Guides

Trip planning guides for people who actually go.

Practical, no-fluff walkthroughs for the parts of a trip that are easy to get wrong — realistic daily mileage, permits, pack weight, dividing gear across a group, and getting maps that still work when the signal stops. Every guide ends with how to do it in GoVenture.

11 guides Free iPhone app Updated 2026

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Planning the trip.

The sequence that turns "we should do a trip" into a plan with dates, a route, permits and a packing list everyone has actually seen.

Getting started

How to Plan a Backpacking Trip: A Step-by-Step Guide

Choose a route, work out daily mileage, sort permits, build the packing list and file a trip plan — the full sequence, in order.

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Planning

How Many Miles a Day? Planning a Multi-Day Hike Itinerary

Realistic daily mileage by experience level, how to price in elevation with Naismith's rule, and how to build the day plan.

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Comparison

The Best Trip Planning App for Hiking: An Honest Comparison

AllTrails, Gaia GPS, onX, Strava and GoVenture compared by what they are genuinely built for — and which to use when.

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Gear & pack weight

What you carry.

Checklists that stop you forgetting things, and the weight maths that stops day three from hurting.

Gear

The Complete Backpacking Gear List (and What to Leave Home)

A category-by-category checklist for a 2–3 night trip, with typical weights and the items most people carry for nothing.

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Pack weight

What Is Base Weight? How to Calculate and Cut It

Base vs consumable vs total weight explained, realistic targets by hiker type, and where the easy kilos actually hide.

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Camping

Car Camping Checklist: The Weekend Packing List

A complete, printable-style list for a two-night car camping trip, plus the ten things people always forget.

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Maps & navigation

Not getting lost.

Your phone's GPS works with zero bars. The map does not — unless you downloaded it first.

Navigation

Offline Maps for Hiking: Navigate With No Cell Service

Why your maps app fails in the backcountry, what to download before you leave, and how to save battery once you are out there.

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Navigation

How to Open and Import a GPX File on iPhone

What a GPX file actually contains, how to get one onto your phone from email or Files, and how to turn it into a usable route.

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Recording

How to Track a Hike With Your iPhone (Without Killing the Battery)

GPS accuracy in the mountains, background tracking, battery settings that actually help, and syncing with Apple Health.

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Groups & safety

Everyone else.

Coordinating a group without a 200-message thread, and making sure someone at home knows where you are.

Group trips

How to Plan a Group Camping Trip Without the Chaos

Who brings what, how to split shared gear fairly, and how to stop the group chat from becoming the plan.

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Safety

How to Leave a Hiking Trip Plan (Float Plan) With Someone

Exactly what to include, who to give it to, when they should call for help — and a template you can copy.

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Getting started

New to all this? Start with the backpacking guide

The full eight-step planning sequence, from picking dates and a route through to sending your trip plan home.

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Stop planning in six apps.

Route, offline maps, itinerary, gear list with pack weight and shared group packing — on one trip. Free on iPhone and iPad.

iOS 18+ iPhone & iPad Works offline No ads