Don’t be afraid to use your Apple Watch for hiking! If you have an iPhone, check out the list of apps below, which can help you plan hikes, track your progress, and even find the best trails nearby.
Hiking with the Apple Watch
Not all of us enjoy spending hours hiking, so we often end up using our phones instead. However, there are times when we can’t avoid carrying around our smartphone, which makes it impossible to use our favorite app. Fortunately, the Apple Watch has plenty of useful features that make it ideal for hiking. In fact, many users say that their Apple Watches are more than just watches—they’re full-fledged hiking companions. Here’s everything you need to know about using your Apple Watch for hiking. In this guide, I’ll tell you how to use your Apple Watch while hiking.
Is the Apple Watch good for hiking?
The Apple Watch is a great hiking companion because it has a built-in altimeter that helps you track your elevation as well as GPS, which allows you to navigate with ease. It’s perfect for hikers who want to keep an eye on their fitness goals and stay connected to friends and family. You can easily check your activity levels, set reminders and alarms, view weather forecasts, and much more.
In addition to being able to control your music playback, the Apple Watch lets you start workouts directly from your wrist. With the Activity App, you can choose between walking, running, swimming, cycling, elliptical machines, rowing machines, and other activities.
Extending the Apple Watch Battery
If you find yourself in a situation where you need to walk long distances, you may not be able to rely on the built-in battery provided by an Apple Watch. This problem is especially common if you’re hiking or backpacking through remote areas. Luckily, there are several ways to extend the life of your Apple Watch battery.
Battery Life Extension Tips:
- Use a Power Bank: A power bank is essentially a portable battery pack that connects to your iPhone and charges its internal battery. A power bank can provide additional juice to last longer during a hike.
- Charging Using a Solar Panel: Solar panels work well for charging your Apple Watch. They’re usually found at campsites or trailheads. If you don’t have access to solar panels, you can charge your Apple Watch using USB cables.
- Use a Charger: Charging your Apple Watch by using a charger is another option. Most chargers come with multiple ports, making them easy to connect to different devices.
- Carry Extra Batteries: When you go hiking, bring extra batteries with you. Just remember to bring enough batteries to cover your entire trip.
- Take Advantage of Wireless Charging: Wireless charging stations are becoming increasingly popular as they allow you to place your device anywhere without having to worry about plugging it into a wall socket. Some wireless charging stations even feature motion sensors, so you won’t need to manually turn your Apple Watch on.
- Turn Off Notifications: Notifications can quickly drain your battery. To save some battery power, you should turn off notifications for apps such as Messages, Mail, Calendar, Reminders, Safari, Maps, Weather, and Find My Friends.
- Disable Background Apps: Background apps consume battery power even when you aren’t actively using them.
- Reduce Screen Brightness: When you spend time outdoors, the sun’s bright rays can cause your screen to become too bright. Turning down the brightness of your Apple Watch display can help conserve battery power. You’ll notice the difference immediately.
- Avoid Recharging During Exercise: During exercise, your body produces heat, which can increase the temperature inside your Apple Watch. This could potentially damage the lithium ion cells inside your Apple Watch.
Apple Watch Hiking Features
There are many features available on the Apple Watch that make it ideal for outdoor activities. Here are just a few examples of how these features can enhance your experience while hiking:
GPS Tracking
Your Apple Watch can track your location using GPS technology. It works seamlessly with Apple Maps, allowing you to view your route on a map. The data collected from your Apple Watch can also be used to create custom maps.
Heart Rate Monitor
The heart rate sensor on Apple Watch provides real-time information about your heart rate. With the right workout plan, you can improve your fitness level over time by tracking your progress.
Activity Tracker
Another great feature that comes with the Apple Watch is the activity tracker. This feature will monitor various aspects of your physical activity, including walking, running, and swimming workouts—and even how many steps per day you take. It also measures calories burned during exercise.
Waterproof Design
Apple Watch is waterproof up to 50 meters (164 feet). That means you can take this wearable along on any adventure. No matter what type of weather you encounter, your Apple Watch will remain safe and sound.
Integration of Health Apps
With HealthKit, your Apple Watch can gather health data directly from your iPhone or iPad. You can then analyze this data using third-party apps like LoseIt! and MyFitnessPal.
Battery Life
The Apple Watch has an impressive battery life of 18 hours per day. That’s enough time to cover most of your daily activities without charging. However, if you need additional power during long hikes, you can recharge your Apple Watch wirelessly using its built-in magnetic charger.
SOS Alerts
If you ever get lost, the SOS feature will allow you to send an emergency signal to friends and family members. Simply press and hold down the side button until the red dot appears. Then tap the screen to send out your distress call.
Compass
The compass built into the Apple Watch gives you accurate directions when navigating unfamiliar terrain. Just look up to find your way. If you don’t have access to your iPhone, the compass will still work great.
Waterproof Design
With its water-resistant design, the Apple Watch is tough enough to withstand the elements. In fact, this device has been tested to survive immersion in up to 3 feet of water for 30 minutes and still work perfectly. It’s built to handle sweat and rain, so you don’t have to worry about getting wet when you go out for an adventure.
Smartwatch Technology
As a smartwatch, Apple Watch offers several other useful functions such as notifications, calls, messaging, music playback, and more. It features Bluetooth connectivity and Wi-Fi capabilities, which allows it to connect to your smartphone.
GPS Test
Both watches offer impressive features. However, the Apple Watch does have several limitations when compared to its competitor. For example, the Apple Watch doesn’t support offline maps, which means you won’t be able to use it in areas where there is no cellular service. In addition, the Apple Watch has limited battery life. On the other hand, the Fenix 6X offers a larger screen and supports offline maps. It also offers longer battery life than the Apple Watch.
The Best Hiking Apps for Apple Watch
The Apple Watch comes preloaded with several useful apps, including the Workout App and the Maps App. These apps are great starting points for using your Apple Watch when you hike. However, there are better options available.
WorkOutDoors
WorkOutDoors is an app that allows you to track your workouts and share them with others. It’s a great tool for hiking, trail running, trail biking, and climbing. WorkOutDoors can assist you if you want to get into climbing but don’t know where to begin.
The first thing I recommend doing when using Workout Doors is creating an account so that other users may follow along as well. Once this has been done, all it takes is clicking “Add Account” and filling out some basic information about yourself: name or email address; gender; height (optional); weight (optional). Then click on “Follow,” which will allow others to see what activity items have been checked off by users in each section; this will give them ideas about things they may want to try next time around too!
Gaia GPS
This app is a great choice for hikers. You can use it to track your hike and even record information like the elevation of each peak, length of the trail, and time spent in each section. It also has an option that lets you plan ahead, so if you want to stay overnight somewhere or make an extra day’s hike on a different section of trail than intended, this app will help facilitate those activities by allowing users to create waypoints along their route as well as mark destinations along their journey.
AllTrails
AllTrails is another great option for hikers looking for more advanced features than Gaia GPS offers, such as detailed maps with points-of-interests (POIs) shown on them. real-time weather updates and live directions from one POI back home using Apple Maps integration technology. The ability to share routes via email or social media platforms like Facebook Messenger, etcetera…
ViewRanger
ViewRanger is a popular hiking app that allows you to download maps for offline use. It has a feature called “Track Up” that shows you the direction you are moving in on the map, which can help when trying to find your way back home or find an alternative route to take.
ViewRanger also allows users to create routes and share them with others through social media like Facebook and Twitter so that other hikers can use them as well!
Wikiloc
Wikiloc is a top-rated hiking app that has been around since 2013. It has over 1,500 trails in its database, with reviews of each trail and user ratings on how difficult they are to hike. The free version includes all the basics, like tracking your location and distance traveled, but doesn’t allow users to save photos or videos from their hikes. If you’re interested in saving these kinds of data points for later use, then this is the best option for you!
If you’d rather pay $10 per month instead of $30 per year, then this service becomes even more valuable because it offers additional features like sharing information about your trip online via Facebook or Twitter so others can follow along as well as get notified when there’s new content available online about similar trips taken by other people near where they live or work too!
Finally
The Apple Watch is a great tool for hiking, but there are some things to keep in mind. For example, the Apple Watch may not be ideal for those who want to go on long hikes or runs. It’s also important to remember that while the device is waterproof, that doesn’t mean you can take your watch into the shower or swimming pool! If you decide that this type of activity is right up your alley, then by all means give it a try!
Read more on:
- How to Make Walking Sticks for Hiking
- How to Improve Hiking Endurance
- How to Backpack Hike – A Beginners Guide
- How to Hike the Long Trail
- How to Train for Elevation Hiking
- How to Lock a Hiking Backpack
- How to Adjust Backpack for Hiking
- How to Do Hiking – A Beginners Guide
- How to Use Walking Sticks When Hiking
- How to Avoid Snake Bites While Hiking
- How to Make Hiking More Fun
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Arthur Lewis is a hardcore hiker, traveler, and adventure seeker. He is a blogger and writer for “Hiking Mystery,” and he lives in New York City with his pet dog, Chipi.
He is very fond of the outdoors and has visited many countries, including Iceland, Portugal, Brazil, and Costa Rica. He also loves to explore nature by means of hiking, cycling, and kayaking. He is an expert on travel, and he helps other people find the best way to travel by providing information about their options.