A little technology in the woods offers memories later

I saw a photo on Facebook with the quote, "There is no wifi in the forest, but I promise you will find a better connection." And since I appreciated the sentiment, I liked it.

Photo credit: www.facebook.com/sungazing1

One of my kids saw it on my Facebook timeline (the hazard of liking stuff and being "friends" with your teenagers is that they know what you're doing on that site, too) and reminded me that I do in fact use my smart phone in the woods.

I use a mapping app on my phone that tracks some of our outdoor adventures. The EveryTrail app records our path through the woods and if I take photos, it plots them on the map as well. It also offers information on how far we've traveled (a question that is inevitably asked during every hike I've ever taken with my kids). It also has an elevation gain tracker that is usually more humbling than not (the elevation does not always correlate with the sweat factor). But in the end the map gives the kids some nice bragging rights when we hit the summit of our big mountain hikes (like our Mt. Lafayette hike last fall).

Tracking speed is fun for the kids during the winter on our cross country skis. I recall a time we traveled down the same hill multiple times at Five Field Farms with my old GPS unit to see how fast we flew down those mountain trails. I believe 17 miles per hour is the record on our skinny cross country skis (our review of that trail is here), which is darn fast with my non-competitive skiers, particularly without a downhill edge on the skis.

The other day we tracked our cross country adventure with a friend at Riverside Golf Course in Portland (which doubles as some great groomed ski trails in the winter). We had an hour before dark so our plan was only to cover a couple of miles. The kids were pleased to hear that in 45 minutes we managed to cover 3.5 miles (which did correlate with the sweat factor). That was information I would not have known were it not for my smart phone.

Riverside XC Skiing

I also use my phone to geocache as well. The high-tech treasure hunt game requires an application that uses a GPS coordinate (that my phone turns into a compass to follow) to find hidden boxes in the woods.
So I guess I have a couple of uses for my phone that have nothing to do with talking but everything to do with fun outdoor adventures with my family.

Using these phone apps doesn't mean I don't respect the peace and quiet on the trail. Nor does it mean I talk on the phone while out there. I love the quiet of the woods. My kids do, too. But a little discreet use of technology offers many talking points with my kids later on that I (and the kids) really like.
We have a fun "scrapbook" of adventures with the kids on Everytrail.com and my older blog entries thanks to my smart phones (old and new). It's been a great way to record memories.
And with teenagers, it's nice to have visable proof that you can have fun with your family.

Kid Tracks column: Setting our cap for Mt. Washington

It's been a few years since we've climbed Jockey Cap in Fryeburg. It was a favorite when the girls were little that had all the fixings for kid-friendly fun -- from a small cave to explore to an interesting model map of the surrounding mountains at the top. And although this hike seemed like scaling a big mountain when the kids were 6 and 7 years old, now that they are 15 and 16, they get the reality of it. Jockey Cap is basically a 600-foot boulder that takes an adult of average fitness about 10 minutes to climb. But the view can't be beat for the effort.

With Jockey Cap's circular stone monument with a 360-degree sculpture of the surrounding mountains and corresponding identifying labels, I thought this trip would be a great way to start planning our spring and summer hiking adventures. We brought along our AMC White Mountains Guide so we could figure out elevation gain for each of the mountains around us and see what appealed to each of us.

If there's anything I've learned from hiking with kids -- from preschoolers to teens -- it has been to offer an opportunity for everyone in the family to have a say in choosing trails. It doesn't matter if the kids like the name of the mountain (I remember the appeal of The Eyebrow in Grafton Notch a while back), or simply the look of a mountain. It is the ownership that comes from helping to make a decision that makes the trek more enjoyable for all. When everyone wants to be on the trail, it is a whole lot more fun (especially for mom and dad).

The girls and I have a plan this year to summit Mt. Washington in September. As we train for this big adventure -- which will likely involve climbing one or two big mountains each month -- we will all be making decisions on where to hike and what we will bring with us.

It should also be noted that the second most important decision to involve your kids in before a hike is ... choosing a snack. This can make or break the day. Trust me, it is worth the planning and extra stop at the market to ensure all snack preferences are indulged when hiking a mountain of any elevation gain to keep up the motivation when the trail gets tough. This has worked for all the kids I've taken hiking. (And I admit a bit of candy has helped me find that little extra oomph to scale a mountain or two myself!)

But there is a reality that mountain hiking can be a humbling experience. Sometimes plans have to be adjusted. I learned this last summer just before our hike on Mt. Lafayette in Franconia Notch. It wasn't the kids that put a stressor on our plans. It was my own visit to the emergency room with an injury two days before that scheduled trip. I chatted up the doctor, who happened to be an avid hiker, and decided I could manage the hike with some additional planning and a much slower pace. So although I am cautiously optimistic, life could get in the way of our plans this year.

But for the moment, our goal of hiking up the 6,288 feet of Mt. Washington is something my teens are excited about. And we're training together, which ensures we'll be spending more time with each other this spring and summer. This quick hike up Jockey Cap -- to revisit a fun hiking destination and do some research -- was just the tip of the iceberg for us. It really was a great way to spend a winter afternoon soaking in the mountain views and planning our next adventure.

Your own family's hiking goals might not be so ambitious. But there is a lot to be said for finding a common goal and making time to accomplish it, together.

IF YOU GO ...

WHAT: Jockey Cap in Fryeburg
LENGTH: 0.25 miles
ELEVATION GAIN: 200 feet
PARKING: There is a small parking area in front of the motel.
BATHROOM: Porta-potty at trail head
GETTING THERE: From the intersection of Routes 113 and 302 in Fryeburg, the trail head is exactly one mile. The trail head is next to the Jockey Cap Motel and Country Store, 116 Bridgton Road in Fryeburg.

The quick hike up Jockey Cap was a great way for the Almeidas to spend a 

winter afternoon training for a greater challenge. 

From the summit of Jockey Cap, hikers are treated to a 360-degree view of the surrounding mountains in western Maine – and get valuable training for more ambitious outdoors endeavors.

Jockey Cap

Wendy Almeida can be contacted at 791-6334 or at:
wea@mainetoday.com
Twitter: wea1021 

Originally published in the Maine Sunday Telegram, February 10, 2013.