An outdoorswoman, mom, and outdoor adventure blogger shares her favorite 5 outdoor apps for camping, planning family trips, and outdoor adventures.
Outdoor pursuits are a great way to disconnect from electronic devices and enjoy our surroundings.
Most of the time, I advocate “getting off the grid” and disconnecting from my iPhone.
However, there are some apps and websites designed to make outdoor adventures more accessible.
Here are 5 of my favorite outdoor activity apps for families and outdoor adventurers.
#1: CampsitePhotos
It’s always fun to explore new campsites, but camping out of state at an unfamiliar campground (especially with kids and/or dogs) can be tricky.
Fortunately, Campsitephotos.com is there to assist with your campground needs.
This website has photos of specific sites within many campgrounds, including national parks, and helpful information on the campgrounds, such as amenities, seasons, number of campsites and activities in the area.
One of my favorite tools within this app is the campsite assist.
If the campground you desire is full, just enter the dates and specific campgrounds into the matrix with your email address.
For a small fee, the campsite assist tool will alert you by email or text if or when your campground has availability.
During our last trip to Glacier National Park, the campground reservations filled within minutes of becoming available online, but we were able to easily secure a spot by using this campsite assist system.
#2 Outdoorsy App
We love to camp in National Parks, but many of these parks are not close to home.
Using the Outdoorsy app, we could fly to Montana, for example, and eliminate the multi-day car ride.
This app compiles a list of available RVs and sport utility vehicles to rent, just like a rental car company would.
Using the app, the renter can see reviews and photos of the rental vehicle and message the owner to ask questions.
For our last camping trip, we rented a Jeep Wrangler with a pop-up tent on the roof that came with most of our camping equipment, such as dishes, a stove, chairs and sleeping bags. Which meant we didn’t have to carry these items on the plane.
#3 AllStays App
The Allstays app is another app that has excellent information on camping.
Through the app, the user can access the availability of the campground and online reservation system, send the campground to Google Maps or Waze for driving directions, access local weather and much more.
I enjoyed using this app to research the campgrounds and new areas we wanted to visit on our last camping trip.
If you are driving a long distance to the campground, the app provides information on low clearance structures, road grades and necessary road trip information such as gas stations and grocery stores.
#4 TheDyrt
Early in my research for campgrounds in Montana, this website kept coming up with search results on multiple trails and campsites.
Through the website or app, the user can see campground reviews, information on local attractions and popular trails, photos of individual sites other users have uploaded and get driving directions or GPS coordinates.
This website is a great place to start with research on an unknown campground and the pictures of the sites are accurate. However, some of the reviews are scathing and biased.
#5 AllTrails
This website is a fantastic resource before hitting the trail, especially a new one.
Most trail reviews are accurate for distance and difficulty, and the pictures give a good idea of the views.
The website also provides directions to the trailhead and features downloadable routes in case cell service is unavailable.
The outdoors are a great place to unplug and detach from your electronic devices, but before you do, check out these websites and apps before you do.
They are a great place to get ideas on the next trail to hike or new campsites to visit.
