Whether it’s journaling all the details for yourself, to share with family and friends or writing with an eye toward creating a full-length book for publication—the FarOut app is a tremendous resource for recalling events and place names. Using the trail specific guide for reference, you’ll increase the detail and accuracy of your writing.

I’ve found that the amount of recall you can have from your days on the trail can be amazing if one specific event is called to mind. Remembering that one episode can lead to a domino of recollections spanning the minutiae of a period of days, even if you didn’t journal while hiking. The FarOut app is a tremendous mnemonic for helping you get started with this recollection timeline or to help you add precision to your memories.

Photo provided by Heather Anderson

In my case, the guides have been instrumental in the writing of my memoires—Thirst: 2600 Miles to Home and Mud, Rocks, Blazes: Letting Go on the Appalachian Trail.  When writing these books, I kept the app open on my phone just as I did while I was hiking. This allowed me to scroll along as I wrote—verifying things like distances, place names, and even whether the trail was ascending or descending. 

 

In addition to the trail line, the FarOut app contains many images of the waypoints that can help you paint more vivid pictures with your descriptions. Memory is not always 100%! I make sure I have the images downloaded and glance through them anytime I’m writing about a specific place.

These techniques work for writing after a hike is over, but they also can be helpful even at the end of the day when you’re on trail or in town catching up on your journaling. You can also use the integrated notes feature to leave notes for yourself on specific waypoints to revisit later when you have more time to write about it.

 

No matter how you choose to record your hike, using the FarOut app as a tool for more than just navigation can be supremely helpful.

Tips for writing from the app:

 

• Load topographic maps and images for visual cues and reminders

• Set the direction of travel to the one you used

• Scroll through comments from when you were there (maybe even your own!) for additional insight

• Start at a waypoint that you have a clear memory from and work outward from there

• Leave notes on waypoints while on trail to flesh out later

Photo provided by Heather Anderson