Is the iPhone the ultimate camping gadget?
Yes, I hike. Yes, I camp in the woods… yes, I’ve got a cell which I always carry with me. And it’s smartphone actually. And yes, I’ve got friends who are totally in love with their iPhones. Seeing them using a multitude of apps only makes me wonder whether smartphones – and iPhones in particular – are the ultimate camping gadgets.
Let’s see… there are apps developed for iPhone which can do a lot of …useful things (and of course, there are apps which I cannot find a purpose for). The other days, one of my friends mentioned the national parks iPhone apps … he started talking about how useful it is to have info at the tap of your fingers, to be able to plan everything while you stay in a coffee shop … and all those things geeks start mumbling about (and I’m one step away from wanting to vanish). Sure, I admit, knowing the hike times and details about the trails is great – but wasn’t fun to actually read paper maps?
Of course, after the talk about the national parks came the camping apps for the iPhone discussion. This time I was actually interested. Wait a minute! Apps list camping grounds worldwide? Now , that’s some I love! You see, this gal is a sucker for Europe… and in some places it’s a bit tricky to easily find a camping ground. Thanks to the iPhone’s GPS, an app can actually show the near-by camping grounds. Ok, I’m love!
So, to put it in simple words, if you plan to head to Hawaii to visit the Volcanoes National Park , your iPhone – thanks to the apps available – can tell you details about the park, the camping grounds, the trails and pretty much anything else you care to know. No paper maps, no guidebooks. Just make sure your iPhone is charged!