Values

What we believe

Product rules. They show up as Settings toggles, a Layer Stack, layer pills, an offline wizard, toasts, History, a Sync panel, and export menus — not as slogans on a trail.

Readouts

As much information as you want

The map should answer the questions you actually ask on terrain — and stay quiet when you do not ask.

Turn on readout panels for cursor position, elevation under the pointer, camera zoom, camera pitch, and scale. Scale is ground distance per pixel at map center, in your measurement units — not a second name for the scale bar. The same facts can sit in the status bar.

Each panel is optional. Drag one out of the way. Include elevation in the cursor readout when terrain is loaded. Cursor position shows coordinates at the pointer, or map center on a touch screen. Coordinate formats include decimal degrees, DDM, DMS, UTM, and MGRS.

Example — Flatirons, west of Boulder

Position: 39.99780, -105.29200
Elevation: 5761 ft
Zoom: 13.4 / 22
Scale: 36 ft/px
Pitch: 0.0°

Layers

Complexity only when you need it

Simplicity by default. The Layer Stack is one idea: every layer adds the same way. The catalog is tagged so you can still choose.

Satellite imagery, weather-station pins, fire restrictions near your house, topo with trails and contours — each goes on the Layer Stack through the same add path. There is no separate “overlay” ritual: a raster, a vector, or a pin layer is just another layer.

Catalog cards carry the same pills — Type (Vector or Raster), Resolution, Data density (storage per area), Category, Format, Offline, Coverage, License — so you can filter for light data, dense archives, or only vectors. When several layers cover the same need, compare the tradeoffs: MODIS Daily is fresh at ~250 m; a sharper premium mosaic such as MapTiler satellite shows far more detail in many places but is not a daily feed. Pick the layer that fits the trip, not a one-size catalog.

Example — one stack, tagged catalog

Add: Same path for every layer
Type: Vector · Raster
Density: ~KB/mi² · light or dense
Compare: Resolution · freshness

Education

The goal is not to dumb down map data. It is to uplevel and inform you about what the data mean.

Catalog and stack pills — Type, Resolution, Data density, License, Offline, Format, Coverage — open an explainer with a title and a short body, and sometimes a Learn more link. Click Vector and it names lines, fills, and labels drawn from vector data, not a flat pre-rendered image. Click Downloadable and it says the layer can go in an offline region pack. Click PD and it names public-domain government work. The pills filter the catalog; they also teach the terms.

Layer descriptions say who is behind a map and what the terms mean. MODIS Daily does not hide behind the acronym: MODIS is the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, a NASA instrument that observes Earth and climate-related conditions; Terra (1999) and Aqua (2002) image the entire Earth every 1 to 2 days; the tiles come from GIBS (Global Imagery Browse Services). Attribution reads Imagery courtesy NASA GIBS. That is different from a disabled-control toast, which names why a button will not run. Education names what the tiles are.

Example — MODIS Daily

MODIS: Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer
NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
GIBS: Global Imagery Browse Services
Resolution: ~250 m

Offline

Everything offline

Place search, 3D terrain, and snap-to-trail should still work when you leave coverage. That is why a region download can pack those extras, not only the map tiles.

Download a region and walk the wizard. Step 3 is Extras — optional packs for Snap-to-trail routing, 3D terrain, and Place search. Snap-to-trail is the OSM trail routing graph for offline route planning. Place search is GNIS peak and place names in that region. 3D terrain is the DEM mesh for the 3D view; it is a large download, so it stays a checkbox.

Offline mode uses what you packed. It is not Local mode, and it is not the You're offline banner. Include the extras you will need on the trip; skip 3D terrain if you want a smaller pack. They work on the radio too — the download is how they keep working when the radio drops.

Example — Extras on a region download

Routing: Snap-to-trail routing
Terrain: 3D terrain
Search: Place search
Step: Extras

Explain

Never wonder why

If a control will not run, a layer will not download, the network is gone, or sync is waiting, the UI says so. A silent gray button is not an answer.

A disabled control stays clickable so a toast can name the reason: Not available offline, This atlas is read-only, Sign in first, or No connection — cannot go online. Map chrome buttons carry a tooltip. When the network drops, a banner reads You're offline — Edits stay on this device until you reconnect. Layer pills mark Downloadable or Online only and open an explainer.

The Sync panel sits on the map and names the copy you are looking at: Local only when you are signed out; last synced when the cloud copy has been pulled; pending when an atlas, photo, or map sheet is waiting to go up. Sync now is a button, not a guess. History on a route, track, waypoint, folder, or layer stack lists saved versions with Preview and Restore. A red account dot is for a remembered (non-local) account whose session is dead and sync has stopped — not for Local mode. Offline mode (downloaded tiles only) is a different switch from the You're offline banner and from Local mode.

Example — why, not guess

Toast: Not available offline
Banner: You're offline
Sync: Local only
History: Preview · Restore

Ownership

Your Data, Forever

Leaving should be easy. Export the route, track, or waypoint you are looking at as GPX — or take the folder or the atlas.

Select it and open Export. Selection is the default scope, so you get that object as GPX, GeoJSON, KML, or KMZ without exporting the whole atlas. People often plan in a browser and navigate in a different mobile app; open files are how a library moves between them. GeoJSON can target a profile you write yourself in Settings.

You can also stay signed out in Local mode. Map content stays on your device until you sign in and sync, or export it yourself. Import the same formats, plus FIT from a Garmin. KMZ includes photo files. GPX, GeoJSON, and plain KML do not. We do not sell personal information.

Open formats — in and out

Import: GPX · GeoJSON · KML · KMZ · FIT
Export: GPX · GeoJSON · KML · KMZ
GeoJSON profiles: Generic · Your profile
Scope: Selection · Folder · Atlas

See the App page for screenshots, the FAQ for Local mode, export, and sync, or About for who makes Wildlost.