Choosing where to stay

There is a free “Visit Britain” iPhone app (Free) but it gets very poor review as do most other applications that you can find by typing the search term “lake district” into iTunes. Don’t despair though you already have the most useful app of all to play with pre-installed on your phone – Safari. So, if for example, you are looking for a dog friendly pine lodge, just Google “dog friendly lake district pine lodge” in Safari and you will be well on the way to finding what you need. Using a browser here is a better idea than an app anyway as things change and new places come and go so quickly. You can also use Safari to access many local webcams to check up on conditions before travelling.

Finding a Great Pub

The “Camra Good Beer Guide” (£4.99) may point you towards some of the better pubs in the Lake District in spite of the rather frightening warning on iTunes that it contains “Frequent/Intense Alcohol, Tobacco, Drug Use” references!

Going For a Walk

“Everytrail” (FREE) is a great app that uses the iPhone’s GPS capability to great effect. The Pro version has a little more functionality and costs just £2.39. More local walks are being added all the time. Do bear in mind that this should really only be seen as an addition to a traditional map and compass as if your battery goes or you lose reception you are going to feel pretty foolish explaining yourself to the local mountain rescue team. If you do find yourself in trouble on the fells at night you might find “Flashlight” (FREE) useful as it has an SOS flash pattern available. Yes – the iPhone really could save your life one day!

Watching the Night Sky

The Lake District is a great place to watch the night sky from because there is relatively little light pollution. If you are like me you probably struggle with identifying constellations other than the Plough and Orion’s belt. This is where “Star Walk” (£1.79) comes in handy. Using the iPhone’s GPS and motion sensors you can point the phone anywhere in the night sky and see a map of the stars that are visible in front of you. This app on its own made the iPhone worthwhile for me!

Watching Birds

The Lake District has 3 distinct habitats for birds – Upland, lowland and waterside. You will see birds here that you may not recognise so “Garden Birds” (£2.99) and “Chirp – Birdsongs Europe” (£1.79) are useful apps to have at hand. Chirp lets you learn the songs of many of the birds you will hear whilst on holiday in the Lake District.

Taking Photos

“Gorillacam” (FREE) is a great little app that will help you with the composition of your photos. It has a spirit level and a 3 x 3 grid so your pictures will always be level and interestingly composed if you follow the “rule of thirds”. It also provides a self timer, time lapse and burst modes to enhance the iPhone’s camera.

Finding Money

When you are on holiday locating a cash machine isn’t always easy. “ATM@UK” (FREE) will show you the location of the nearest ATMs to your current location.

Keeping in touch

“Foursquare” (FREE) lets you tell the world where you are at any point in time and provides you with useful local hints provided by other users. “Twitter” also lets you tell the world about what you are up to. A Twitter search for “Lake District” can often throw up very useful information about what is happening locally.

Killing Time

Cumbria Tourism have released a free app “Goskimming” that is designed to increase Apple’s profits my making you use your IPhone to play at pebble skimming on the local lakes. You have to simulate the throwing action whilst holding your iPhone. You are not actually supposed to let go of the phone of course…

And of course don’t forget to use your IPhone to call home – that’s what it’s really for after all! If you need to call home and you are low on credit but you can find a free WiFi hotspot you can use “Skype” (FREE) to make phone calls.

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