One of the things I really like about camping is turning off my phone for 48 hours. No text, emails, Facebook, doom scrolling…
But sometimes tech isn’t all bad. First, you often need tech just to make your reservation:
Reservations:
ReserveAmerica is needed to book sites at most of the state campgrounds:
https://newyorkstateparks.reserveamerica.com
Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) has their own web site to make reservations:
Ward Pond Ridge is old school. You need to snail mail them a form and a check to make reservations.
On the trail there are a lot of popular apps. My kids love to learn what kind of tree they are seeing, or what bug, or leaf.
My wife has really gotten into bird watching so she loves ebird and Merlin. She has logged over 160 bird species just in New York State. Many of those birds were spotted in Queens, specifically in Forest Park and Flushing Meadow park!
Merlin
Merlin Bird ID, created by Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The app offers a bird identification experience by analyzing photos, sounds, and even habitat information.
Seek
Drawing from millions of wildlife observations on iNaturalist, Seek shows you lists of commonly recorded insects, birds, plants, amphibians, and more in your area.
LeafSnap
Simply snap a photo of the plant, and the app will tell you what it is in a matter of seconds! Leafsnap can identify more than 32,000 plants from all over the world.
eBird
eBird began with a simple idea—that every birdwatcher has unique knowledge and experience. Our goal is to gather this information in the form of checklists of birds, archive it, and freely share it.
