How apps have "revolutionized and rejuvenated" hiking in France

• Every Thursday, in its “off-field” section,

  20 Minutes

  explores new spaces for expressing sport, unexpected, unusual, clever or in full swing.

• This week, we are dedicated to the emergence of applications that best support the practice of mountain sports, such as Iphigénie and Whympr.

• “There has been a gradual digitization of hiking over the past ten years, which has led to a renewal of practitioners,” underlines Tim MacLean, founder of Whympr in 2017.

It seems like a long time ago, the time of family confusions in the mountains, when we spent half an hour turning in all directions a faded map of the 1980s, praying to arrive before dark at the refuge.

Hiking, like

activities more generally, has not missed the digital shift, as Alice (25) attests.

"It's still extremely practical to be able to consult many pieces of IGN maps, including when you no longer have a connection, as often happens in the high mountains", confides the young woman, who was barely of age. when she first resorted to Iphigenia.

No, we are not talking here about Greek mythology but about "the oldest

app ", perceived since 2010 as "the reference in pure and hard cartography", and therefore "the essential tool for hikers and mountaineers" according to Tim MacLean .

Founder in 2017 of the start-up Whympr (community application for mountain sports enthusiasts with more than 10,000 free users and 1,000 paying customers), he bought Iphigénie last December.

"Hiking is no longer perceived as a cheesy thing"

“There has been a gradual digitization of hiking over the past ten years, which has led to a renewal of practitioners,” underlines Tim MacLean, relying on the 15% annual growth of Iphigénie since 2010. an offer of 25 euros per year is proposed by Iphigénie, the economic criterion is decisive.

“An IGN paper map costs 13 euros and there are more than a thousand of them, specifies Tim MacLean.

So might as well have all the updated maps in your pocket for a small fee, right?

And then, on the app, you can always find your way around on the map via the GPS blue dot, which is very valuable.

»

Such precision could indeed have put an end to so many heated debates (and so many moments of doubt) on the hiking trails, almost everywhere in France.

However, half of the 100,000 subscribers to Iphigénie (90% French) are over 50 years old, which qualifies the trend towards a rejuvenation of the hiking public.

Editor-in-chief of Wider magazine and writer, Sylvain Bazin delivers his vision.

“Hiking keeps a relatively old audience, but I hardly see any more practitioners relying on old-fashioned maps.

Covid-19 has been an extraordinary catalyst for the outdoors, and apps are an easy gateway to nature activities for many young people.

They have revolutionized and rejuvenated hiking.

Holidays on the hiking trails are no longer perceived as a cheesy thing for the majority of thirty-somethings.

»

“We are not yet the Tinder of climbing”

A major shift that was notably accompanied by Whympr, an app “more geared towards 25-50 year olds than Iphigenia”, as Tim MacLean points out.

“The world of the high mountains is not easy to access but it is not reserved only for those who have lived there for ten years, he continues.

It is an experience that is built little by little.

The contribution of digital is not going to make someone climb the top of Mont-Blanc with crampons overnight.

But without replacing the advice of a guide, it is a tool that accompanies us.

»

And this with an avalanche bulletin, more than 150,000 route descriptions and community feedback to highlight user outings, while creating exchanges.

“But we are not yet the Tinder of climbing,” smiles Tim MacLean.

Residing in Chamonix, Alice uses both Iphigénie and Whympr for her regular practice of ski touring, trail running and climbing.

“We must at all costs not depend on an electronic device”

"The social and community dimension of Whympr makes it possible to greatly rejuvenate the practice of mountain disciplines," she believes.

Before leaving, I rely a lot on the exact inclination of the slopes and the many user posts indicating where the good snow is, but also the sectors to avoid due to threatening seracs.

Coordinator of the mountaineering department at the National School of Skiing and Mountaineering (Ensa) in Chamonix (Haute-Savoie), Hervé Qualizza has for many years been supporting the integration of these applications into training, which promotes "preparation for both easier and more thorough.

“But the average hiker shouldn't tell himself that he can face bad weather conditions thanks to all the aids that his smartphone provides him today, he specifies.

The mountain is a risky environment and you must at all costs not depend on an electronic device, which is often fragile with the wind, the cold and even the snow.

»

“We can keep a lot of freedom”

This is why Ensa trainees learn to master maps, compasses and altimeters as much as before the appearance of new technologies.

Nevertheless, these have really upset the many

practices .

Our off-road file

"Thanks to Iphigénie's GPS point, you can no longer get lost like on a classic map," notes Sylvain Bazin.

This postulate opens itinerant projects to less expert people.

And we can keep a lot of freedom depending on whether or not we choose to follow the trail offered by the app.

“Because basically, the charm of the hike also remains to trudge without relying too much on technological assistance, even if it means betting for the umpteenth time on your (bad) sense of direction, right?

Company

Brittany: Why hiking poles are no longer welcome on certain trails

Sport

Coronavirus: "Discover the mountain differently" in ski touring, a strong trend beyond this special winter?

• Trek

• Mountain

• Mountaineering

• Application

• Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

• Sport

• off-road