Requires: Thru Hiker tier
A Trip Section is a single leg or stage of a Trip. For a weekend overnighter you might have just one. For a thru-hike you might have dozens, one per day or per resupply stop. Each section carries its own route, waypoints, notes and analysis.
Creating a Section
- Open a trip and stay on the Sections tab
- Tap the + button
- The app creates a section named "Section 1", "Section 2" and so on, and opens the section editor
- Change the Section Name, add anything else you need, and tap save
The Section Editor
The editor holds a section's own details. Reach it from the pencil icon at the top of the section, or straight after tapping +.
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Section Name | Required |
| Description | Optional, up to three lines. It appears collapsed under the name on the Details tab |
| Pack | Thru-hikes only. "Used for this section's analysis". Tap to choose from your active Packs; the base weight is shown underneath |
| Location | Thru-hikes only. "Used for this section's forecast". Search for a place name and pick a result |
On a shorter trip the pack and the location are set once, in the trip editor, and apply to every section.
Changing the location after a forecast has been fetched clears that forecast, and the editor warns you: "Location changed, existing forecast data has been cleared."
The Section Screen
Open a section and you get a tabbed screen. The tabs are icons only, with no text labels. A thru-hike section has seven tabs, a shorter-trip section has five.
| Icon | Tab | Shown on |
|---|---|---|
| Info | Details | Every section |
| Thermostat | Weather | Thru-hike sections only |
| Route (a winding path) | Route | Every section |
| Location pin | Waypoints | Every section |
| Video camera | Shots | Thru-hike sections only, Content Creator only |
| Notes | Notes | Every section |
| Analytics (bar chart) | Analysis | Every section |
A shorter trip keeps one forecast and one shot list at trip level, so its sections have neither tab.
Details Tab
The Details tab tells you what this section still needs, and gives you a shortcut to the tab that fixes it.
At the top sits the section name, tappable to expand the description. Below that is a card headed Section Status with one row per item. A green tick means done, an empty circle means not yet, and a warning triangle flags missing analysis.
| Row | Shows when complete | Shows when empty | Shortcut |
|---|---|---|---|
| Route | Distance and ascent | Not loaded | Load → |
| Waypoints | Counts by type, for example "2 camp · 3 water" | None added | Add → |
| Analysis | Distance, estimated time and days | Not run | Run → or Recalc → |
| Forecast | How long ago it was fetched | Not fetched, or Set location first | Weather → |
Tapping a row jumps to the matching tab. The Forecast row appears on thru-hike sections.
Route Tab
The Route tab is a full interactive map with the section's route drawn on it, and it is where most of the planning work happens.
If the section has no route yet, a card offers two ways to start:
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Upload GPX | Pick a GPX file from your device. Distance and elevation are worked out from it |
| Create Route | Opens the route builder so you can draw one |
Map Controls
| Control | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Delete route | Top right | Removes the route, after a confirmation |
| Edit route | Top right | Reopens the route builder on the existing route |
| Terrain | Top right | Fetches elevation data, offered when the route has points without it |
| Download | Top right | Downloads map tiles along the route for offline use. Mobile only |
| My location | Top right | Recentres the map |
| Map view | Bottom right | Opens the Map view picker |
| Route | Bottom right | Shows or hides the map's own path lines |
| Timeline | Bottom right | Shows or hides your recorded Live Tracking traces. Only appears when there are traces |
| Plus and minus | Bottom right | Zoom |
An elevation profile for the route sits in the bottom left corner.
On a phone or tablet, long-press the map to drop a waypoint, or long-press near an existing one to delete it. In the web app, two extra buttons in the top right do the same jobs: an add-waypoint mode and a delete-waypoint mode. Turn one on, then tap the map.
Map View Modes
The Map view picker offers five looks:
| Mode | What you get |
|---|---|
| Contour - Flat | The outdoor style with hill shading suppressed, so the map reads truly flat |
| Contour - Hill shading | The outdoor style with its own built-in hill shading |
| Shaded relief with tilt | Strong hill shading plus a tilted camera. A vertical tilt slider and a rotate button appear down the left side |
| Satellite | Satellite imagery |
| 3D | A raised terrain mesh. Web only |
Building a Route
Tap Create Route, or the edit icon on an existing route, to open the route builder.
- Tap the map to drop a control point
- Each new point is joined to the last one along real paths
- Keep tapping to extend the route. The status bar at the top left counts your points
- Tap the undo arrow to remove the last point
- Tap the tick to save
A route needs at least two points. Try to save one point and the builder tells you: "A route needs at least 2 points."
The button on the middle right switches path snapping off and on. With it off, segments are drawn as straight lines, which is what you want for an off-trail leg. The map confirms each switch: "Route optimisation on, snapping to paths" or "Route optimisation off, straight lines".
Closing the builder with unsaved work asks Discard route?, with Keep editing or Discard.
Editing an Existing Route
Opening the builder on a saved route gives you draggable anchors along the line rather than a blank map.
- Drag an anchor to move it. Only the segments either side are recalculated
- Long-press an anchor to delete it, after a confirmation. The route closes up and reroutes around the gap
- Tap the map to add a point. If the tap is clearly beyond one end, the route is extended; if it falls along the body, the point is inserted. When it is ambiguous, the builder asks: Extend route or Insert into route
In the web app, click an anchor to select it (it turns amber), then click where you want it. The toolbar bin icon deletes the selected point.
The saved line is simplified automatically, keeping its shape.
Waypoints Tab
Every waypoint on this section, with a filter across the top: All, resupply, camp, water and turn. Each waypoint shows its distance from the start of the section and whether it sits on the route line or off it.
Import from GPX on this tab pulls the waypoints out of a GPX file, so set the section's waypoints up here first if you have a file to work from. See Waypoints & Weather.
Weather Tab
Thru-hike sections only. Historical averages and an eight-day forecast for the section's location, which you set in the section editor. See Waypoints & Weather.
Shots Tab
Thru-hike sections only, and only on Content Creator. The list of shots you plan to film on this leg. See Trip Shot Planning.
Notes Tab
A free-form text area for anything you want to remember about this leg: trail conditions, campsite availability, water source details. Tap the pencil button to start editing, the tick to save and the cross to back out. Markdown is supported.
Analysis Tab
Hiking time and calorie estimates for this section, worked out from its route and your measurements in Profile & Account. Tap Calculate Analysis, or Recalculate if something has changed. It needs a route with elevation data, and your height and gender set. See Waypoints & Weather for what each figure means.
Reordering Sections
Sections are reordered by dragging:
- Open the trip and tap the reorder icon at the top of the screen
- Drag sections into order by their handles
- Tap the tick to save, or the cross to cancel
Deleting a Section
Swipe the section's row left on the trip's Sections tab and confirm.
Deleting removes the section's route, waypoints, notes, shots, weather and analysis. The linked pack is not affected.
Tip: Name your sections descriptively. "Day 3: Muir Pass to Le Conte Canyon" is far more useful than "Section 3" when you are reading the day-by-day breakdown on the trip's Analysis tab months later.
Related: Trips · Waypoints & Weather · Trip Shot Planning · Live Tracking · Packs