Switched from Google Maps to a paper map for a hiking trip in Shenandoah last month and my phone battery actually lasted the whole day

My buddy kept laughing at me when I unfolded this giant paper map at the trailhead. But after 4 miles we hit a spot with zero signal and his GPS was useless while I just kept walking. I get that maps are way less convenient but when you're out in the sticks they just work. Has anyone else ditched their phone for something low tech and felt more free because of it?

2 comments

2 Comments

patp7916d ago

One year at summer camp we had to navigate to a hidden lake using only a compass and written clues from the 1960s. The camp director was old school and wanted us to feel like real explorers. We got lost for three hours because a creek had dried up and the clues mentioned a "large oak tree" that was just a stump by then. Honestly, it was way more memorable than following a blue dot on a screen.

thomas.cameron16d ago

@patp79 that's awesome lol. We did something similar with just a topo map and a list of landmarks that were mostly gone. Getting lost for a few hours actually made the whole thing way better because we had to really figure it out together. Finding that lake felt like a real win, not just following directions.