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Must-have outdoor apps for smartphones

Outdoor Apps for alpine sports: Emergency App, Peak Finder and more

6 minutes read
Smartphone users have spread rapidly in current years - almost any mountain climber, mountain biker or trail runner now uses an outdoor- app. These seven outdoor apps provide valuable services among other things in an emergency.

In Google Play Store there are apps that are capable of almost everything imaginable: From the weather forecast, recording running sessions to navigating while playing cards at the same time. There are, however, a few practical outdoor apps that you may hopefully never require, but may prove to be extremely useful in the case of an emergency. Whether the scope of emergency is minor or life-threatening, these apps are a handy backup to have in the mountains for the occasional tricky situation. Below you will find a few useful outdoor apps for Smartphones.

Outdoor Apps for emergency

Mountain Rescue Tirol Emergency app

A useful Outdoor-App, for those in the Tirol Alpine Range , | Photo: Mountain Rescue App
A useful Outdoor App, for those in the Tirol Alpine Range, | Photo: Mountain Rescue App

Summing it up: This outdoor app is an absolute must for mountaineers active in Tirol, Austria’s alpine terrain. Mountaineers and climbers in this region just about all have this app installed on their smartphone. Developed by the Tyrolean mountain rescue in cooperation with the rescue coordination centre for Tyrol giving the (almost) exact localisation of the victim by means of an integrated GPS module significantly reduces the time period between alerting emergency services and the actual rescue. At the same time, the telephone connection allows the emergency situation to be clarified and provides the person concerned with verbal assistance on how to deal with the emergency. Note: Currently, the emergency app can only be used in Tyrol and not in adjacent neighbouring Austrian provinces or in nearby Germany.

Peak Finder Alps

Useful not only for navigation, but for summit surrounds. | Photo: Peak Finder Alps App
Useful not only for navigation but for summit surrounds. | Photo: Peak Finder Alps App

Anyone who has ever been close to the natural wonders of mountain ranges can tell you that they’re intriguing and beautiful. They’ll also tell you that it’s easy to lose your location, making it hard to figure out where you are and where you’re heading. That’s where the Peak Finder Alps comes in useful for your smartphone. In combination with a map, the mobile app is an indispensable aid in emergency situations! PeakFinder Alps includes more than 25’000 peak names. The application contains a complete topographic model of the European Alps including the countries Austria, Switzerland, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein and Slovenia and recognizes a total of about 30,000 mountain and peak names. When you reach the summit, fast rendering of the surrounding landscapes will give you the names of prominent and not so prominent nearby peaks. The question is, can it compete with a local guide map? If in doubt, double up – they both work offline!

Altimeter app

runtastic's altimeter. | Photo: runtastic altimeter app
runtastic’s altimeter. | Photo: runtastic altimeter app

The Runtastic altimeter does exactly what it should. The outdoor app quickly shows what altitude you are currently at by means of GPS. If the GPS reception is good, then the altitude measurement works very reliably and fairly accurate. If you don’t already have an altimeter on your wrist, then this is the chance to have one on your smartphone! This outdoor app turns your smartphone into an altimeter with important additional features such as a compass, weather information, exact GPS position, sunrise and sunset! A good GPS reception and a good conventional map in combination with a compass or geographical reference points are quite possible if the reader has a basic knowledge of coordinates with maps, e.g elevation lines.

Field Compass Holo

Compass app for mountaineers. | Photo: fco app
Compass app for mountaineers. | Photo: FCO app

In a dense fog, this mobile app has provided a much-needed service to many a hiker and climber and is, together with a conventional map, a really valuable guide. The compass “works” as an analogue needle – e.g magnetic compass and looks like one also: easy to use with functions that have been kept technically simple and all the information can be shown on one screen. Function and design are impressive in any case. The compass app displays various surface designs – not something required if you’re seriously lost mind you, but nice in any case. The app is based on the latest Android version “KitKat” design.

Flashlight app

The Flashlight app is definitely a must-have outdoor app. | Photo: Flashlight App
The Flashlight app is definitely a must-have outdoor app. | Photo: Flashlight App

This outdoor app is as simple as it is ingenious. It uses the LED flash on your smartphone to provide light in times of need Note: very easy to run down your battery with this app. Ideal for a quick map read the night before a trek, helping to find a keyhole in the dark, to guide you while you’re stumbling on a trail or to send off an emergency light signal (Alpine distress signal: repeated six times in the minute (every ten seconds) then repeated after one minute of break-in same manner). A highly visible signal generator for emergency situations, the app is now ideal due to current LED smartphones.

 

Apemap

The Ape-Map app is one of the classics in digital guidance. | Photo: apemap app
The Ape-Map app is one of the classics in digital guidance. | Photo: apemap app

Apemap is obligatory for smart-phone users who enjoy spending time outdoors. The maps app can now be counted among the classics of digital guidance. Miscellaneous, including payable maps to choose from and also free maps such as Open Street Maps.

Note: The fact that this app always conjures up the latest maps on screen due to its digital origin, is a fallacy – it is still advisable to have a reliable paper map as a backup also.

 

 

 

USMC Survival Guide

Survival training not just for the likes of Bear Grylls | Photo: usmc app
Survival training not just for the likes of Bear Grylls | Photo: USMC app

It may come across as a little old fashioned, but this app pulls a punch in terms of survival training for outdoor enthusiasts and even those who aren’t. Focused on survival in the wilderness, ranging from building an igloo to identifying a poisonous snake, preparing a trap up to how to catch a fish.
If Bear Grylls were to carry a smart-phone with him on his wilderness adventures – he’d be sure to have this app!

Conclusion and remarks on the use of apps in mountain terrain

The smartphone has become an indispensable part of Alpine Rescue – countless successful rescues, which were conducted using mobile phones and Smartphones, testify to this. Nevertheless, it remains to not to lose sight of the fact that electronic aids are not without fault. If the battery is empty or the device is faulty or no GPS access can be serviced in valleys, it becomes a useless block and can even be misleading. A Tip: A map is always a good backup to have, always remain critical despite electronics and always question the evidence of an app. The only exception: You are on a familiar mountain trail where you really know what’s behind every rock and bush!

 

Rubriken und Themen

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