Summer is hitting the halfway mark but there’s still plenty of vacation left. With summer quarter
ending soon there’s no reason not to take full advantage of that extra time. Check out some fun
phone apps to help you get outside and enjoy the rest of it. All of the apps on this list are free.
1. Map My Ride
Available for: iOS and Android
Great for: Tracking your workouts, exploring, getting ideas
Map My Ride is a neat companion app for walking, running, cycling, swimming – you name it.
It’s a sort of ride-logging service that records your activity with GPS. It also tracks your workout
stats as you go, such as the length of your route, time and how many calories you burn if you add
your height and weight. You can log a huge variety of different activity types, including
mountain biking, lap swimming and even dog walking.
You’ll have to sign up, but it’s definitely worth it. One of my personal favorite parts of the app is
that it will show you routes other people in your area have tracked and published. It’s neat for
getting ideas for your next hike or cycling trip around town.
2. Accuweather – Weather for Life
Available for: iOS and Android
Great for: Hourly forecasting, planning the day
Accuweather is a welcoming, versatile alternative to your phone’s built-in weather apps. Along
with your average forecasting capabilities, the app gives you a minute-by-minute forcecast for
the next two hours specific to your area. You can also customize it to tell you the day’s wind
speed, cloud cover and more.The app is interactive too, letting you report conditions such as high
winds; slippery roads and so on to let other people who use the app know what’s going on. The
app itself can be prone to slowness sometimes, but it’s great for planning a day at the lake.
3. LikeThat Garden – Flower Identification
Available for: iOS and Android
Great for: Botany on the go
This one’s just for fun. As the name implies, LikeThat Garden is an image recognition app that
lets you identify different kinds of plants. Take a picture of a flower through the app and it will
bring up a database similar looking species, letting you choose for yourself what kind of flower it
is. You can also use your phone’s location services to log where you found it.
From my own experience, along with advice I’ve heard from other fans of this app, freshly-
bloomed flowers work well. Also, make sure your flower photo is centered for best results.
