Hunting Archives - Page 3 of 3

USFS 2016 Map Now Available in Gaia GPS

by Nathan Copeland December 19, 2016

written by Nathan Copeland

You can now access an updated version of the United States Forest Service (USFS) National Forests maps, called USFS 2016.

The USFS 2016 map source includes updated roads, road labels, and vegetation shading. We left the existing USFS Raster source, and renamed it USFS Classic, because the Classic source includes some private property boundaries not available in USFS 2016.

Both USFS sources show up in the United States section of the Gaia GPS map source collection, on iOS, Android, and gaiagps.com.

Updated roads in USFS 2016 vs USFS Classic

Anyone planning a backpacking, off-road vehicle, hunting, or fishing trip to any of the 154 national forests or 20 national grasslands will benefit from including the new USFS 2016 map in their list of map sources.

The USFS 2016 and USFS Classic map sources only cover national forests and grasslands, but Gaia GPS Premium Members have the option of layering either USFS map on top of Gaia Topo or USGS Topo to get a seamless nationwide map.

Layering USFS 2016 over Gaia Topo produces continuous map coverage across the US.

December 19, 2016

Gaia GPS Hunting New Maps

New GaiaPro Map Layer—MapBox Satellite with No Labels

by Ruthie Irvin October 4, 2016

written by Ruthie Irvin

Now available to GaiaPro subscribers, MapBox Satellite Imagery with no labels offers a cleaner map view than the version with labels—perfect if you plan to layer the source with other maps in the app (iOS/Android), layer maps on gaiagps.com, or print your tracks on gaiagps.com.

MapBox Aerial with no Labels

MapBox Aerial with Labels

Add the source from the More Layers menu under the GaiaPro Base Maps category. For detailed instructions, check out the Add Map Sources articles (iOS/Android/Web).

MapBox Aerial with no Labels beautifully displayed with topo layers

Try MapBox Aerial with No Labels, Free

Unsure if you’d benefit from a GaiaPro subscription? Read about the perks of GaiaPro here, and sign up for a free 1-month trial today: https://www.gaiagps.com/user/freetrial.

October 4, 2016

Gaia GPS Hunting New Maps

Updated Public Lands in Gaia GPS

by Kate Dougherty September 26, 2016

written by Kate Dougherty

In addition to the new collection of hunting data we recently added, GaiaPro users can now access an improved public lands layer. Updated for 2016, the overlay gives you the most current and comprehensive data on government-managed areas. Hunters and anyone exploring areas of mixed land ownership may want to consider using this layer, which emphasizes:

National and state forests
Parks and monuments
Wildlife refuges
Conservation lands and game preserves
Bureau of Land Management areas

To add public lands to the map, open the More Layers menu and look for them under the GaiaPro Overlays category. Read these Help Center articles for info about how to use layered maps on iOS and Android.

A User-Friendly Design

Color-coded federal lands let you easily identify which agency manages an area. We represent data at the state, county, and local levels with a single color for each, so the map doesn’t become overwhelming. Note that we’ve updated the symbology associated with the various categories. Labels will appear at zoom level 14.

The updated public lands layer at zoom level 14. The image shows labels for Bureau of Land Management and State of New Mexico lands, as well as Gila National Forest.

The new public lands layer, superimposed over Gaia Topo. Labels appear at zoom level 14.

The Best Public Lands Data in Gaia GPS

The updated layer draws on the most comprehensive and precise datasets available to offer a high level of detail. It displays the privately-held inholdings in federal and state parks that may not appear elsewhere, and shows smaller public lands missing from many popular maps. Bear in mind that not all of the areas in the layer will be open to the public, and watch for any restricted zones within otherwise accessible lands.

Open Source Data in the OpenBounds Project

Just like the hunt boundary overlays, we based the public lands layer on data gathered for OpenBounds, an open source project we founded to aggregate boundary data and share it from a single location. Gaia GPS sources the most current and detailed public lands data available directly from government agencies, then manages data submission and review for the project through the OpenBounds project on GitHub. Anyone can contribute to the project, check out the code, or even copy the repository by visiting the project site.

You can also post your thoughts about the new layer or the OpenBounds project to the Gaia GPS Community Forum, or email support@gaiagps.com with questions.

September 26, 2016

Colorado bighorn sheep hunt districts, superimposed over US Topo.

Gaia GPS Hunting New Maps

Updated: Hunting Map Boundaries in Gaia GPS

by Kate Dougherty September 21, 2016

written by Kate Dougherty

Colorado bighorn sheep hunt districts, layered over US Topo.

Gaia GPS Premium Membership users now have access to detailed hunting map boundaries for hunt districts in many states, just in time for the fall hunting season—a huge improvement on the previous collection in Gaia GPS.

These new maps use the fruits of OpenBounds, an open data project we created as the basis for these maps. This article describes the OpenBounds project, how the project aggregates data, and how you can contribute to this ongoing effort.

To add hunt districts to the map, open the More Layers menu and look for them under the US Hunting Boundaries category. Read these Help Center articles for info about how to use layered maps on iOS and Android.

Data and Coverage Overview

The OpenBounds initiative aims to collect data for U.S. hunt district boundaries and public lands in a single repository, and share it with the world. We’ve used the hunting boundaries as the basis of the new hunting layers, which show district name or number. Gaia GPS Premium Membership currently includes hunt district boundaries for the states in red on the map below.

Hunt district boundary coverage map of the US.

Map of Gaia GPS’s current hunt district boundary coverage.

Please note that Premium Membership currently offers partial species coverage for the following states.

North Dakota (fall turkey only)
Tennessee (huntable Tennessee Valley Authority lands only)
Washington (all available species except deer)

We will continue to integrate data for additional species and states in the coming weeks.

How the OpenBounds Project Works

Gaia GPS sources the most current and detailed hunting data available directly from state wildlife agencies—then manages data submission and review for the project through the crowdsourced, collaborative, open source OpenBounds project on GitHub. Anyone can browse the OpenBounds data sources and processing scripts by visiting the project site.

How You Can Use the Data and Code

If you’re a developer, we invite you to explore the code. You may even want to copy the repository to make your own map or app. Mappers can also check out OpenAddresses, an open repository of high-quality, consistently-referenced address data that businesses, organizations, and individuals can use to match more than 100 million addresses to geographic coordinates. The amazing work of the OpenAddresses project inspired the OpenBounds project.

The data in OpenBounds is important to conservationists, wildlife professionals, outdoor adventurers, and many other people. We hope that, by collecting it one place, the OpenBounds project will make it easier for them to work and play. And like many other open source efforts, we hope the data can support other great tech projects.

Continued Work – You Can Help

The hunt unit boundaries will get updated on an ongoing basis. If you’d like to contribute, consider reviewing GitHub issues to see how you can help with data collection, or even work on the code.

You can also post your thoughts about the project to the Gaia GPS Community Forum, or email support@gaiagps.com with questions.

September 21, 2016