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Phones are becoming more and more popular on the hiking trails and the climbing crags. And although phones can be useful, they should never be your only source of navigation, always remember to have a map and compass on the trail, and a proper guide book at the crag.
However, as more and more people take their smart phone on the trail, there are more and more outdoor apps becoming available, and some are very useful. Here are some I have recently tried and found to be very useful.
The Wix App
Niagara Adventure Club uses Wix to build and host our web page, and Wix Ascend for all our email and marketing. It's a very easy to use platform and has all the apps I need to make our club work, at a very resonable price. It also offers the Wix App. The app allows me to manage the club on the go, and gives me full remote control, so I never miss anything. But, as a user, you may also install the Wix App and use it to follow the club, sign up for events, shop on our store, read and post to our forum and keep in contact on the go and it has a very simple to use interface. You can create a site member profile and have access to the Niagara Adventure Club and any other Wix webpages you may be interested in. I find it to be a very useful app, and give it 4 out of 5 stars!
The Bruce Trail App
For a small fee of $19.99, you can use the Bruce Trail App to plan and log all your Bruce Trail hikes. The Bruce Trail is Canada’s oldest and longest marked footpath. Carry the most up-to-date Bruce Trail information with you on your day-hikes or long-distance adventures on the Niagara Escarpment. The Bruce Trail App features the 42 official topographic maps found in the printed Bruce Trail Reference, Map and Trail Guide – with continuously updated Trail information and helpful navigational tools. It can be used with or without cell coverage on the trail. And the best part, by purchasing this app, you are helping to maintain this amazing trail. Over 70% of Niagara Adventure Club's hiking and backpacking events are held on the Bruce Trail, and we can say without a doubt, it is an incredible trail system, unlike any other.
AllTrails.com is an amazing resource for all hikers and backpackers alike. Use the service for free to find trails and read hiker reviews, or pay a small annual fee for full trail information including elevation graphs, printable topographic maps, and download the trails as GPX files to use and follow along on your phone. The AllTrails App also tracks your hikes, recording your travels in real time, and allowing you to save the information, as well as share it with friends, or post it on social media. I have been using this app and the web site for years. Int the last few years, I have been a paid subscriber, and I must say, it has been invaluable when planning trips. I highly recommend this app.
N.A.C. News
(Sunday, June 14, 2021)
Hello everyone,
As you may have noticed, I have decided to use the title, "N.A.C. Adventure Weekly" for our weekly newsletter. I hope everyone likes it. I will do my best to keep it somewheat interesting and informative. As everyone should know, our first hike, post pandemic, will be taking place next weekend. I am pleased to annouce we will have an amazing turnout. 14 people have registered for the hike. That is the largest group for a hike we have had in quite a while. However, do to the pandemic and Ontario's Physical Distancing Guidelines, we will be splitting this large group up into a few smaller groups, distanced from each other on the trail. Travelling in smaller groups of 4 or 5, and spacing the groups out approximately 15 to 20 meters on the trail, we will use two way radios to keep in contact. I believe in this fashion, we can enjoy our hike, while staying safe! The following weekend, we will visit the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park for another beautiful hike. Again, I am proud to say, we already have 8 hikers registered! Forks of the Credit is a beautiful park, with much history. The remains of an old historic mill sit at the crest of a beautiful waterfall. It's most beautiful on a bright sunny day, so fingers crossed. I have began planning and putting together the itinerary for the next few hikes. One of which will be in the Hamilton-Wentworth region, and one up in the Grey Highlands region. Both with offer picturesque views and beautiful forests. So, keep an eye on our events page for those hikes! And finally, I'd like to remind everyone about the Niagara Adventure Club Forum. I started the forum a number of years ago, and it hasn't been getting much use. I have been posting many articles that I felt would be useful to hikers, backpackers and climbers. Please take a moment and look the forums over. Feel free to post any useful information you would like to, or use it to ask others for advice. If you haven't already, create an account on the web site using the "Log In" button at the top of the page, and you will recieve notifications when people comment on your forum posts. It can be a very useful tool, and becomes more useful as the traffic grows. I think that's enough for this weeks newsletter. As always, feel free to reply to this email with any comments or suggestions you may have. Stay safe, Lenny Burch Niagara Adventure Club