Should you disconnect while hiking?

Disconnecting while hiking: a good or bad idea? Should you take your phone when hiking? Some tips for disconnecting while hiking.

Disconnect to reconnect

As you prepare to hike in nature, you may feel the desire to disconnect from the crazy pace of life while hiking, the need to get away from everyday life, to concentrate on your true natural rhythm. And yes, A hike in nature is an opportunity to reconnect with yourself… and leave your smartphone at the bottom of your bag to fully enjoy the present moment with all your senses.

Because yes, with our phones, we receive a huge amount of solicitations daily via social networks, various messaging services and other applications, which prevent us from truly focusing on our own present and what is happening there. We thus find ourselves too often in autopilot mode, and living vicariously, sometimes even the hike of others, through our screens.

In short, agreeing to disconnecting while hiking and putting our phone aside allows us to reconnect with what is essential. Disconnecting to better reconnect, does that mean anything to you?

Using a smartphone while hiking

That being said, the phone while hiking still has its uses. First, for immortalize some memories : family bivouac, selfie with friends and the groundhog that we catch putting the chocolate in the paper – or almost. But above all, your phone is also a practical tool to guide you on your hike. If some routes are well marked, depending on your choice of route it may be useful to use a hiking guidance application such as those from Altituderando or Komoot. Both offer hiking maps to consult in offline mode to find your way around the terrain. Besides, using the phone to get your bearings doesn't prevent you from disconnecting while hiking!

How to use your smartphone properly while hiking

A few simple rules and tips will allow you to use your phone while hiking while conserving maximum battery life, whether you are going on a day hike, for a bivouac hike or even a multi-day trek.

Make sure you have fully charged your phone before departure
turn on the phone's power saving mode
disable non-essential connections: wifi, bluetooth…
cut data when you don't need it
protect your phone from the cold to avoid rapid battery drain – when camping, sleep with your phone in your sleeping bag
bring a power bank to charge your phone during a short hike
Also bring a solar charger to charge your phone on a multi-day hike

Our outdoor equipment packs include these charging accessories for hire For recharge your phone while hiking: rent your external battery And solar charger.

Hiking safety

Everywhere, The telephone is a means of contacting emergency services and the mountain is no exception to this rule, although you don't get reception everywhere. So it is good to take your phone with you and not to completely disconnect while hiking, in case you have to call for help and locate you using GPS coordinates of this one. The emergency number unique European, free, will then be the 112.

More still if you go alone ! Solitude is sometimes a great way to recharge, but Be careful to take extra precautions and be vigilant when hiking alone. Equip yourself accordingly so that you can call for help if something happens to you. A satellite GPS may be useful to plan for if you are hiking alone, in anticipation of a lack of network on your phone. And even, if you are hiking in winter, professional equipment and an avalanche safety device, called DVA, is recommended to locate you.

So, should you completely disconnect when hiking?

You will have understood, Disconnecting while hiking is great and important, but it shouldn't come at the expense of safety. The ideal will be to finding balance in usage that you do with your smartphone to allow you to disconnect while hiking, while having your phone within reach to take photos, guide you or, if necessary, contact mountain rescue.

This article is illustrated with photographs of the GR®40, Crossing the Vosges, by Luce Mouchez