Step 9: Save your trip and choose your next steps

Use this article when you are deciding whether the current trip is worth saving, how to preserve it safely, and which reference docs you should open next after finishing Getting Started.

The key difference is simple:

• use a scratch draft while exploring
• save a trip when you want a stable version you can keep or compare later

Before you start

• Assume your current workspace is temporary until you explicitly save it.
• If you are about to try a risky change, save first so you have a version to return to.
• If you need the full button-by-button modal walkthrough, use How to use the Trip Manager.

Quick workflow

1. Keep working in a scratch draft while the plan is still disposable.
2. Save the trip as soon as the plan becomes worth preserving.
3. Duplicate before major experiments instead of overwriting the only good version.
4. Load older versions only after saving anything in the current workspace that you still care about.

Step 1: Decide whether this version is worth keeping

Use scratch drafts for early exploration.

Scratch drafts are useful for:

• quick experiments
• testing alternate routes
• rough early planning

They are a good fit when you are still deciding whether the route or itinerary is worth keeping.

Save the trip once these are true:

• the GPX is the right route
• the core Basic-mode inputs are filled out with grounded values
• the route has been split into days
• you have inspected the route and day outputs enough to know this version is worth returning to

Step 2: Save the trip when the current version would be annoying to rebuild

The moment a plan becomes valuable, save it.

Saved trips are for plans you want to keep, revise, duplicate, rename, or return to later.

Good times to save a trip:

• after you have a solid first-pass itinerary
• before trying a more aggressive alternate
• before making major campsite or input changes
• when you want a stable version you can return to later

Rule:

• if losing the current state would frustrate you, save it now

Use Save As... when the current workspace is still a scratch draft.

Use Save when the current workspace is already backed by an active saved trip.

Step 3: Duplicate before big experiments

Save before making a big change you may want to compare later.

That gives you a stable version to return to if the new experiment does not work out.

This is especially useful when you want to compare:

• one campsite layout versus another
• a conservative plan versus a more aggressive one
• one set of pack, food, sleep, or altitude assumptions versus another

Duplicating is better than repeatedly overwriting the same saved trip while you are still exploring.

Step 4: Save before loading another trip

In My Trips, Load replaces the current workspace.

Before you switch away, stop and ask:

• do I care about the changes currently in front of me?
• did I already save this version?
• would I want to compare this state later?

If yes, save first.

Common mistakes to avoid

• treating a scratch draft like it is already safely preserved
• loading another trip before saving the current version
• overwriting the only good version instead of duplicating first
• waiting too long to save because the plan does not feel “finished” yet

What to do next

Once you have a saved first-pass trip, these are the most important next references:

• Which parameters matter most for hiking time and activity calories? when you want to know which levers deserve attention first
• How to use the Trip Manager for the full save, load, duplicate, rename, and delete workflow
• Optional calibration if you are deciding whether to personalize TRIPS with FIT data
• Calibration overview if you already know you want the map of the calibration docs

For most new users, the right calibration starting point is Optional calibration first, not the full workflow.

Next step

Next... Which parameters matter most for hiking time and activity calories?