 2004-2005) are severely outdated. It doesn't contain updated trailhead information or trail rerouting. This has frustrated me on several occasions with all the AT rerouting in Maine as my GPSr maps show the old trail location.

I've began using the free version of GaiaGPS and I found the maps much more accurate than both my paper copies and GPS however the free version was dependent on cell reception. I paid for a basic membership which allowed me to download multiple map sources to my phone (Apple) and doesn't rely on cell reception to pinpoint my location on the map(s). I've found it extremely accurate and it's surprisingly become my primary navigational aid.

Nothing is better than the self-reliance of understanding how to use a map and compass. However, the cell phone (as long as the battery is charged) is a really convenient and reliable navigational aid.

Note** My paper maps are printed from a free on-line resource such as CalTOPO or Acme Mapper and are not the maps provided in the AMC guide.

Now when I read an article that states a lost hiker was using a cell phone as their primary mapping source, I'm not so quick to eye roll at how unprepared they might be...

 

[DayTrip]

Note** My paper maps are printed from a free on-line resource such as CalTOPO or Acme Mapper and are not the maps provided in the AMC guide.

Now when I read an article that states a lost hiker was using a cell phone as their primary mapping source, I'm not so quick to eye roll at how unprepared they might be...

It's basically the old "garbage in, garbage out" adage from the computer industry. If the user doesn't understand the concepts of reading and using a map and compass then the value of a GPS unit or app is greatly diminished.

 

[ChrisB]

I paid for a basic membership which allowed me to download multiple map sources to my phone (Apple) and doesn't rely on cell reception to pinpoint my location on the map(s). I've found it extremely accurate and it's surprisingly become my primary navigational aid.

Does the app interface with your GPS to locate you on a map when there is no cell phone signal?

 

[JToll]

When I upload a Caltopo map to Avenza it does show my location without using a cell phone signal.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Does the app interface with your GPS to locate you on a map when there is no cell phone signal?

Typically, the GPS knows where you are and can always give you lat/lon/elevation. It can't draw it on a map if it cannot download the map from the internet (unless it had previously done so and is the cache.)

Tim

 

[iAmKrzys]

Does the app interface with your GPS to locate you on a map when there is no cell phone signal?

All popular hiking-oriented mapping apps that I am aware of utilize smartphone built-in gps and have some (perhaps paid) option to pre-download maps prior to hiking. Hence with a little planning ahead of the hike there should be no need for cell phone signal. I think the primary issues are accuracy of available maps, cell phone battery life (especially when it's very cold), reliability in challenging weather conditions (is your phone waterproof? is touch screen working ok when wet? do you need to take the gloves off to operate it?), ruggedness (what if you drop your phone on a rock or into a stream?) Advantage over a hiking gps is a bigger screen size with higher resolution.

Personally, I prefer to keep my phone available for emergencies and use my hand-held gps instead. For the record, I also carry paper maps but most of the time they stay in my pack.