AllTrails
Cost: Free
Devices: Android, iOS
This outdoor app covers more than 50,000 trails in North America, and is regularly updated. You can sort trails as per length, difficulty, location and whether they are pet-friendly or child-friendly. The outdoor app also lets you save a trail for offline use. You can upload pictures from within the trail, as well as your own tracks using your phone’s GPS tracker.
MotionX GPS
Cost: $1.99
Devices: iOS
This GPS based map and navigation outdoor app allows you to download topographical maps ahead of time instead of relying on spotty 3G coverage. Along with offline map storage, you can construct your own routes or follow predetermined ones. The activity tracker on the outdoor app records your total time, speed and distance covered.
BackCountry Navigator
Cost: $9.99; extra cost for specific maps
Devices: Android
The outdoor app can draw on map data from a variety of free and paid sources, and store them for later offline use. It can completely replace a handheld GPS device. Maps even include options like snowmobile, whitewater and equestrian.
Trail Tracker GPS
Cost: Free
Devices: iOS
The outdoor app logs your entire trip that includes hiking, cycling, running, etc. The log constitutes terrain and 3D maps, data sharing, photo cataloging and live viewing of trail progress. In an emergency, you can also send out your coordinates using the outdoor app.
National Parks by National Geographic
Cost: Free
Devices: iOS
The outdoor app consists of free photo galleries, visitor information and maps that guide you through 25 of America’s most popular national parks including Acadia, Haleakala, Yosemite, Shenandoah and Grand Canyon.
Oh Ranger! Park Finder
Cost: Free
Devices: Android, iOS
The outdoor app has a comprehensive database of every federal public land in the US including national, state and local parks. Each location is correlated with available activities, and matched with your preferences from up to 30 different activity categories. This outdoor app also provides maps and directions, contact information, weather alerts and nearby attractions.
MapMyHike
Cost: Free, premium subscription starting at $5.99/ month unlocks other features
Devices: Android, iOS
The outdoor app allows you to log over 600 different types of workout, as well as connect data with more than 400 devices. A Gear Tracker, Workout Stats and Activity Graph measure your pace, distance, calorie counting, elevation profile and route navigation.
Geocaching.com
Cost: Free, premium membership is $5.99/month
Devices: Android, iOS
Using your phone’s GPS and maps, this outdoor app looks at more than 2 million active geocaches worldwide. Players hide caches of small items and then post the cache’s GPS coordinates for other players to find.
Yonder
Cost: Free
Devices: Android, iOS
Chronicle photos and notes on your trek on this outdoor app, while reading from a database of more than 200,000 journal entries from fellow trekkers. This social networking outdoor app allows you to research the trails of other hikers while sharing your own outdoor experiences.
Ramblr
Cost: Free
Devices: Android, iOS
Another mobile journaling outdoor app, Ramblr allows you to record everything including your average speed, distance traveled, elevation points, and mapping. You can also tag pictorial, video or audio descriptions on your map. The outdoor app allows you to upload your detailed notes, as well as look into the journals of other Ramblr users.
Elevation Chart
Cost: $1.99
Devices: iOS
This outdoor app allows you locate your current elevation and measure the walking distance between two points in the middle of your hike. It’s a great outdoor app when you are on the lookout for alternative trails and routes.
GPS Essentials
Cost: Free
Devices: Android
Choose from 45 widgets in this outdoor app to build your own dashboard, complete with navigation values such as altitude, speed, coordinates, target, moon phases and time. The outdoor app also features a HUD camera, route track functions and a compass, that allow for better orientation, waypoints determination and data sharing.
Leafsnap
Cost: Free
Devices: iOS
Developed by a partnership between the University of Maryland, Columbia University, and the Smithsonian Institution, this outdoor app provides identifying information on a variety of plant species based on high resolution images of leaves, bark, flowers and fruits.
Audubon Birds Pro
Cost: Free
Devices: Android, iOS
The outdoor app is a complete field guide that identifies 821 bird species complete with 3200 photographs, migratory maps, bird calls, appearance details , habitat descriptions, behaviors and more. You can log bird sightings into a personalized app account, and share it over social media.
Star Walk
Cost: $2.99
Devices: Android, iOS
Vito Technologies has created a reality star chart outdoor app reflecting the stars and planets above you. It includes the history and mythology of the heavenly bodies, as well as a Time Machine slider that lets you view the skies of the past or future. The outdoor app guides you to locate objects and you can zoom in on them for more details. A night mode feature in the outdoor app also allows you to stargaze without exhausting your night vision.
Cairn
Cost: Free
Devices: iOS
This safety outdoor app logs your location and puts together information about where you can receive a mobile signal on a map. It also allows you to leave your trip plans with your friends, so that your contacts can be alerted with a map of your location data if you are MIA.
Army Survival Guide
Cost: $1.99
Devices: iOS
The outdoor app contains information of every kind, from poisonous plants and water sources, to starting fires, medical techniques, animal identification.
SAS Survival Guide
Cost: $5.99
Devices: Android, iOS
The outdoor app features first aid techniques, 16 instructional videos by John Wiseman, Morse code signalling, and a photo gallery of edible, medicinal and poisonous plants.
First Aid- American Red Cross
Cost: Free
Devices: Android, iOS
The “Learn” mode in this outdoor app provides detailed descriptions of injury types, the first aid treatment involved, followed by a Q&A section. The “Emergency” mode in the outdoor app churns out concise instructions, sometimes with videos and diagrams, as well as a one button shortcut to call 911.
Dark Sky
Cost: $3.99
Devices: iOS
Great for travel planning, this outdoor app provides extended weather forecasts as well as local changes through customizable weather alerts.
Weather Timeline
Cost: $0.99
Devices: Android
A trek can be ruined by unforeseen weather. This outdoor app has minute warnings of even rainfall by summarizing the next 48 hours as well as the entire week.
