GPS phone apps

[brun]

I have been told you can get hunting maps to use with your phone's GPS. Does anyone have any recommendations or advice on this. I'm not super tech savvy and need something
fairly easy to use.
Thanks

[Charina]

What is the intended use/need? GPS? Property boundaries maps? Other?

[Gselkhunter]

Would be OK if you have signal and many places in the mountains you won't.

[ak32]

there's several apps out there that have maps, but it's going to be a battery suck even with phone in airplane mode. If you aren't going to be more than a half a day without a charge it will work, but I wouldn't plan on more than that. Better to just spend the cash and get a nice garmin stand alone unit with nice maps. You'll be happier in the long run.

[cohunter14]

As some have mentioned, there are many out there. You don't need service on your phone, but they will use the battery fairly quick. If I were to use one, I would put it in airplane mode and probably turn the phone off when I wasn't using it.

As for a suggestion, the Trimble GPS App has been a favorite of a couple of guys in our camp. I haven't ever used it, but I have seen it and it looks pretty decent. It's a free app as well I believe.

[Charina]

As I had described here, with an extended battery available for most android based phones, I can go well more than 3 days of heavy use of my phone as a gps/satellite map.

[brun]

Thanks for the opinions and advice everyone. I mainly want it for property bounderies. I will be hunting a new area this year. Im
not really worried about getting lost, I just want to make sure I'm on public land

[nwilt]

I use Oruxmaps with my phone. It allows you to have offline maps that don't require a cell signal. There are several others out there as others have noted. Along with that, 'Mobile Atlas Creator' lets you generate offline maps from USGS and other sources (for satellite and Topo maps). It takes a little getting used to and playing around with, but there is a lot of info in their forum on it. My phone allows you to swap out the battery, and I picked up several cheap batteries with a charger off of ebay for less than $15. With a couple of spare charged batteries I am good for several days if need be.

[Kirsch]

It is one thing if you are hunting wide open areas such as coyote hunting, duck hunting etc. A cell phone may be fine in these types of scenarios. However, when you are hunting elk in the terrain elk like to frequent, I would highly, highly recommend a standalone GPS. Their antennas and battery life, ruggedness, and ability to withstand water are so worth it. Get a TRAX map from http://www.koutdoorproducts.com and now you have topo, public vs private, hunting units, private land owner info (certain states and counties) and more live on your GPS.

[elk.addict]

It is one thing if you are hunting wide open areas such as coyote hunting, duck hunting etc. A cell phone may be fine in these types of scenarios. However, when you are hunting elk in the terrain elk like to frequent, I would highly, highly recommend a standalone GPS. Their antennas and battery life, ruggedness, and ability to withstand water are so worth it. Get a TRAX map from http://www.koutdoorproducts.com and now you have topo, public vs private, hunting units, private land owner info (certain states and counties) and more live on your GPS.

I've probably argued over this 2 dozen times in the past over various forums. I believe that most named brand Android phones are superior to a standalone GPS, however, can't argue the durability/waterproof factor that you have brought up (my smartphone in a sandwich bag works, but certainly not ideal). My batteries are easy to change and my signal is just as powerful as my Garmin. Both seem to have problems in deep wooded canyons; both work great otherwise.

Anyhow, Garmin has had a GPS out with Android operating system out for a while now. I hear it's not great, but still, I think this is a step in the right direction. I'd at least like to see them make their units with higher resolution and the ability to install unlimited custom raster type imagery. I have done quite a few raster imagery imports, but you have to hack the firmware just to enable more then 100 tiles on the Oregon product line.

I will continue to use my smartphone in elk country. However, for those who want a very reliable system that anyone can easily use, a standalone GPS is probably the way to go.

[michiganelkfever]

I use trimble hunt pro, and i have a samsung gal s5....battery lasts entire day...u can track yourself, mark waypoints, camp, etc. If u are worried about battery life u can get an energizer power stick which is very small , thus not adding a ton of weight to your pack..it has aerial, topo, terrain, streets, and overlays of blm, landowner, and national land...i love the app...no complaints...u also download offline maps from your computer to your phone, so when u dont have service(which is the entire area in nw colorado where i hunt) u run off sattelite and it works perfect! Good luck! Also....the area we hunt is extremely deep, steep, and narley....never had a problem with phone/ lifeproof case!

[COLOelkman]

I have the Backcountry Navigator app on my Samsung Note 2 and I really like it. I also have OnXMaps that you can get for free if you are an RMEF member. OnXMaps shows landowners names but I have not had much success with it as I cannot get it to zoom in to view topo very well at all. I really like BC Navigator as it now does show public vs Private property and the private basically shows up as shaded and does not show landowners names (yet). They have improved it a lot since I bought it a couple years ago ($10) and is the best $10 I've ever spent. You do need to download the areas you will be hunting while you have a good wireless connection before your hunt. I'm no techie and it has taken a bit of time and patience to figure it out but I now use it all the time. I bought a couple extra batteries and also use airplane mode, dim the screen, turn off functions I don't need (wireless, Sync, etc.) and I can probably go 3-5 days on each battery if I'm not using it all the time so I think the battery issue with an Android is not an issue. I also found a waterproof ziploc type bag for protection and it's lite and simple. I've alway got a satellite signal no matter where! I love not having to bring a separate GPS, camera, video, etc. so I love it.

[Dlove]

I use one called GPS Kit. It allows you to download topo with nat. forest & blm boundaries & google earth maps for the area you hunt you can also drop pins with picture attachments of specific wallows or glassing spots. I set my phone to airplane mode and works great I use it as my primary, but I still carry a handheld as back up.

[Huntmaster]

I've used Trimble's Hunt GPS program the past couple years on my Android phone and I think it is great. My phone is water proof and has replaceable batteries just like a Garmin GPS does. No plastic baggies or weird cases for me! I see no need to buy and carry another device in the field. I can also preload all my waypoints and maps into the phone from the computer. A very nice creature comfort item. I also can get 3-5 days out of my phone on airplane mode if I shut the phone off when I'm not using it.

[slim9300]

Gaia GPS. I have used it for many years now. The maps can be pre-saved along with aerial photos. They can even be overlaid if you buy the premium membership.

[slim9300]

It is one thing if you are hunting wide open areas such as coyote hunting, duck hunting etc. A cell phone may be fine in these types of scenarios. However, when you are hunting elk in the terrain elk like to frequent, I would highly, highly recommend a standalone GPS. Their antennas and battery life, ruggedness, and ability to withstand water are so worth it. Get a TRAX map from http://www.koutdoorproducts.com and now you have topo, public vs private, hunting units, private land owner info (certain states and counties) and more live on your GPS.

I disagree. I have carried a Garmin Rino 530hcx backup gps along with my iPhone over the past 5-6 seasons. I hunt off my back for 10+ days at a time and also do many day hunts in multiple states. I spent over 50 days hunting last year alone.

An iPhone in a LifeProof case and with a small external battery to charge it a couple extra times, is all you need. The iPhone lasts easily as long as any Garmin handheld (if used properly with airplane mode) and is MUCH more versatile and effective. Not to mention the iPhone in a LifeProof case is tougher and more waterproof than any Garmin I have owned. I know because I have had two Rino's fail due to getting wet (in my pocket and not submerged). My iPhone has never failed and my Garmin hasn't been used in 6 seasons unless I needed the radio.

I think you may want to reconsider your stance. I am pretty sure I'm going to leave my Rino in the truck this September. My partner has his iPhone with Gaia also as a backup, and it will save me a ton of weight.

[Mike_Parson]

i am trying an app called HuntStand. It is a phone companion to the website Huntstand.com . it does not do the land owner overlay but it does use several of the Google earth maps and some road maps. I have used it up in Unit 34 in Nm while scouting for sign and elk this year and i love it. i just pull out my phone and open the app and i mark whatever i am seeing on the map after it sinronizes with the GPS. then when i get back to civilaization i sync the phone app with the online one and i can review all i found on my computer or tablet. I can even share my maps with my hunting companions so they can see what i have found while i was scouting and they do the same for me. It is a free app and it works for me. I bough an external battery to carry with me in my pack and i amso have a solar charger to charge the external if i need to. i can charge my phone 7 times over with the external before it goes dead and it only weights 11oz.