Rant: my paper map beat my phone on the Lost Coast and I'm still mad about it

Taylor Miller · 2026-10-01T02:25:03.336714+00:00

I hiked the Lost Coast Trail in northern California back in April and my phone died about 6 miles in because I forgot my power bank. I ended up navigating the whole 25 miles with the paper map I almost left in my car, and honestly it was faster because I wasn't stopping to squint at a screen every 10 minutes. The map also showed me a creek crossing that my downloaded route app had marked wrong anyway. Now I carry both, but the paper one stays in my hip belt pocket. Does anyone else still plan routes on paper first, or am I just old?

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Rant: my paper map beat my phone on the Lost Coast and I'm still mad about it | Backpacking Routes - Chatter Central