CalTopo is mostly awesome as it has myriad features for route and adventure planning as well as team and search organization for SAR work. It has extensive tools for gathering detailed information you may not have known existed in mapping programs such as the time of day that the sun will shine on a particular aspect, the estimated time it will take you to complete the objective you’ve planned, and very recent satellite imagery so you can check whether that high-country trail you’ve been psyched to run is melted out yet. However robustly featured the preeminent CalTopo is, it would benefit from certain upgrades and then truly be a godly mapping tool: a “snap-to-trail” route building feature on iOS, 3D map view in iOS, route preview, and a recreation layer with all of the hikes, trail runs, bike trails, backcountry ski routes, etc. that are popular. Ascendancy is within your reach CalTopo team, make it happen.
Developer Response
Thank you for the feedback- we really appreciate it. "Godly mapping tool" is a worthy goal :) This has been a great SAR tool for me and my team. I have also used it for personal hikes and it has been outstanding. It may be a bit overkill for the casual day hiker, but then again the most basic elements can be learned and employed quickly.
Developer Response
Thanks for the 5-star review!I have been using CalTopo for years on the computer to plan my adventures. It is a professional grade platform that focuses on the tools that a person needs to plan outdoor adventures, SAR operations, map building. The phone app allows you to take all of that with you right into the outdoors. Get a subscription to really unlock the features so a person can appreciate what this is. I am currently teaching a friend out to navigate in the back country and read maps. This has been a great learning tool for him.
Developer Response
Thank you for the 5 star review and for using CalTopo! Email us at help@Caltopo.com if you have any questions.I’ll admit I was getting frustrated at first as there is definitely a steep learning curve. Now that I have a handle on things I cannot wait to plan my summer trips!!!
Developer Response
Thanks for the review! Feel free to email us at help@caltopo.com for any questions you have. The desktop app is great for mapping, powerful and quick. The mobile version is very usable in the backcountry also but unfortunately there is one feature that I feel makes Gaia better, taking a picture geo locates it in the app. If CalTopo would add this to their app I would use it as my primary backcountry app.
Developer Response
Thanks for taking the time to review CalTopo. This feature is currently in the works! Keep an eye on our social media and blog for updates.I use this app for all my outdoor activities, including backcountry hiking. Overlaying the different map layers is great, including scanned topos and global imagery. I can record tracks easily and add map items like markers. Get the mobile account for $20/year and you can download the map layers for off-line use. There is lots of CalTopo data on the Internet that you can download.
Developer Response
We appreciate your review of the app! Happy mapping!I've had cutoff maps and trimmed trails for over a year, making this dangerously unreliable for navigation. Tech support said to make sure maps are downloaded and use airplane mode to override cached maps. I tried that today and got the same cutoffs mid trail. I had to use another mapping app to get back to camp.
Developer Response
Thanks for taking the time to review the CalTopo App! I'm sorry to hear it has been buggy for you. Please email us at help@caltopo.com for troubleshooting help. We are working hard to improve the app as well. CalTopo was unstable but beautiful in previous releases for iOS. Maps and trails would disappear and tech support said cached maps took priority over downloaded maps in partial cell phone coverage areas. It seems to be fixed in most recent release and now works great.
Developer Response
Thanks for taking the time to review the CalTopo App! I'm sorry to hear it has been buggy for you. Please email us at help@caltopo.com for troubleshooting help. We are working hard to improve the app as well. As the training officer of a SAR team in Western NY, I use CalTopo weekly to plan and prepare for team training. The program saves me countless hours by reducing the amount of time I need to spend in the woods pre planning.
Developer Response
We appreciate the 5-star review!The CalTopo maps are beautiful and show contours the best. I love the app when it works but I've had several times where portions of trails, tracks, or downloaded maps just disappear. This makes it unreliable, so I use Gaia as a backup for these situations. I would not want to rely on it for critical situations.
Developer Response
Thanks for taking the time to review the CalTopo App! I'm sorry to hear it has been buggy for you. Please email us at help@caltopo.com for troubleshooting help. We are working hard to improve the app as well.
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