Privacy
The Hiking World is a reference encyclopedia. Safety facts on trail pages are public. This page describes the little personal data we handle.
Analytics
On the live site we load Google Analytics 4. Consent Mode v2 defaults analytics storage and all advertising storage to denied. We set analytics storage to granted only after you accept the banner. Decline leaves it denied. We do not run ads. Your choice is stored in this browser as thw-consent. Use Cookie settings in the footer to choose again.
Login
Optional account sign-in uses Stytch (email magic link or Google on the website; email one-time code in the iOS and Android app). Session cookies or a device-secure session token identify you so gated trail notes can unlock. We do not sell this.
The Hiking World app
The iOS and Android app is a reference mirror of this encyclopedia, not a navigator. Catalog records (including geometry) ship on the device so the app works offline. That is open trail data, not a personal profile.
Location. If you tap “Show my location”, the app requests when-in-use permission only and draws a blue dot on the map. Coordinates stay in memory for that screen. They are never recorded, stored, logged, sent to our servers, or linked to your account. There is no background location, no breadcrumb trail, and no turn-by-turn routing.
Offline maps. If you download a trail or region, basemap tiles for that area are stored on the device so the map still renders without a network. You can delete a download at any time.
Account. Optional sign-in is the same Stytch project as the website. Email is used to send a one-time code and to keep a session. A previously stored, unexpired session can stay signed in offline. Sign out clears the session from the device.
Subscribe
If you subscribe, we store the name, email, and contact details you submit, with consent, to send occasional notes. You can stop by asking us to delete the record.
Hosting
Pages are hosted on Vercel. Logs may include IP addresses for security and rate limits (for example subscribe). Trail geometry is OpenStreetMap (ODbL).
Affiliate links
Trail facts, hazards, water, and conditions are never sponsored. If we add booked-stay or gear links later, they will carry a sponsored relation and a visible disclosure. None are live today.