Summer 2012 has been around for some time now, and that means you will be taking some much needed vacation time. Yes, you do deserve a vacation! Nokia is kicking off yet another series over on the Nokia Conversations blog where they have put together some great “exploratory” applications for your Windows Phone.
Each application title is a link to the Windows Phone Marketplace listing where you can download the application to your Windows Phone.
Wiki Talking Tours
Free
A free app which capitalizes on geo-tagged Wikipedia entries to give you bonafide audio tours to augment your exploratory shenanigans. It’s a great way to discover historic buildings, the stories behind ancient battlegrounds or the kind of wildlife you can expect to encounter in State Parks. The potential is practically limitless, but can we get David Attenborough on commentary?
Geocaching Live
Free (but premium membership required for all features)
There’s nothing quite like a bit of Geocaching to turn a walk in the countryside to a full-on treasure hunt. There’s a decent array of solutions for Windows Phone, but we like this offering. You can use Live Tiles to pin the app to the Start screen, which will update to show you the nearest cache at any given point in time and with detailed descriptions, loads of photos and mystery hunts. With 1.7m geocaches to track down worldwide, we can’t see you looking elsewhere.WTA TrailBlazer
Free
This app should be enough to put Washington State on your itinerary. The WTA TrailBlazer app is packed with beautiful photography and tons of information on how to find dog and child friendly trails, even allowing you to customize hike length, access driving directions, weather conditions and recent reviews from other explorers. This official app is a trailblazer in its own right and a blueprint for the other 49 states in the Union.
Free
We love hot dogs cooked over the campfire, but after three days it feels like our intestines may attempt to leave our body via the fastest possible route. Instead, how about Alaskan Campfire Stew with Beer Fries and Cherry Peach Cobbler for dessert? The app features ten ways to cook your receipt of choice and brings solutions whether you’re backpacking or have brought your entire kitchen with you. And if you’re really hiking up poop creek without a paddle, there’s a host of emergency survival foods. Who knew ants could be so nutritious?National Parks EyeGuide
Free
Whether it’s stripping down to snorkel among the coral reefs in Florida’s Dry Tortugas or piling on layers to climb the snow-covered peaks of the Denali Wilderness reserve in Alaska, this app is just the ticket. It’s loaded with top-notch photography, YouTube videos, current weather conditions and latest news from Park Services. It’s a gem whether you’re planning or in the midst of your trip.
I’ll take this opportunity to speak for myself and mention that I’ve never heard of any of the above applications. I’ll definitely be downloading the Wiki Talking Tours and Camp Recipes applications for myself. The information both of those applications bring to the Windows Phone is just awesome on text as it is, and both are free!
Are there any “exploratory” applications you have discovered on the Windows Phone Marketplace that you want to recommend? Post them down in the comments below!
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