Contact Me: West of Bristol

Subject: iPhone charging
Posted: 19 Apr 2010 11:44 am

Very neat! An iPhone is a lot lighter than a bunch of maps, that's for sure.

One thing, though, is the battery life; it's definitely not reliable enough to replace paper maps on its own, and I'd also be a bit worried about the effects of day-long heavy rain (though the latter doesn't do paper maps any favours, come to think of it). How are you tackling the iPhone power issue? Pete and Dave mentioned some options earlier in this thread, but the real test is whether they work out on the trail; solar panels sound good, but it sounds a bit risky in our weather!

As an iPhone fan, I'd love it if it could replace both my GPS and paper maps, but it would have to be reliable; suddenly having your maps run out of juice could be fatal in the wrong place.

Mark

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Subject: iPhone battery
Posted: 20 Apr 2010 1:40 pm

Hi Mark,

Battery life has been my biggest concern with the iPhone. This is my solution; about a month ago I purchased a "Just Mobile Gum Pro Plus Battery Pack" (by mail order from the US saving nearly half the UK price). It's a small lightweight battery pack that claims it can charge the iPhone up to 4 times. In reality I have found that 3.5 times is about the best I can get, but that's good enough for me. Each time I get access to mains power and charge the phone and the battery pack I will have a total of around 4.5 full charges to play with. I'm certainly not planning to be chatting away on the thing all day, or punching away on the screen constantly as I walk, in fact I'll be leaving it switched off most of the time, so I'm hoping the increased capacity will be sufficient.

A good part of my route is fairly straight forward, I have local knowledge of most of the SW sections, JOG to Glasgow is fairly simple too, I drove the same route I will be walking a couple of years ago. I may well decide maps will help at times between those sections, if I do I will find a shop and buy what I need rather than carring them several hundred miles beforehand.

Regards

Gary

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Subject: PS
Posted: 20 Apr 2010 1:45 pm

I had a good look at solar chargers for the iPhone, but ruled them out for two reasons;

1. They are too heavy.

2. They get mainly mediocre/poor reviews from those who have bought them.

Gary

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Subject: iPhone maps
Posted: 21 Apr 2010 4:19 pm

Hi Gary.

Wow, what a brilliant solution! That certainly seems to make the iPhone a feasible map replacement; I'll be fascinated to learn how you get on in the field.

I guess the only thing still missing is the ability of a typical GPS to record everywhere that you walk, which I know you can do on an iPhone, but that would really drain the battery as you'd have to leave it on all the time in high-drain mode. Then again, GPSs are getting cheaper all the time, so I could always use a cheap GPS to record the route, and the iPhone for the flashy map display.

I'm warming to the idea!

Mark

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Subject: Route/techno
Posted: 18 May 2010 6:07 am

Must say i've been thrilled with the west of Bristol (and continuation on canals) route, my biggest problem has been the lack of internet cafe type access and i can see next i have to catch up with the mobile technology to achieve a better set up.
Currently taking a break and getting updates in place.

Cheers J.P.

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Subject: Severn
Posted: 19 May 2010 11:08 am

Hi John.

I'm jealous - I only joined the Severn after mucking around on the Cotswold Way for what seemed like days, and I wish I'd joined the mouth of the Severn and tackled it that way. In good weather, it's hard to imagine more enjoyable walking than following the banks of a large river like that.

Delighted you've been enjoying yourself! I'll be interested to know how you look back on the Pennine Way once you've finished it... especially as the pub in Garragill was closed. Disaster!

Mark

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Subject: Thanks
Posted: 19 Jun 2010 2:51 pm

To say i have enjoyed myself would be an understatement, and all i can do is thank those who have given advice freely during the planning stage.
The pennine way was a (often cold head wind) marvelous stroll though i actually thought the West highland way was a little better (the great glen way being its shorter little brother).
The hard part is actually believing i did it, what next is the hard question.
Cheers one and all J.P.

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Subject: Well done!
Posted: 21 Jun 2010 9:45 am

Hi John.

I'm glad you liked the Pennine Way... and, more importantly, the walk as a whole. I hope you're enjoying the warm afterglow as much as I did - I took me a good five years to get round to my next big challenge, so no rush there.

Congratulations, and here's to the next one...

Best wishes,

Mark

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Subject: What next?
Posted: 29 Jun 2010 10:38 am

JP,

Your comment: "The hard part is actually believing i did it, what next is the hard question."

What next? Isn't the answer to do the hike in the other direction?!

Cheers,

Daryl

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Subject: Post-LEJOG activities
Posted: 29 Jun 2010 1:50 pm

For me, the next move was to sit on a sofa for five years. Definitely the right move!

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