Frequently asked questions

TrekOut helps small groups of outdoor enthusiasts organize hikes, camping trips, and other trips, with a roster, check-ins, and an emergency-contact system built in, not bolted on.

Yes, TrekOut is free to use.

Either. TrekOut works as a normal website, and can also be added to your phone's home screen (Safari/Chrome's "Add to Home Screen") for an app-like experience, including some offline support for check-ins.

You can request verification from your Profile. It's currently a manual review: an admin looks over your account before granting the "Verified" badge. It's not an automated or photo-based check yet.

Once someone has been vouched for by 10 or more people they've actually attended an event with, their name displays with a gold treatment. Vouching can only happen between people who checked into the same event together, so it's not something you can do for a stranger.

Only people the organizer has accepted ("permitted") onto the roster. Everyone else, including someone who's only requested to join, sees the general area, not the exact spot, until they're approved.

It confirms someone actually showed up, not just that they said they would. Only the event organizer can check someone in. It's an organizer-confirmed record, not a self-service toggle.

It's private by default. You choose, per event or per group, whether to share it, and even then it's only visible to that event's organizer or that group's admins/leaders, and only for a limited window around the event.

Public events show up in Discover for anyone to find and request to join. Private events don't appear anywhere. You need a direct invite or a shared Event ID to find one.

You need to be approved. Requesting to join puts you on the roster as "invited"; the organizer decides who gets "permitted." This is what keeps events small and organizer-controlled.

You can still ask to join. You'll be waitlisted, and the organizer can let you in if a spot opens up (someone declines, is removed, etc.).

Yes. A pending request can be cancelled before the organizer responds; once you're accepted ("permitted"), there's a Leave Event option. After you've checked in, that's treated as a real attendance record rather than something you can undo yourself.

Public groups show up in group search. Private groups don't show up in search but are still findable if someone has the exact Group ID. Invite Only groups are hidden from search and the Group ID lookup both. The only way in is a direct invite or a link an existing member shares with you.

Group admins can add optional questions to screen who's requesting to join. It's a human-review tool, not an automated check. A group with no questions just asks for your name and an optional social link.

The person who created the group. They're the only one who can delete it or hand that role to another admin, though any admin can otherwise manage members, announcements, and requests day to day.

Any signed-in TrekOut member can see your name, badges, and verification status. Your exact contact details (phone, emergency contact) are never shown unless you explicitly opt in for a specific event or group.

From their profile page, or from the Feedback link, which reaches TrekOut's admin team.