Coolest Paddling/Kayak Apps

Hi – what are the coolest and most useful paddling/kayak apps people use? Anything new to be excited about?

mine…
on iphone I use Ayetides, RadarUS+, MarineTraffic (show ships in your area), WeatherBug, WorldView (webcams including many beaches I visit) and Surfline

Real Life Experience app. Put it away.

?

– Last Updated: Jan-08-13 6:26 PM EST –

He never mentioned using it on the water. Have you never checked tides, weather, surf, etc. before heading out? I rarely use on the water but the other day we were expecting some isolated storm cells but didn't want miss out so I was able to verify on the water a large storm cell we saw wasn't heading our way and we kept playing.

NOAA buoy app
"Real" time picture of what the buoys are up to…

keep going
I don’t have any apps…but I hope someday I can join the smartphone world when Verizon gives our area service…



I saw a weather app on someone else’s smartphone once that really gave a good warning map of bad storms to come.


Watershed has a bomber bag that
will allow you to carry and operate an i-pad on your boat, if you want to. I’ve already got my waterproof camera to keep me busy.

I refuse
to carry a phone that is smarter than I am.



But I’ll admit that I have found the real time weather/radar and river level apps on friends’ smart phones very helpful at times.

Thanks
great responses. i personally put mine in airplane [kayak?] mode and throw it in my drybag, but i imagine the ocean and areas with marine traffic this stuff could be handy.

lifeproof
lifeproof makes a case that is waterproof, ice, dust, and other proofs that are nice for the iphones. little pricey but for the days your unsure of the storm very nice to have. your able to operate all functions on the phone as well.

Not really a paddling app, but

– Last Updated: Jan-10-13 8:46 AM EST –

I like Runkeeper. Start it when you put in and stop it when you take out. It will record your distance, speed, and track. It gives you a graph of speed over distance, and you can compare it to the map and your memory of wind and current conditions. When you are finished, you save your trip. It will display your track on a map. It uploads your trip data to Runkeeper's internet site, and you can share the link with others. It builds a whole library with all your trips.

I think it is a cool app.

~~Chip

apps
I have an app called Cyclemeter that uses GPS for tracking mileage, time and routes for cycling. However, you can set it record other activities, such hiking, running and paddling. Anyway, it’s a good way to find out how far you paddled, your time, average pace and map your route.



When carrying my iPhone while paddling (or cycling), I keep it in a waterproof bag in my PFD vest pocket (zipped). Occasionally I use it to take photos as well, but I’m always paranoid about dropping it in the water, so I don’t do that a lot.

I have several

– Last Updated: Jan-14-13 2:04 PM EST –

I use several apps on my iPhone for paddling including:

Navionics US and Canada charts
- excellent charting program that contains charts for oceans and lakes. Invaluable when trip planning. This is a pay app -- I think it was around $20 but is an incredible value considering what you get.

Google Earth (free)
- awesome for trip planning -- especially when you're looking for a good beach to stop at.

AyeTides (free)
- standard tide information.

ShipFinder Free
- a free app that allows me to know what ships and commercial vessels are in a specific area.

Planets
- a free app that shows planets and stars -- very cool as it moves as you turn giving real time locations of celestial objects. Nice to have while in a campsite after dark.

WhatKnot (free)
- instructions for all kinds of knot tying.

Peterson Birds of North America (around $15)
- an excellent resource if you're into identifying birds.

I know there are a few more on my phone that I use but the above are the ones that I reference most often for paddling purposes.

We had a similar discussion on WestCoastPaddler a while back -- you might find more interesting info there:

http://www.westcoastpaddler.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4454

Hope this helps.

Dan
http://www.westcoastpaddler.com
-----

mine … !!!
WindAlert (WeatherFlow)

Navionics

Marine Weather Pro (Bluefin)

Weatherbug

Compass (Catch)

Moon Phase Pro

Launch Sites (Paddling.net) :slight_smile:

MSW (MagiceawWeed)

First Aid (Red Cross)

Motion X GPS
Motion X is a gps app similar to Runkeeper. Gives your speed, distance and maps your route. It also has a cool Wikipedia function that pulls up wikipedia articles on things/places you happen to be near!

GPS
I use GPS Trails LE (sounds like Run Keeper) and track my route,distance and speed (it has a paddling option). I keep my phone in a Lifeproof case with the lifejacket (it helps it float), tied to my decking…on several occasions it was trailing me in the water, still running the app!