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by podperson 5004 days ago
A lot of seriously dedicated "off-the-beaten-track" types will have solar chargers for their iPhones (or whatever), GPS works everywhere except near US Military Bases.

I hope they've been judicious in their use of power while in the background. It seems like a cool idea to me. I can easily imagine simply trying to fill in the area I live in much the same way as I would explore nooks and crannies in dungeons maps.
3 comments
maurits 5004 days ago
I don't think so. I am a mountain climber and my phone is off and for emergencies only. It is not even a smart phone as they are way to vulnerable and consume to much energy to run.
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microtonal 5004 days ago
A lot of seriously dedicated "off-the-beaten-track" types will have solar chargers for their iPhones (or whatever), GPS works everywhere except near US Military Bases.

Or just switch their phones off, unless they need help, if you are lucky enough to have reception. The "off-the-beaten-track" types that I know use paper maps, or a Garmin GPS that lasts two days while continually using maps on two AA batteries, that can handle occasional drops and water.

I like hiking every now and then, but do not really see use for this. What does it give me over uploading my tracks on the many 'show my last hike track' websites?

Besides that, I can really see this being harmful for nature, people destroying vulnerable plants and animals just to remove a particular piece of fog. It's as sad as people completely 'flattening' a some spot to find a particular Geocache.

(I do like responsible Geocaching, but people should be made aware of damage that they could make.)

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InclinedPlane 5004 days ago
The point of serious backpacking, hiking, and backcountry climbing is to get away, not to stay tethered to facebook.
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icebraining 5004 days ago
Who said anything about Facebook?

And if you're talking about the Internet at all, that's not the point of serious backpacking, hiking, etc, that's your point.

For example, João Garcia, who reached the top of all the 14 highest mountains in the world (Everest, K2, Annapurna, etc) without an oxygen bottle, had an internet-connected GPS logger with him - a system which also happens to have an iOS app. Was he not "seriously hiking" because of that?

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