The hike messaging app, a chat-style app used to organize and coordinate trips to the trail, is shutting down due to low usage. It has been around for five years, according to the company.
When hiking there’s usually an app for that. But the hike messaging app, which allows people to send and share their hike notes to others, is shutting down, according to the company’s blog.
This is a little awkward because you use the app to send and share your hike notes, but the app should be shutting down for a variety of reasons. The company says it has raised a $7 million round, but that it will continue to operate as usual.
While it is not entirely surprising to hear that an app to share hikes is going to shut down, we think it is a good indication that hiking apps have a long way to go before they really catch on. We are of the belief that hiking apps are more about the trail than the location; the trail would be awesome if you could share it with your friends, but the location is very much the real focus.
We agree. As a matter of fact, we would like to see a hiking app be a very good place to do your hiking and not just a glorified way to share a hiking trail. We think the location should be much more important than the trail, unless you’re the type of person who likes to take pictures of your hike.
It’s true, it’s a bit of a pain to share a trail with your friends, and in some cases, the trail is a destination, not a way to share a destination. And of course, the main reasons for us to be against this particular app are the same ones that we think are the main reasons to be against every hiking app: location and data collection.
So we have three problems here: First, hikers should not share a trail. Second, hikers should not be allowed to take a picture of their hike, because hiking is a great way to get good quality photography. Third, hikers should not be allowed to post “lodges” on their trails, because if you post a “lodge” on a trail, the trail will be closed by a local government.
One of the biggest concerns of hikers is the possibility of their personal information being collected by government agencies, so in the interest of making sure everyone is on the same page about data collection, we have decided to shut down our app.
The app is currently in beta and it is expected to debut sometime this month. As with previous ones, hopefully we will have some feedback on whether it will be ready in time for release later this year.
Although we couldn’t exactly stop there. We have also decided to shut down our hike messaging app. Our app allows users to message each other while hiking, so we hope it will be a great option for users who would like to connect with each other.