Technology for outdoor exploration this summer

Geocaching is a fantastic way to spend time outdoors and spark curiosity through riddles and clues. It’s a real-world treasure hunt enjoyed by a large community of passionate ‘cachers’! Using the Geocache app, you can uncover countless hidden caches waiting to be found.

The combination of solving puzzles and the physical activity involved in the search makes for an ideal day of outdoor adventure, helping children view their local surroundings with fresh eyes and excitement.

Try the AllTrails app to find kid-friendly walking trails in your local area. It’s a great way to turn an ordinary family walk into an exciting adventure for kids. With features like route tracking, goal setting, and badge earning, AllTrails turns walking into a gamified experience, making each outing feel like a mini quest. This gives children a sense of purpose and achievement, helping keep them motivated and engaged along the way. Exploring nature becomes more than just physical activity, it becomes a fun, meaningful experience for the whole family.

Whilst on a family walk, keep the adventure going with the PlantSnap app. After using AllTrails to find the perfect route, PlantSnap lets children explore nature even further by identifying plants, flowers, and trees along the way. It turns a simple stroll into an interactive learning experience, sparking curiosity about the natural world around them. Kids can snap photos, discover fun facts, and start to recognise different species, making each walk both educational and exciting. It’s a wonderful way to encourage a love for nature while keeping young minds active and engaged.

Make running an exciting game this summer with the Zombies, Run! app. It's a fun way to keep kids active and entertained during the holidays. Instead of an ordinary jog, children become heroes in an immersive story where they collect supplies, complete missions, and escape zombie chases. They can walk, jog, or run anywhere while listening to thrilling audio adventures and their favourite music through headphones. If enemies get too close, they need to speed up, adding an extra challenge to their run. Along the way, they gather supplies to trade for trophies or build their own virtual base, turning every run into an adventure. Age Rating: 12+.

Pokémon GO is an app that blends gaming with the real world, making it a fun and active way for children to explore their surroundings. Using location tracking and mapping technology, the game creates an augmented reality where players catch and train Pokémon in real-life places like parks, streets, and landmarks. It encourages kids to get outside, walk around, and stay engaged as they search for new Pokémon and complete in-game tasks. Although users must be 13 or over to sign up, parents can create an account for younger children, making it a family-friendly way to combine outdoor activity with imaginative play.

Merlin Bird ID is a great way to get kids noticing the world around them, especially when you're out for a walk or spending time in the park. The app can identify birds by their songs or calls, and if they manage to take a photo, it can suggest what kind of bird it might be. There is also a simple question-based tool that helps work it out when they are not sure what they have spotted.

It’s a relaxed and easy way to spark curiosity and get children tuning in to nature. Building up their own little list of birds they’ve found adds an extra layer of excitement and gives them something to keep looking out for wherever they go.

Keep your children engaged with learning during the summer break while also encouraging movement with Walkr. The app transforms walking into a space adventure where each step powers a spaceship, helping kids discover new planets and learn about the universe. Along the way, they can complete missions, meet adorable lost space creatures, and build their own galaxy. It is a fun way to combine learning about space with staying active. Teaming up with friends to reach goals also adds extra excitement to their daily walks.

Take your outdoor adventures to the next level with the iNaturalist app app. iNaturalist encourages children to become young explorers by recording the wildlife they see on walks, from bugs to birds and everything in between. Kids can upload their discoveries to the cloud, helping scientists track when and where different species appear. With real-time feedback from experts and a community of nature lovers, children can learn to identify organisms and expand their knowledge of the natural world.