Six of the best apps for survivalists
If you really want to escape the 9-5 this summer, go feral with the help of the best survivalism and exploration apps
Just because you love gadgets and tech it doesn’t mean you need to spend all summer sat in front of a glowing screen with your headphones on.
Heading off into the wilderness to reconnect with Mother Nature can be a great way to recharge your batteries and prepare you for the inevitable depression that the long winter months will bring.
But while Ray Mears may be able to fashion an impregnable fortress out of a single twig and prepare a six-course banquet out of a grasshopper, the modern geek has a different weapon at their disposal: the smartphone.
Yes, these days you can indulge your survivalist fantasies while getting a helping hand from an app. These are the six we’d take with us into the wild.
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1. Smart Compass
A compass is a must for any trek in the wilderness, and a smartphone compass can do things that a traditional model couldn’t dream of. Smart Compass has an augmented reality display which makes it incredibly intuitive to follow: hold your phone or tablet up to the horizon and real-time video from the camera is overlaid with a compass heading. This enables you to set off in the direction of a landmark without having to constantly re-check your orientation. It’s simple, very effective and free.
Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✩
Platform: Android Price: £free
2. SAS Survival Guide
The SAS Survival Guide could be the only survival app you’ll ever need. It has a huge amount of well-written info on everything from making camps and fires to foraging and coping in extreme conditions. And as well as all the guides and tutorials, there’s a bunch of useful tools including a text-to-Morse encoder. An imminent update will add the SAS Urban Survival Guide to the package. Handy for when the zombie apocalypse eventually comes.
Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✭
Platform: Android, iOS, Windows Phone Price: from £2.59
Download SAS Survival Guide for Android here
3. Magnificent Magnifier HD
This might not seem like an essential tool for a survivalist, but there are plenty of occasions when the ability to zoom in on some tiny detail will come in handy. There are loads of magnifying-glass apps out there, but we’d stick our pin in this one. It’s great for diagnosing vehicle breakdowns or making repairs in dark spaces, as well as improving legibility of maps or small print. And unlike with a normal magnifying glass, you won’t need to juggle a torch at the same time when using it in the dark.
Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✩
Platform: Android Price: £free
4. First Aid By British Red Cross
It’s always best to swot up on first aid before you set off into the bush. Even so, the Red Cross app is brief enough to be used in the heat of the moment for many emergencies, with clearly laid-out sections, step-by-step advice and embedded videos you can watch wherever you are. There really is no reason not to download it – and it could even be a life-saver one day.
Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✭
Platform: Android, iOS, BlackBerry Price: £free
Download First Aid by British Red Cross for Android here
5. Outdoors Great Britain
Alright, so everyone already has Google Maps installed, but when it comes to exploring the countryside, Proper Ordnance Survey maps are unbeatable. Even with in-app purchases this works out cheaper than the folding equivalents, and they can be downloaded for offline use, so you won’t need a phone signal to access them. Planning on trekking a little further afield? Editions for France, Germany and the USA are also available.
Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✭
Platform: iOS Price: £1.99
6. Mushroom ID
Neither Stuff nor the makers of this app are suggesting you use it in isolation to identify edible fungi (one wrong move could kill you), but it can be used as part of your education in wild mushroom hunting. There are clear photos to help with identification, and details of edibility and toxicity.
Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✭
Platform: iOS Price: £2.99
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Tony Horgan
Senior Reviewer 
