No matter what kind of RV we have, one thing that we are all interested in is the weather. Nothing affects traveling more. Across North America, the cold weather is coming fast and that means snow and ice and dicey weather conditions. Thanks to apps, tablets, and the Web, you never again need to wonder what it's going to be like out there.
I'm always installing and uninstalling weather apps. I've tried dozens of them and I'm sure I'll try dozens more in the months ahead. But for now, here's a roundup of my favorite weather apps.
When bad weather threatens we want to know when and where it will start. And that’s where the new Forecast.io website comes in. It accesses the radar data available from the U.S. government, crunches and analyzes it all, and then predicts rainfall and snow for your exact area by the hour and lays it out on a very elegant website. You can get global, regional, and local views with just a mouseclick. The tools that the website uses to compile the reports and predictions then are spun off into two apps for smartphones and tablets, one for the Apple platform, and the other for Android devices. They, too are, pretty slick.
The iPhone app is called Dark Sky. It costs $3.99.
UPDATE: Support for the Dark Sky iOS app will end on December 31st, 2022, and support for the Dark Sky API will end on March 31st, 2023.
Here are some other weather apps I use:
When we're setting out on an RV trip, I really like the Road Trip Weather App for the iPhone. It costs $1.99 but is very handy. It provides a personalized weather forecast for your drive based on WHERE you will be and WHEN you will be there. Enter your route & departure time and weather data populates on the map, showing potentially hazardous conditions.
If you want to know everything there is to know about the weather, WeatherBug is the one you want. When you launch the app, it immediately displays current local weather, including temperature, dew point, humidity, sunrise, sunset, wind, pressure, and any active weather alerts for the area. This is good as you are traveling as it always updates your current weather. A toolbar along the top lets you switch from the current forecast to a more detailed forecast, hourly forecast, or 7-day forecast. A toolbar along the bottom lets you access weather radar, live webcams in your area, lightning strike information and the pollen count.
The WeatherBug app has a great radar link but sometimes we want just radar and as much of it as we can get. For Android users, I like RadarNow! It gives directly to instant radar from your current position.
For the iPad and iPhone, try the MyRadar app.
There are no shortage of weather apps. Those are my favorites.
Want to read more on this topic?
- https://rvlifestyle.com/tornado-safety-for-rvers/
- https://rvlifestyle.com/rv-bad-weather-tips/
- https://rvlifestyle.com/best-weather-app-for-rv-travel/
5 Responses to “Weather Apps for RVers”
Comments are closed.
June 21, 2014at5:13 pm, Jeffrey Greenspan said:
Made in Canada
October 29, 2013at9:11 am, Debbie Broadstreet said:
About smart phone apps – I always go for the paid version of an app if there is one. Why? Paid apps do not have ads and add-on junk that take up screen space and use up extra data in the download. I avoid free apps if possible.
October 29, 2013at9:05 am, Debbie Broadstreet said:
We love Weatherbug. We bought Weatherbug Elite (the upgrade) for our Android phones. Weatherbug Elite is better because there are no ads. It is well worth paying the small fee to get the upgrade program. We drove from TN to FL through AL during a tornado outbreak and Weatherbug radar showed the details perfectly for our location as we drove. We knew when to keep going and when to go faster during a tense time. As a result, we never got into the severe weather. When the radar showed the storms had passed, we stopped for dinner and relaxed for the evening. This app works best in 4G areas. I doubt any of the apps work well in 3G areas.
October 26, 2013at8:41 pm, Bill Sprague said:
Mike,
As a consulting hydrologist and weather wonk, I’d add Wunderground for iPhone and Intellicast HD for iPad. Accuweather is good too but it’s ad supported and uses screen real estate on the iPhone. Those have kept me out of trouble and found me sunshine many times. It’s almost as good as air traffic controllers. ;0)
Happy Trekking,
Bill
October 26, 2013at2:59 pm, Mina said:
Another iPhone app I like to use is Storm Shield. So far it is only on my phone and not available for my iPad that I am aware of.