I think we had a post in here awhile back where people talked about bringing their iPods or what-not with them when hiking.  I don't usually listen to music while hiking, but I do bring a cell phone that is capable of playing mp3s/podcasts etc.   Anyways, this would be an idea for people who don't mind bringing something like that along every now and then.

A friend of a friend of mine started a company where they do audio tours in California.  You can buy them online and then listen to them in your ipod.  I think they focus more on driving tours, where you have a map and then listen to the right track when you get somewhere on your map.

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Dan - Site Cartographer

My idea (and I'm sure this has already been done so it's probably not an original idea, in fact their company might be doing it too, I'm not sure) would be to do the same thing with hikes.  It would be like going on a hike with an expert guide, except you would be able to go by yourself.  Maybe you would get to the top of a waterfall and then you would hit play and you could listen to a story about the geology of the area- that type of thing.   There are lots of different ways it could be done.

They could be offered online as podcasts, but divided into multiple tracks.  This could be done for free, or even as a way to make a little bit of money.

Anyways, this isn't really something I have the time or expertise to do- I just thought I would throw it out there.

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Dan - Site Cartographer

Sounds like a great idea to me. I know I'd be interested.

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"Come visit us again and again. This is a state of excitement. But for heaven's sake, don't move here to live." Tom McCall

I don't usually like to hike with headphones, but this would be a terrific companion to a hike. I would definitely pay a small amount for ipod tracks if they were done well, interesting and informative and whatnot. Between geology, natural history, flora and fauna, bird calls, etc., there's no end to what could be included. Throw on a few photos for the video ipods that identify flowers, birds, trees, and so on...seems like a huge winner.

Great idea!