Gear We Use
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Hiking Gear
Anyone can start hiking with what they already own, but purpose-made gear will reward with comfort, reliability and safety. So we've linked some of our favorite hiking gear below. This is in addition to usual considerations such as water, food, first aid essentials, emergency whistle and sunscreen. Trailspotting is non-commercial and ad-free, so any links we publish are not monetized in any way.
• AllTrails Pro
Our main navigation tool, using either crowdsourced or our own custom routes. We've paid for AllTrails Pro for years to get the offline maps, and we're particularly impressed with the stability of the iPhone app. Their crowdsourced routes and reviews are the most complete we've found on the web.
• Organic Maps
This free, open source mapping app provides instant access to pre-loaded Open Street Map basemaps and trails. We keep several entire US state maps or European countries on our phone. It's also extremely useful for importing and layering GPX and KML files onto the basemap, including those provided by Trailspotting. We often use it to view travel plans we've created in Google Maps. The user interface is a little rough around the edges, and we do find its trail recording abilities to be mediocre.
• INIU MagSafe Power Bank
Backup smarphone or headlamp power on the trail.
• Nitecore USB Headlamp
We recommend carrying a headlamp if there's even a chance of running out of daylight. A USB-powered model means you have confidence of ongoing illumination if you also bring a backup USB power bank.
• SaltStick Electrolite Fastchews
Water replenishment alone is not enough on the most strenuous hikes, particularly in hot weather. Heat exaustion is not pleasant. We use these chewable tablets to recover lost salts and electrolites on the trail. We prefer tablets to powders to avoid contaminating ourwater containers.
• Permethrin Repellent
For clothes, hikers in New England. Spray on your hiking clothes in spring, and repeat later in the year if necessary. Protects against ticks, mosquitos and more. Also not safe around cats. Please also read up on other tick precautions to take before hiking.
• Picaridin Repellant
For skin, hikers in New England. Provides 4-5 hours of protection from tick, mosquitos and more. Doesn't contain DEET which has drawbacks and loss of effectiveness when combined with sunscreens.
Photography Gear
We travel extremely light and rely solely on an iPhone for trail images. Although modern dedicated cameras can provide better-quality images, they're bulky and often overkill for web-based productions like ours. Additionally, changing lenses on a trail can be a real chore. We're currently using the iPhone 16 Pro as our only camera, though Apple have barely made any improvements to it since the iPhone 14 Pro.
• Photo Software
Our photos are processed with Adobe Lightroom 3.2 (2010) and occasionally touched up with Photoshop CS2 (2005). This is software so old that it could be bought without a monthly subscription, which we refuse to do. We do test modern open-source alternatives, but we're still happy with the results we get from our decade-old workflow.
• Stitching Software
Because the iPhone's ultrawide lens produces over-sharpened results (even the new, supposedly 48MP, ultrawide iPhone 16 lens), we usually focus on the main 48MP lens and create wider high-quality images from multiple shots stitched together with Hugin free stitching software.
• Phone Lanyard
Our most important accessory is a wrist lanyard that can be secured to our phone case, combined with a retractable badge holder that attaches to a belt loop. We pull our phone out so often to take photos on the trail that this has stopped us from dropping our device more than once.
• Smartphone Tripod
Photos are better with people in them, and on remote solo hikes, a tripod is sometimes the only way we can frame a person in the shot. Our new favorite gadget is the Toneof selfie stick and tripod. We clip it to our belt using the Spider Tool Holster (the one with the round lug) and the tripod takes literally 5 seconds to set up or strip down. The tripod does need a flat surface and it can be unstable in windy conditions. Combined with the lanyard for security, we can also use the tripod as a selfie stick to get exterior shots of fire towers and other unique shots.
Tangents
• Travel: Trailspotting's Minimal Onebag
• Facebook Group: Comment, Follow Us
Hiking Gear
Anyone can start hiking with what they already own, but purpose-made gear will reward with comfort, reliability and safety. So we've linked some of our favorite hiking gear below. This is in addition to usual considerations such as water, food, first aid essentials, emergency whistle and sunscreen. Trailspotting is non-commercial and ad-free, so any links we publish are not monetized in any way.
• AllTrails Pro
Our main navigation tool, using either crowdsourced or our own custom routes. We've paid for AllTrails Pro for years to get the offline maps, and we're particularly impressed with the stability of the iPhone app. Their crowdsourced routes and reviews are the most complete we've found on the web.
• Organic Maps
This free, open source mapping app provides instant access to pre-loaded Open Street Map basemaps and trails. We keep several entire US state maps or European countries on our phone. It's also extremely useful for importing and layering GPX and KML files onto the basemap, including those provided by Trailspotting. We often use it to view travel plans we've created in Google Maps. The user interface is a little rough around the edges, and we do find its trail recording abilities to be mediocre.
• INIU MagSafe Power Bank
Backup smarphone or headlamp power on the trail.
• Nitecore USB Headlamp
We recommend carrying a headlamp if there's even a chance of running out of daylight. A USB-powered model means you have confidence of ongoing illumination if you also bring a backup USB power bank.
• SaltStick Electrolite Fastchews
Water replenishment alone is not enough on the most strenuous hikes, particularly in hot weather. Heat exaustion is not pleasant. We use these chewable tablets to recover lost salts and electrolites on the trail. We prefer tablets to powders to avoid contaminating ourwater containers.
• Permethrin Repellent
For clothes, hikers in New England. Spray on your hiking clothes in spring, and repeat later in the year if necessary. Protects against ticks, mosquitos and more. Also not safe around cats. Please also read up on other tick precautions to take before hiking.
• Picaridin Repellant
For skin, hikers in New England. Provides 4-5 hours of protection from tick, mosquitos and more. Doesn't contain DEET which has drawbacks and loss of effectiveness when combined with sunscreens.
Photography Gear
We travel extremely light and rely solely on an iPhone for trail images. Although modern dedicated cameras can provide better-quality images, they're bulky and often overkill for web-based productions like ours. Additionally, changing lenses on a trail can be a real chore. We're currently using the iPhone 16 Pro as our only camera, though Apple have barely made any improvements to it since the iPhone 14 Pro.
• Photo Software
Our photos are processed with Adobe Lightroom 3.2 (2010) and occasionally touched up with Photoshop CS2 (2005). This is software so old that it could be bought without a monthly subscription, which we refuse to do. We do test modern open-source alternatives, but we're still happy with the results we get from our decade-old workflow.
• Stitching Software
Because the iPhone's ultrawide lens produces over-sharpened results (even the new, supposedly 48MP, ultrawide iPhone 16 lens), we usually focus on the main 48MP lens and create wider high-quality images from multiple shots stitched together with Hugin free stitching software.
• Phone Lanyard
Our most important accessory is a wrist lanyard that can be secured to our phone case, combined with a retractable badge holder that attaches to a belt loop. We pull our phone out so often to take photos on the trail that this has stopped us from dropping our device more than once.
• Smartphone Tripod
Photos are better with people in them, and on remote solo hikes, a tripod is sometimes the only way we can frame a person in the shot. Our new favorite gadget is the Toneof selfie stick and tripod. We clip it to our belt using the Spider Tool Holster (the one with the round lug) and the tripod takes literally 5 seconds to set up or strip down. The tripod does need a flat surface and it can be unstable in windy conditions. Combined with the lanyard for security, we can also use the tripod as a selfie stick to get exterior shots of fire towers and other unique shots.
Tangents
• Travel: Trailspotting's Minimal Onebag
• Facebook Group: Comment, Follow Us
Best Trails of California
See our favorite hiking trails for each region of California.
See our favorite hiking trails for each region of California.
Best Trails of New Hampshire
See our favorite hiking trails and rail trails for each region of New Hampshire.
See our favorite hiking trails and rail trails for each region of New Hampshire.
Trailspotting the Southwest
See our growing collection of hikes from the Southwestern US states.
See our growing collection of hikes from the Southwestern US states.
