Author

Robyn Martin

Robyn joined Gaia GPS in February 2018 and is part of the Marketing Team. She has dedicated her career to educating people on how to safely explore the outdoors and spends much of her free time mountain biking and climbing in the Pacific Northwest.

Gaia GPSNew Features

Measure Areas on the Web

by Robyn Martin
written by Robyn Martin

Measuring land just got easier with Gaia GPS’s area/polygon measurement tool now available on gaiagps.com. Start using your desktop computer for your land measurement needs.

Often used by land managers, search and rescue groups, and private property owners, this tool allows you to create a polygon to cover irregular land boundaries and measure the perimeter and acreage or km2 for a piece of land.

Click the area icon on the left-hand side of the map to get started.

Land measurement of river highlighted in purple.

Creating an area on gaiagps.com allows you to adjust each edge and side of the polygon so you can conform the shape to cover land features. Drag and drop the corners to new locations. Add an adjustable point by clicking the distance markers between each point.

Saved areas will appear as shaded polygons on the map. Select the shaded area on the map to change the name and color. Or make an adjustment by clicking ‘More’ and ‘Edit Area.’

Web map land measurement highlighted in purple with "Lake Thomas" label over the area

For step by step instructions on measuring an area, visit the help center here.

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Gaia GPSHuntingiOSNew Maps

24- and 72-Hour Weather Forecast Overlays

by Robyn Martin
written by Robyn Martin

In addition to the 48-hour Precip Overlay, Gaia GPS includes 24- and 72-hour Forecast Overlays, too. Beat the rain, or maximize your powder days, with these  options that you can display over your favorite base maps.

Sourced from NOAA Data

Like the 48-hour overlays, the 24-hour and 72-hour Precip Overlays refresh with new information every 12 hours from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Weather Prediction Center (WPC). Predictions show a static image of the amount of liquid precipitation expects to fall in the given time frame for the continental United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Using the Precip Forecast Overlays

Choose the best day to head out on the trail by referencing the right weather overlay. Heading out for the weekend? Check out the 72-hour forecast to get a view of overall precipitation. Just want to know what tomorrow looks like? Use the 24-hour forecast to get a quick and accurate prediction.

Premium Members can view the forecast overlays when connected to WiFi or cell service in the iOS app and on gaiagps.com.

How to View the Precip Overlays

In the app:

  1. Follow these steps to add the Precip Overlay to your layers list.
  2. Find the Precip maps under the Feature/Weather Overlays category.
  3. Turn on layered maps to view the Precip overlays on top of your favorite map source.

On gaiagps.com:

  1. Follow these steps to add the Precip Overlays to your layers list.
  2. Find them in the Weather and Features Overlays category.

How to Read the Precip Forcast Overlays

These overlays use colored shading to show forecasted cumulative precipitation. The legend below shows the color markings for cumulation in inches:

Quantitative Precipitation Forecast

A Note on Safety

You can use the weather overlay as a planning tool to help you pack, plan your route, and be prepared for the weather ahead. Gaia GPS provides map layers to help plan and prepare for inclement weather but make sure to check with local news sources for more frequent and localized updates.

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Stay Prepared during Wildfire Season
Gaia GPSHuntingNew Maps

Stay Prepared during Wildfire Season with New Current Wildfires Overlay

by Robyn Martin
written by Robyn Martin

With the new ‘US Wildfire – Current’ overlay, Premium Members can view current fire conditions before heading out on the trail. In addition, use the existing ‘US Wildfire – Historic’ overlay to view areas that were previously affected by wildfires.

Already have Premium? Follow these steps to add new maps, like the US Wildfire Overlays.

Disclaimer: The US Wildfire – Current’ overlay is updated daily as new data is made available by the USGS, but many fire boundaries will be out of date or incorrect, and recent fires may not have been added yet. Use of this map layer for any purpose is at your own risk, and Trailbehind Inc (maker of Gaia GPS) is not responsible for any actions you take based on the information contained in any map.

Use the “US Wildfire – Current” Overlay to Stay Informed

You’ll find the “US Wildfires – Current” overlay in the Feature/Weather Overlays category of the map manger. It can be used whenever you have an internet connection and gets updated daily by the USGS. Reference the map before leaving home to check for actively burning wildfires.

Layer the ‘US Wildfire – Current’ overlay atop any of your favorite map sources, like Gaia Topo, USGS Topo, or USFS 2016. You can use this information to follow up with the local rangers station for closures and trail conditions in the area.

Layer the US Wildfire-Current overlay with USFS 2016 to view active wildfire for an area.

US Wildfire-Current over USFS 2016

Shaded red displays current burn areas. Tap the area and click the Info icon to view more details about the fires size, name, and Inciweb id which you can use to look up more information about the burn.Gaia GPS US Wildfire - Current

Use Gaia GPS to Check for Historical Wildfires

In addition to the current Wildfires map, you can also find historical wildfire information with the ‘US Wildfires – Historical’ overlay. This map layer updates bi-annually and shows you a record of past wildfires, the year they burned, and acreage of the fire. Overlaying this data with map sources like Gaia Topo will queue you to important trail conditions you may need to prepare for.

Even after fires blow through an area, land managers can keep trails closed for weeks or even years. Much of the Columbia River Gorge area in Mount Hood National Forest remains closed in the aftermath of the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire due to fallen trees and other hazards. Cleared areas may still have widow makers (dangle branches) or dead trees with rotted roots along a trail which are especially dangerous in high winds.

Contact the ranger district for the area you are exploring for up-to-date conditions for the area.

Layer the US Wildfire -Historic overlay with Gaia Topo to view past fires in an area.

US Wildfire – Historic over Gaia Topo

Third Party Resources

Use the following resources to get more information about current wildfires:

  • The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) provides detailed information on its USFS Public Fire Information page with specific wildfire data and additional web resources to stay aware.
  • InciWeb shows incident information from multiple management agencies. Use the InciWeb ID listed in the fire details page to find details on fires near you.
  • Research the air quality before heading outside will make the hike more enjoyable, your lungs will thank you. Wind can carry smoke across states causing haze. Firesmoke.ca provides a 51-hour forecast of North America’s conditions.
  • Check the local news source in the area you are headed for regional-specific closures and updates.

Feature photo by: Brian Miracle

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female hiker using Gaia GPS on Android phone to navigate the trail.
AndroidApp UpdatesGaia GPS

Advanced Trail and Park Search in Gaia GPS Android Update v7.0.8

by Robyn Martin
written by Robyn Martin

Hat tip this week to Andy Crampton, who joined Gaia GPS just a few weeks ago, and has already shipped a splendid Android update.

The new version (7.0.8) brings Gaia Search to Android, vastly improving search, and bringing Android in alignment with gaiagps.com and the iOS app. Andy also nailed a couple of the top bugs we’ve seen in logs and reports, so this release should be a big boon to almost everyone.

We’re expecting an accelerated ongoing Android development schedule now!

Search with Ease

Gaia GPS for Android now suggests locations as you search and marks results with descriptive icons for trails, peaks, forests, and more. Searches show a vastly improved list of possible points of interest, meticulously filtered to give more accurate suggestions. Fine-tune your selection with subtitles for each result denoting specific locale – designed to help when there are multiple results with the same name.

You may have already seen this new search capability in action on gaiagps.com or in Gaia GPS on iOS. Now that all three platforms are aligned expect to see continuous improvements to the search results you receive.

Gaia GPS for Android now suggests locations as you search and marks results with descriptive icons for trails, peaks, forests, and more.

Tap a search suggestion to be taken there on the map. The app will automatically mark a temporary pin at the location.

Gaia GPS app will automatically mark a temporary pin at the location.

Behind the Scenes

Among various usability improvements, this update relieves a sometimes slow or unresponsive ‘Saved’ menu — one of the most-common in-app freezes experienced by users. Now open saved tracks, waypoints, and routes without hesitation.

Also notable – GPX file imports are now more reliable, and we fixed an issue where the password reset button wouldn’t work.

Disable Analytics

We respect user privacy and now include an option to disable analytics. Shared analytics, diagnostics, and usage information allow us to make informed decisions about how to improve the app. You can opt-out of this setting in the app under Settings > Other.

Support and Feedback

Anyone can download or update to the latest version of Gaia GPS for free.Google Play Store button for Gaia GPSIf you like the update, spread the word by leaving a review.

Want to give more in-depth feedback? Send a note to support@gaiagps.com.

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