In the U.S., a wilderness area is officially defined as a place “retaining its primeval character and influence,” a place “untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” As such, wilderness areas are the gold standard for conservation, preservation, and experiencing nature in its rawest form. But in the developed… Read More »
First off, congratulations: If you’re reading this, you’ve either committed to going on one of the most memorable adventures of your life, or you’re seriously considering it. The people you meet, the landscapes you see, and the experiences you have—whether it’s downing a half gallon of ice cream in Cumberland Valley, or dodging a bear… Read More »
The National Geographic Trails Illustrated layer now covers both California’s Desolation Wilderness and Texas’s Big Bend National Park. About Desolation Wilderness Glaciers shaped the land of Desolation Wilderness thousands of years ago, leaving the granite peaks scarred and polished and dotted with alpine lakes. Located just west of Lake Tahoe in Northern California, Desolation Wilderness… Read More »
Winter hiking might just be the fourth season’s best kept secret. Don’t let a chilly forecast keep you indoors. Learn the facts, and use them to master your gear, fueling, and layering systems. Do that, and you can have just as much fun winter hiking as you would in summer. Honest. Capitalize on the fourth… Read More »
An overlay featuring backroads, forgotten trails, and brand-new routes currently unavailable on any other Gaia GPS map, USFS Roads and Trails expands your possibilities. Use it to explore the backcountry, and add it to your repertoire of tools for building the ultimate customized map. The USFS Roads and Trails overlay displays a web of roads… Read More »
A city ringed by emerald waters, glaciated volcanoes, and jagged peaks, Seattle has no shortage of great hikes within a short drive of downtown. But with so many options, the biggest challenge is deciding where to start. Save yourself some time and reference this guide for the best trails and views within a 3-hour drive… Read More »
We’re thrilled to announce the release of a new, searchable, worldwide database of hiking routes across the Gaia GPS apps and website. The feature, called Hike Search, allows you to search through a continuously growing list of parks, forests, and trails to find the detailed information and maps of the best routes near you. … Read More »
Combine the best features of the Gaia Topo base map with ESRI world satellite imagery on a single, easy-to-use layer. Ideal for everything from planning backcountry ski tours to scouting off-trail routes up desert washes, the new Satellite Topo map promises to become Gaia GPS’s most versatile base map yet. The seamless marriage of satellite… Read More »
After months of waiting, waxing, tuning, and pretending to enjoy trail running, we’re finally on the verge of winter. But as new snow settles into the couloirs and glades, it’s easy to get caught up in the stoke without doing your homework—a potentially fatal mistake when you’re backcountry skiing in avalanche terrain. To get the… Read More »
Cool temps and active wildlife make fall popular among both hikers and hunters—and the prospect of crossing paths with a loaded firearm leaves plenty of hikers with concerns. The good news is that, nowadays, hiking during hunting season is pretty safe. Most hunters are conscientious, and incidents are becoming almost non-existent. Pennsylvania, for example, saw… Read More »
