>>2510938>using cellphone GPS>I'm pretty sure Caltopo costs money to use offline.There seems to be some confusion here. CalTopo is both a website (that is, you use an actual computer to access it) and an app of the same name. You don’t need both.
The websites interface is similar to Google Maps; you drag map layers around and zoom in and out the same way. There are several map layers you can view, and all kinds of intricate features. After creating a custom map, it’s saved as a geospatial PDF. That’s a PDF with gps data interlaced to it. When uploaded into an app that supports that file type (Gaia, AllTrails, Avenza, Topo Nomad, Paper Maps, the CalTopo app…), the PDF image shows your location relative to the GPS data. It’s the same way the apps already work, but your creating the maps yourself.
The app most likely does have a subscription fee; I’ve never used the app nor suggested anyone else does. I’ve only talked about the website.
Obviously you should take a paper map as a backup, or use a phone as a backup with paper as your primary. The CalTopo website is perfect for this, as the maps you print are exactly the same as the maps on your phone (it’s literally the same image file that you created).
As an aside, I think anyone who claims to take only paper is a liar or retard. They already have a phone, and there’s no reason to not utilize its capabilities other than plain old stupidity.
