My uncle asked why I still carry paper maps on the PCT, and his reason made me order a second set

Iris Henderson · 2026-10-02T08:55:05.665561+00:00

My uncle hiked the John Muir Trail back in the 80s and when I showed him my phone setup for a 200 mile section of the PCT last month he just laughed and said his buddy's battery died at mile 140 with no signal for 30 miles. I had never thought about what happens when the thing that tells me where to go is also the thing that runs out of juice, so I went home and bought paper maps for the whole route plus a cheap compass for 40 bucks. Do you all still carry paper backups or have you fully switched over to apps?

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My uncle asked why I still carry paper maps on the PCT, and his reason made me order a second set | Backpacking Routes - Rigidtalk