Owners of driving GPS units currently have the ability to choose from a variety of voices for their turn-by-turn instructions. During a recent trip with a car rental, I became quite attached to our car’s British school marm voice, even though the differences between her and her American and Australian counterparts were subtle at best. Now I’ve finally got a voice that speaks to me: GLaGPS.
Long-time readers of the site know the original tagline of Modern Hiker was “60% Geek, 40% Granola” — and I wasn’t kiddin’. I’ve enjoyed the occasional video game since my first Atari in elementary school, and one of my all-time favorites is last year’s Portal – a (mostly) nonviolent first-person physics puzzler. It was short but impeccably designed and brilliantly written, with some of the most darkly comic dialogue I’ve ever heard in a game.
The main antagonist is a giant, self-aware computer called GLaDOS, who taunts the player and goes steadily more insane as the game progresses. Now her murderous voice can tell you the fastest way to your local REI!
Currently, it’s available as an open-source download for the Garmin Nuvi (and a few other Garmin models) on the developer’s page. It’s not covered by any sort of warranty, and it may not be able to pronounce all street names yet, but it is guaranteed to please any nerds you end up driving around with.
Friend of the site and local hiker Alana Semuels lays out the differences between carriers in the area. Short story: T-Mobile? Sucks. AT&T? Not bad, in spots. Maybe that 3G GPS-enabled iPhone is worth it after all.
I tried to do my duty as a Responsible Hiker to offer some sound safety advice, as well as take digs at Runyon Canyon Blackberry Hikers. Guess which made it into the Pulitzer prize-winning paper’s story.
Anyone out there have some love ‘em or leave ‘em stories about cell phones in the wild? I used to keep mine on during a hike to use as a watch, even when I lost reception. But after getting a few “urgent” messages from friends and family without being able to call back for 5 or 6 hours, I started stowing it in the OFF position and have never turned back.
If there was ever a gadget for this site to endorse, it’s this — the 4GB Brando USB carabiner thumb drive.
For 32 bucks, you can get yourself some stylish and outdoorsy flash storage in one of six colors. And it weighs just 32 grams, so it won’t weigh down your shoulders when you’re liveblogging your backpack of the John Muir Wilderness on a Macbook Air.
If you’re like me, you’ve been thinking about picking up one of those
SPOT Emergency Beacons. They’re more versatile, reusable, and way cheaper than other satellite beacons on the market, and have gotten rave reviews from everyone who’s tested one out.
But there’s one problem — no one’s ever had to use them in an actual emergency yet. Or at least, until now.
The fine folks at Backpacker.com have posted a very well-written, real-life account of an emergency distress call from the slopes of Mount McKinley. It’s a great read, and highlights some of the unit’s shortcomings when needed out on the trail.
I’m still planning on buying one this year — but maybe I’ll wait a bit to see if they’re planning on doing any sort of redesigns or updates. Anyone out there have ‘em? And what do you think?
The iHike article I mentioned earlier had a lot of good things to say about the Flip Ultra — a lightweight USB camcorder that can record an hour of video at 640×480 resolution.
Now it looks like the gadget blogs have got their hands on scans of the line’s next product — the Minos. No one knows anything about it other than it costs 20 bucks more than the Ultra, looks a lot smaller and slimmer, and is due to hit store shelves on June 4th. Maybe.
If you’re looking to start taking cheap, easy video on your hikes, be sure to keep your eye out for these guys. Look for some decent upgrades, or otherwise check out the copycat-but-way-cheaper Creative Vado instead.
The latest issue of Backpacker arrived in my mailbox this morning. Instead of the usual scene of outdoorsy bliss, this month’s cover had a big ol’ Google Earth hiking route plastered across the front.
Immediately, I turned to the cover story — “iHike” — which offers “a complete guide to the digital revolution — and how to join it.”
Even though it doesn’t mention Modern Hiker anywhere, it’s still got a ton of surprising and useful information for us crunchy technophiles — like knowing that lithium batteries last twice as long as alkalines in GPS units, or that metal carabiners can interfere with satellite reception. It’s also got side-by-side comparisons of different mapping programs, online photo storage sites, and even tips on getting better photos and videos while on the trail.
It’s a really nice 8-page intro for anyone who’s looking to make more work for themselves after they get home from hiking — whether your audience is a bunch of blog readers or just the folks back home.
Personally, I’m not one for puzzles of any sort. If the solution doesn’t become apparent to me within a few minutes of starting, I end up just getting frustrated and angry. Maybe puzzles are supposed to teach me a life-lesson about dealing with that, but so far they’ve been unsuccessful.
However, I do have a lot of “puzzle people” in my life, and a puzzle that tests your knowledge of geography is ok in my book. Or, at least, as good as a puzzle is going to get.
Another New England transplant wrote me this morning (how many of us are there here? You guys all want to get together to try to find good apple cider?) because she wants to take advantage of the the big REI Anniversary Sale before it’s over. Her target: New boots. She writes:
Wanted to see if you have any advice on good brands. I used to have high-top ones for ankle support, but I rarely hike with a big pack anymore and mostly just do day hikes, so I figure I maybe don’t need to buy big ol’ heavy ones.
I’m partial to the high-top boots myself, and recommended the Vasque Breeze, a lightweight, superbreatheable high-top that’s done me very well for over two years on short day hikes and 3-day backpacking trips. As luck would have it, both the
women’s and
men’s versions are on sale, too.
… but since I’ve already found my preferred boot, I’m not much help if she gets to the store and doesn’t dig the Vasques. So does anyone else have a favorite lightweight boot or low-top hiking shoe? Share! And hurry up, the sale’s almost over.
I know there’s a few of you guys out there who subscribe to Modern Hiker via an RSS reader.
That’s great, and I encourage it, wholeheartedly. But hey, can you guys do me a solid and change your subscription to the Feedburner RSS feed? Not only will it give me a better idea of who’s reading the site, but it will also allow me to add stuff like comments, links to email the post, and other fun stuff in the RSS feed itself … at least, in theory.
All you have to do is click on that big orange RSS logo to the left, or click here.
Modern Hiker recommends — and is also horribly addicted to — the Google Reader. But whatever floats your boat is fine by me.
Thanks!
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Click here for a Google Map of Los Angeles hiking trails.
Owners of driving GPS units currently have the ability to choose from a variety of voices for their turn-by-turn instructions. During a recent trip with a car rental, I became quite attached to our car’s British school marm voice, even though the differences between her and her American and Australian counterparts were subtle at best. Now I’ve finally got a voice that speaks to me: GLaGPS.
Over the weekend, I was quoted as part of an L.A. Times story on 
If there was ever a gadget for this site to endorse, it’s this — the 4GB Brando USB 
If you’re like me, you’ve been thinking about picking up one of those 
The 
— a lightweight USB camcorder that can record an hour of video at 640×480 resolution. 
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