We’re big fans of the GPS app Gaia, here at team AJ. Whether for basic route finding, or for planning a big trip, maybe recording data while you’re on one, it’s a powerful and easy to use tool. Well, it can be easy, anyway. Gaia offers enough different features that you really do need to spend some time learning how they work to make the most of what the app can do.
To help, the American Mountain Guide Association put together a series of video tutorials on best practices for Gaia and we thought it was great, so we’re sharing it below.
Does anyone have experience with the Gaia competitors and would be willing to compare/contrast? I primarily use Backcountry Navigator XE (I used Backcountry Navigator Pro before). I like it but some of the features in the Gaia videos were appealing. Some of the complaints I’ve seen about Gaia are on stability (particularly the Android version) and data privacy but I haven’t researched extensively.
I’ve also tried OnX which was very powerful in terms of understanding land ownership but didn’t offer as much in terms of planning hikes.
Hey Rick – if you’re on iOS, I’d recommend you take a look at Topo Maps+. I use both that and Gaia, and they have their pros and cons. Of course, Topo is not available on android, and in the years I’ve used it never has been.
Pros for Gaia are that it’s lighter weight as an app, and downloads take up significantly less space. Cons there would be less straightforward support for a variety of data sources, paid and not. That said, I use Gaia more these days.
Topo Maps + is fantastic for access to a bunch of data, esp. in the paid variety (e.g. USFS roads, trails, etc.). It’s got a fun line of sight feature that is great for orienting in a landscape, figuring out different peaks, etc. Big con would be iOS exclusivity, and it’s a heavy app…
Thanks for the insight! I’m on Android, so it looks like Topo Maps+ is out unless I want to lug my wife’s old iPad into the backcountry. Too bad though, it looks like a great app. I think at some point I’m just going to have to try Gaia for a bit and see how it goes.
I’ll give Gaia a thumbs up here.
I have used it successfully in the Arctic, Southern Africa and Australia on both iOS and Android. I am sure there are other great gps apps out there, but having used Gaia for up to 3 weeks at a time without cell connection, I am absolutely satisfied.
The extra layers that you can download in a resolution of your choice are amazing and really make it almost as good as having a drone to scout the area from the air.
Thanks for the info. I love to travel so international (outside the United States in my case) map coverage is important. I had Backcountry Navigator XE loaded with maps of Patagonia for a trip I had planned for April of this year. A certain pandemic canceled the trip, but I’ll get there eventually…
I am a bit of a map junkie, I have a handful of mapping apps on my phone, the ones that made the cut. I was hesitant multiple years ago to buy into gaia, as I felt there were others, better in this way or that, but my mates had gaia so that’s how it started. I have been and continue to be very satisfied with gaia in the backcountry, the one you are familiar with (and your mates) is far superior to the ones that you are not.
I don’t use it for cities, or for bicycle touring as there are much better options for that (think pocket earth). Gaia for the backcountry, use it, become fluent, and it really is great.
The opinion of a map junkie is exactly what I’m looking for. I would use it almost exclusively for backcountry trips and it would be my primary source of navigation. I also carry a paper map and compass as backup whenever I’m going deep or to an unfamiliar place but I normally never need them. I still have a year of the premium map package for Backcountry Navigator XE so I’ve got a little time to try Gaia out, get familiar with it, and decide what’s best going forward. Thanks for sharing your expertise.
Yeah, I can’t claim to have used all available GPS apps, but from the get go, I’ve loved Gaia and trusted it right away. It simply works, and works great. I primarily use it as a location sensor, I don’t do route planning with it, nor do I drop pins everywhere to mark where I’ve been for future reference. It’s simply a bulletproof backcountry GPS app.
Thanks! You guys have convinced me. I’ve downloaded it and am going to try it out for a few months.