Discover Adventurous Lands in All 50 States With onX's Ecosystem: Plan Your Winter Fun Too

Cue onX and the solutions they bring to the adventurer's table. Never heard of this crew? Funny enough, neither have I, but this team has been hard at work helping individuals like you and me discover the world since 2009. Hang on a second; let me back things up a bit so you can clearly understand what we're up against.

It all started when Eric Siegfried, an avid hunter, decided it was time to see things clearly. He wanted to know clear "public land boundaries" so that he and his fellow hunters could go about their activities without disturbing anyone, the local flora and fauna, and breaking any laws. And so, onX was born, growing to be known as "the first land data company of its kind." Take that idea and product, build upon it for over a decade, and the result is the entire onX ecosystem.

These days, the onX network includes three major functions, Offroad, Hunt, and Backcountry, each designed to give its users precious information relaying all the ins and outs of local routes, activities, rest areas, geographic details, all of it. Be it on foot, in a vehicle, while hunting, or simply exploring, it sounds like this crew has done the research.

Yet, there's a new section available to owners of the Offroad version, and the main topic of discussion for today, Snow mode. Just in time for the colder months of the Northern Hemisphere. As you can expect from its name, Snow mode unlocks information pertaining to your area's snow conditions. What does this mean for you? It means unedited access to all those little unseen and undiscovered routes in any area. For $30 a year, onX offers you "Premium" access to trails and public land to take your motorized vehicle out for a spin.

Come Saturday morning and the sun rising over the horizon, you'll load up your snowmobiles or whatever you use to get your kicks, turn on your app, and head in a different direction than you did last time and the time before that, and before that, and before... you get the idea. That alone seems tempting enough to whip out my credit card and sacrifice one day's lunch money.

Exploring more of what onX offers its possible future owners, the manufacturer's website does one hell of a job explaining everything. For example, your access to the app's functions not only helps you discover new places and routes, but you'll know what you need to get there. Information displayed includes terrain slope, distance, weather forecasts, and even avalanche warnings and the state of the snow. Sounds like safety is also a priority for this team, as it should be. To help you avoid any crazed landowners with their "Git off my property" attitude, onX also showcases all private land ownership in all 50 states. Other app modes unlock routes even in Canada. But that information will cost you an easy $100 a year.

Nonetheless, as I was learning about onX and the world they bring to the table, I realized this sort of app is genius. No longer do I have to sit there and beg Google Maps or my iPhone to show me where I can explore. I can just hop on and ride off into the sunset. Oh, and once all the snow has melted next spring, your membership will still be active, showing you new routes and areas to explore with your off-road vehicles. You may be into e-biking and all that jazz; this might be good for that too.