One of our favourite things about this time of year is that it’s great for crisp, crunchy winter walks – and with the right apps you can make your adventures even more entertaining.

Discover interesting destinations, map faraway stars or just figure out if you’ll need your big coat. These companions are perfect for every kind of explorer.

Looking for the greenest, quietest and most interesting walks in the UK and Ireland? Try Go Jauntly. It’s won lots of awards for its gorgeously photographed walking guides and community-contributed walks, and it comes recommended by none other than Clare Balding from the BBC.

While most of the walks are in the UK, you can also take it on holiday and download trips for destinations in Europe, Australia and the US.

Good to know: One of our favourite features is Amble Anywhere. Use it to pick from a range of activities – a quick 1-mile wander, a 25-minute leg shake and more – and it will suggest a route for you. While you walk you can use the Nature Notes feature to capture the fun things you find. What’s more, the walking challenges integrate nicely with your Health app, enabling you to track not just your physical activity but your mental wellbeing too.

If you fancy more of a hike or want to take your bike, find inspiration in AllTrails and get a feel for the terrain and distance before you set out. In addition to its excellent built-in GPS navigation, its recommended trails come with photos taken by other hikers – it prioritises the most recent ones so that you can see exactly what to expect.

Good to know: One of the many things that makes AllTrails special is its philosophy: it wants us all to enjoy the outdoors, and as a result its route planner will happily help you find great trails that are dog-friendly, child-friendly, pram-friendly or wheelchair-friendly.

The OS in OS Maps stands for Ordnance Survey, the UK’s famous map-makers. It’s often hailed as the best hiking app by keen outdoor explorers thanks to its mix of those famous maps and today’s technology, including GPS and offline maps.

It doesn’t have the social features of some rivals, but if you want a mapping and navigation app this is one of the very best.

Good to know: OS Maps has all 600-plus OS Leisure Maps for Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which are used by all kinds of organisations including the Scouts, the British Mountaineering Council, mountain rescue and the armed forces. That’s quite the recommendation, and many of its curated routes come from well-known sources too: BBC Countryfile, Mountain Biking UK, Country Walking and more.

As wonderful as your device’s weather widget is, it’s wise to have a heavyweight weather watcher too. The Met Office app is a must-have for checking what you should wear to walk the dog or what the conditions will be for a big outdoor adventure.

Good to know: In addition to its hourly, daily and weekly forecasts, the Met Office offers weather warnings and useful information. For example, we’re currently getting a yellow warning for snow, and it’s linking to advice on how to stay and travel safely in snowy conditions. The app also has two excellent widgets for your Home Screen: a small one with conditions and temperature, and a wide one with the weather for the next five hours.

Your exploring doesn’t need to stop when the sun goes down – winter’s longer nights and colder weather often creates the perfect conditions for a great stargazing session. One of the finest guides is Night Sky.

During the winter nights its GPS-powered navigation, clear star maps and incredible knowledge of astronomy give you a whole new perspective on the sky above.

Good to know: Not only does Night Sky take you on a guided tour of the sky, it also works on multiple devices. Apple Watch can tell you what to look for when, and as you start to feel the winter chill, head back indoors for some cosy space exploration on Apple TV or Apple Vision Pro.