How to use day-level diagnostics

Route-level diagnostics tell you whether the whole trip is demanding. Day-level diagnostics tell you which day is driving that result and what type of problem it is.

The main question this section answers is:

Which day stands out as unusually hard, and is that difficulty being driven by campsite placement, terrain, time, energy, or accumulated fatigue?

What day-level diagnostics are for

Use day-level diagnostics when you want to:

  • see which day is the hardest
  • understand why one day is much harder than the others
  • decide whether to move campsites before changing deeper inputs

Working rule:

  • fix day structure before changing physiology anchors or calibration inputs

If one day is much harder than the others, check campsite placement first.

Step 1: Confirm that the itinerary already exists

Day-level diagnostics start after the route has already been split into days.

If you still need to place campsites or build the itinerary structure, use Split a route into days first.

Open the Segments tab and confirm that the Campsites panel already contains the day structure you want to evaluate.

At this stage, use the panel only to confirm:

  • the route is already divided into days
  • the campsite list matches the itinerary you want to evaluate
  • any layovers or zero days are already represented

If the itinerary structure itself is still incomplete, stop here and go back to Split a route into days.

Step 2: Use Day-load distribution to find the outlier day

Once the route is split into days, move to Day-load distribution.

This is the first screening tool for day-by-day imbalance.

Use this panel to:

  • compare days across a chosen lens
  • see the peak day
  • see the mean and range across calendar days
  • select a day to focus on

Use the bars to answer:

Which day is highest under the current lens?

Step 3: Change the lens instead of trusting only one signal

The Lens menu changes what type of day-level load you are comparing.

You can look at lenses such as:

  • Max fatigue (cumFI)
  • Risk area
  • Max risk
  • Total hiking time
  • Total req kcal
  • Pack start weight
  • Distance
  • Gain
  • Deficit feasibility
  • Load
  • Exposure
  • Time
  • Energy
  • Backload

Use lenses this way:

  • start with Max fatigue (cumFI) or Load to find the peak day
  • switch to Time if the day may simply be too long
  • switch to Energy if the day may exceed energy capacity
  • switch to Exposure or Backload when terrain placement is the likely issue
  • switch to Distance or Gain when you want a simpler structural explanation

Do not rely on only one lens. Compare at least two or three views of the same day.

Step 4: Focus a specific day and read the day card

After you identify the standout day, focus it and read the day card.

The day card gives you:

  • Basics
  • Energy & Weight
  • TRIPSignals

Basics

Use the Basics block to ask:

  • how long the day is
  • how much hiking time it requires
  • how much climb and descent it contains
  • how high it goes

Energy & Weight

Use Energy & Weight to ask:

  • what the pack weighs at the start and end of the day
  • how much base and activity energy the day requires
  • whether planned intake is behind required demand

TRIPSignals

The day-level TRIPSignals help explain what kind of difficulty is showing up on this day.

Use the day-level signals to compare:

  • terrain difficulty
  • overall day strain
  • whether the hard work is pushed late
  • time and energy pressure
  • where risk and accumulated burden are highest

Use the day card to answer:

Why is this day higher than the others under the current lens?

Step 5: Use Daily charts to locate where the day gets hard

After the day card, move to Daily charts.

Use Daily charts to find where inside the day the load spikes.

The metric menu includes:

  • Elevation
  • Grade
  • MDR
  • Energy cost
  • Speed
  • cumFI
  • Fatigue impact

Use the chart menu this way:

  • use Elevation to understand the broad structure of the day
  • use Grade to find steep sections
  • use MDR to find terrain-demand peaks
  • use Energy cost to find expensive sections
  • use Speed to find expected slow sections
  • use cumFI to track accumulated burden
  • use Fatigue impact to find where the day peaks late

This is the day-level version of route diagnostics, applied to one day instead of the entire route.

Recommended reading order

Use this sequence:

  1. Use Campsites to define the day structure.
  2. Use Day-load distribution to find the standout day.
  3. Change the Lens to understand what kind of problem it is.
  4. Focus that day and read the day card.
  5. Use Daily charts to see where inside the day the problem lives.
  6. Then move the campsite if the issue is structural.

That sequence moves from itinerary structure to comparison, diagnosis, and action.

What day-level diagnostics are best at

Day-level diagnostics are strongest when you use them to:

  • find the peak day
  • determine whether the problem is structural or input-driven
  • compare one itinerary split against another
  • decide whether to move a campsite earlier or later

They are less useful when you use them to defend one exact predicted number.

Common mistakes to avoid

Watch out for these:

  • changing physiology inputs before checking whether campsite placement is the real problem
  • trusting only one day-load lens
  • staring at the selected day card without looking at the daily charts
  • trying to equalize every day perfectly instead of just removing the biggest outliers

What to do next

After reading day-level diagnostics, continue with:

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