New Maps

Gaia GPSNew Maps

Deepen Your Land Knowledge with the Native Land Territories Map

by Julien Friedland
written by Julien Friedland

Learn more about the land you live and recreate on with the Native Land Territories map, available for free in the Gaia GPS app and web map. This map, created by the Canadian non-profit Native Land Digital, marks traditional Indigenous territories across the Americas, Australia, New Zealand, and, increasingly, worldwide. Dig into the past, present, and future of Indigenous territories while you’re planning a trip to a new area or adventuring near your backyard.

Many outdoor recreation areas, including national parks and wilderness areas, exist on lands where Indigenous tribes were forcefully removed. The Native Land Territories map provides a starting point for deepening understanding of those Indigenous nations’ people, history, and culture. When you’re out on a hike, tap a location on the map to see the nation’s name. Tap the information button for a link to see more about that nation.

ute tribe up close.png

The additional information page enables you to contact the Indigenous nation and access information about their language, history, and land. The marked territories do not represent or intend to represent any Indigenous nation’s official or legal boundaries. They serve as a visual representation and educational tool to begin engaging with the complex history of Indigenous nations around the world.

Citing Land Acknowledgements

Use the Native Land Territories map to research and cite land acknowledgments, which pay homage to the past and present occupants of the land. Native Lands Digital and the Native Governance Center explain why and how you can make a land acknowledgment. To find out how to use the Native Land Territories map and deepen your knowledge even further, read Native Land Digital’s Teachers Guide. Please note that perspectives around land acknowledgements vary and do not replace for meaningful education and action.

How to Access the Native Land Territories Map

This map is available for all Gaia GPS users for free in the iOS and Android app and on gaiagps.com. To access Native Land Territories offline, get a Gaia GPS premium membership, and download the map before you head out. Please note that this map is a work in progress with contributions from the community. You can contribute by sending any errors you find to native-lands.ca via this contribution form.

Click Here to View the Native Land Territories Map
11 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
Gaia GPSNew Maps

Avoid Wildfire Smoke with Free Smoke Forecast and Air Quality Maps

by Abby Levene
written by Abby Levene

Burning eyes, runny nose, and hazy skies indicate that wildfire season has engulfed the U.S. Steer clear of smokey, polluted air on your next adventure with three brand new Smoke Forecast maps. Smoke Forecast (today), Smoke Forecast (24h), and Smoke Forecast (48h) give you a sense of smoke levels all over the continental US for today, tomorrow, and an entire weekend.

Whether you’re backpacking near a wildfire-ravaged area or overlanding thousands of miles away, get a quick and accurate sense of how much smoke blows over so you can circumvent the bad air and enjoy clear views.

Smoke Forecast Today, 24h, and 48h

The new Smoke Forecast layers show an estimate of the concentration of wildfire smoke present near the ground. These predictions take into account smoke billowing from nearby wildfires, as well as smoke blown across the atmosphere from fires burning far away. The Smoke Forecast data comes from a NOAA weather model called High Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR). HRRR measures particulates on a 3km grid spanning the continental US.

RELATED: FIND CLEAR AIR WITH OUR SUITE OF FREE AIR QUALITY MAPS

Color-coded shading on the map gives you a quick sense of wildfire smoke in or coming to your area. Like a tape measure, the higher the number the denser (and more harmful) the particulate concentration. Lower smoke concentrations appear gray on the map, progressing to yellow, orange, and finally red for the highest concentrations.

The color-coded scale in the map roughly translates to the Air Quality Index, the EPA’s index for reporting air quality. Note that gray on the Smoke Forecast scale equates to green on AQI. You can use this color-coded system as a loose guide for when it’s safe to recreate outside, or when you should modify your plans.

source: Smart Air.

To see the exact estimated particulate amount, simply tap that location on the map. The sidebar on the web and the tap drawer on your phone will give you the smoke concentration (in μg/m³) and time that forecast was recorded (in UTC). Smoke Forecast (today) is updated hourly. Smoke Forecast (24h) and (48h) are updated every six hours.

This is a model-derived forecast layer, not an exact reading. These layers carry the same level of forecast uncertainty as other weather predictions, such as our Precipitation and Snow Forecast maps. In addition, very recent or small wildfires may not be included in the smoke prediction. This means that these maps may underestimate the amount of surface smoke present.

How to Use Smoke Forecast Maps

  1. Pull up the relevant Smoke Forecast map for your trip. If you’re heading out today, look at the Smoke Forecast (Current) map. If your trip will extend into tomorrow or span an entire weekend, pull up the Smoke Forecast (24h) or (48h), respectively.
  2. Pair the Smoke Forecast layer on top of your favorite base map, such as Gaia Topo or Satellite Imagery with Labels to see exactly how the air quality looks along each part of your route.
  3. Look at the color-coded shading over your route.
    • Clear or light gray — good to go
    • Yellow — moderate. Proceed with caution.
    • Orange — Unhealthy for sensitive individuals.
    • Red — Unhealthy to hazardous. Modify your plans or stay home.
  4. Next, use the Smoke Forecast layers in conjunction with our Wildfire (Satellite) and Wildfire (Current) maps to get a comprehensive understanding of how where fires are burning and how to bypass them.
  5. Finally, add the Air Quality (Current) and Air Quality (Tomorrow) maps to get an even richer sense of how wildfire smoke compounds with ozone and other air pollutants to influence the overall air quality in your area. Learn more about the wildfire and air quality maps here.

Why Checking for Wildfire Smoke Matters

Wildfire risk extends beyond simply encountering the fire itself. Smoke can travel thousands of miles away, exposing you to major toxins including:

  • ground-level ozone
  • particle pollution (also known as particulate matter, including PM 2.5 and PM 10)
  • carbon monoxide
  • sulfur dioxide
  • nitrogen dioxide

The Smoke Forecast layers measure PM 2.5 particulates. PM 2.5 refers to particulate matter with a size of two and a half microns or less. The width of the largest of these particles comes in at less than 30 times smaller than a human hair. The smallest particles are so microscopic that several thousand could sit together into the period at the end of this sentence.

These super fine particles can penetrate deep into your lungs, making your eyes burn and your nose run. Potent wildfire smoke aggravates chronic heart and lung diseases, and exposure to this particular pollution is even linked to premature death, the EPA reports.

If you’re heading on a hike, bikepacking trip, overlanding adventure (you name it) from June to December, check these map layers to help inform your route choice so you can keep your lungs happy and healthy. Even east coasters may be surprised by how much wildfire smoke blows in from the west and settles overhead.

How to Access Smoke Forecast Maps

All three Smoke Forecast Maps are available for free on gaiagps.com and in the app. To add the Smoke Forecast layers to your active maps in the iOS or Android app or on the web, simply select the map layers button, tap “Add map layers” and select “Feature/Weather Overlays.” Choose from Smoke Forecast (Today), Smoke Forecast (24h), and Smoke Forecast (48h).

Since refreshing for updated smoke data requires a wifi connection, these maps are not available for offline downloads. However, you can keep a recent visual on your phone: viewing the forecast over an area in a map will cache that data, leaving it available to view in the app for 24 hours.

Use of this map layer for any purpose is at your own risk. Trailbehind Inc (maker of Gaia GPS) is not responsible for any actions you take based on the information contained in any map.

While the Smoke Forecast maps are available for free, get a premium membership to download your favorite maps and take them offline with you in areas without cell service. A Premium Membership also gives you access to Gaia GPS’s entire map catalog. Download hundreds of maps, including National Geographic Trails Illustrated, high-resolution satellite maps, weather overlays, and government-issued topo maps like USFS topo, all the USGS quad maps, and MVUMs.

1 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
Gaia GPSNew Maps

Explore the Past with Two New Historical Maps in Gaia GPS

by Mary Cochenour
written by Mary Cochenour

Unlock the mystery of the past with two new historical topo maps in Gaia GPS. We’ve added the official USGS topographic maps from 1960 and 1980 to round out our collection of historical maps. These maps can help you discover little-known ghost towns and visit deserted homesteads.

Whether you’re curious about the history of development in your neighborhood or wonder where miners had prospects, these maps can help you see what the land looked like in years past. Use these maps to plan your next adventure to historically rich and significant places both in town and out in the backcountry.

USGS Historical Topo 1960 and 1980

iMac displaying Gaia GPS map of Salt Lake City, USGS Historic Topo 1960
Salt Lake City, Historic Topo 1960

The new Historic Topo 1960 map includes USGS topo quadrangle maps published and updated between the 1950s and 1970s. The Historic Topo 1980 map was published and updated between 1970 and 1990. Coupled with Gaia GPS’s Historic 1900 and 1930 topo maps, these maps document historical features as they changed over the last century, from 1895 to 1990.

You can also go deeper into the history of an area by viewing the Native Lands map. Available for free in the Gaia GPS app and web map, the Native Lands map marks traditional Indigenous territories across the Americas, Australia, New Zealand, and, increasingly, worldwide. Learn more about the past, present, and future of Indigenous territories while planning a trip to a new area or adventuring near your backyard.

How to Use Historical Topo Maps to Find Abandoned Mines, Homesteads, and Ghost Towns

Historical maps in Gaia GPS make it easy to scout out new adventures to ghost towns, abandoned mines, and lonely homesteads. Here’s how:

  1. First, select a destination you would like to explore and examine it on a current up-to-date base map, like our flagship map Gaia Topo. Find a geographical region of historical interest.
  2. Add the Historical Topo map from any era: 1900, 1930, 1960, or 1980.
  3. Turn up the opacity on the historical maps, and turn down the opacity of Gaia Topo, so that you see the information in the hisstorical maps is prominently displayed.
  4. Browse the historical maps in that area, looking for interesting manmade structures and features that you didn’t see on the current basemap, such as fences, tunnels, mines, and ranches.
  5. Drop a waypoint on the map to mark the location of interest.
  6. Next, switch map sources to high-resolution satellite imagery to get a bird’s eye view of the area.
  7. Zoom in on the area around your waypoint. Closely examine the landscape to see if you can spot remaining structures or crumbled foundations at the abandoned site.
  8. Pull up a modern map, like Gaia Topo or USGS Topo , and create a route on existing roads and trails to the waypoint you’ve saved on the map.

How to Access Historical Maps

iMac screen displaying 1960 historic topo map

Access the 1900, 1930, 1960, 1980 historical USGS topo maps with a Gaia GPS Premium Membership. To add the historical map layers to your active maps in the iOS or Android app or on the web, simply select the map layers button, tap “Add map layers” and select “United States.” Choose from Historic Topo 1900, Historic Topo 1930, Historic Topo 1960, and Historic Topo 1980. View the maps in succession to see how historical features in a particular region have changed over time.

4 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
FeaturedGaia GPSNew Maps

Quickly Find Campgrounds and Trails with the USFS Recreation Sites Map

by Corey Buhay
written by Corey Buhay

Plan trips faster with the USFS Recreation Sites overlay in Gaia GPS. This map layer clearly marks U.S. Forest Service campgrounds, trailheads, visitor centers, and other points of interest at high zoom levels, letting you view your options across an entire national forest. You can tap on a site to learn about fees, access restrictions, and more.

The USFS Recreation Sites layer receives constant updates as the USFS adds more sites to the dataset. The clear, intuitive icons stand out on just about any base map and scale as you zoom. So whether you’re trying to pinpoint a trailhead within a densely vegetated satellite image, or looking for campsites during the first stages of trip planning, this layer will help speed up your search.

National Forests Lands: Your Best Bet for Dispersed Camping

The U.S. Forest Service manages around 193 million acres of the United States as national forests and grasslands. These areas serve a wide-reaching mission statement, which encompasses conservation and research, as well as multiple-use recreation. That makes USFS land ideal for hiking, camping, trail running, skiing, and climbing, as well as fishing, hunting, and motorized vehicle use.

Dispersed camping is more likely to be permitted on USFS land than in other, more stringently protected areas. And unlike most national parks, national forests and grasslands are typically pet-friendly.

How to Use the USFS Recreation Sites Layer

The USFS Recreation Sites Layer is available with a Premium Membership across all platforms: iOS, Android, and on gaiagps.com. Add the USFS Recreation Site map by tapping the layers icon. Scroll down and select “Feature/Weather Overlays.” Select the “USFS Recreation Sites” map and tap the “Add” button.

Use the USFS Recreation Sites overlay in conjunction with the USFS Visitor map. The USFS Recreation Sites layer is more up-to-date. However, it’s a work in progress, so there may be some sites currently visible on USFS Visitor map that aren’t yet available on the USFS Recreation Sites overlay.

USFS Recreation Sites and USFS Roads and USFS Roads and Trails make another great pairing. The combination gives you a complete look at Forest Service infrastructure that you can overlay on top of any base map.

The USFS Recreation Sites overlay, paired with the USFS Roads and Trails overlay and the Satellite base map.
4 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
Desktop screenshot of Wild and Scenic Rivers map.
Gaia GPSNew Maps

Find Beautiful Boating Destinations with New Wild and Scenic Rivers Map

by Abby Levene
written by Abby Levene

Find the best waterways in the US with the new Wild and Scenic Rivers map. Use this map on top of your favorite basemap to see all of the congressionally designated Wild and Scenic Rivers across America.

Wild and Scenic rivers offer some of the best fishing, boating, hiking, and scenery anywhere in the country. Dams block about 600,000 miles of river in the US. Use this map to find sections of free-flowing river as you plan your next kayaking, packrafting, or fishing trip.

The Wild and Scenic Rivers Layer

Screenshot of the Wild and Scenic Rivers layer on gaiagps.com shows the Klickitat river.

The Wild and Scenic Rivers map shows the 208 rivers that Congress protects. Scientists who use Gaia GPS to help record data while out in the field requested this map. And you, too, can use this layer:

  • Check to see if your favorite river is protected.
  • Scout out some of the most breathtaking places in the country to explore on your next trip, such as the Allagash River in Maine.
  • Find free-flowing sections of river as you plan your next boating or fishing trip.
  • Discover the country’s most prolific salmon runs, such as the Klamath River in California.

Add this layer and see each river or section of river that has been designated as Wild and Scenic. Tap on the river icon to learn more about that river, including its name, classification as Wild, Scenic, or Recreational, and the state in which its located. Plus, you’ll see the river’s water quality for drinking, swimming, and fishing.

What is a Wild and Scenic River?

Screenshot of Wild and Scenic Rivers on a phone shows multiple rivers on the west coast.

Rivers remain critical resources not only for recreation, but also for clean drinking water, biodiversity, and even flood protection. Just over 50 years ago, Congress recognized that the vitality of American rivers was at stake. So it created the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System in 1968 (Public Law 90- 542; 16 U.S.C. 1271 et seq.) to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free-flowing condition.

Wild and Scenic Rivers have one or more special features. These may include:

  • Pristine water
  • Beauty and scenery
  • River recreation
  • Flora and Fauna fecundity
  • Importance to the country’s history and culture

Of the 2.9 million miles of rivers in the US, only 12,709 of those miles are protected as Wild and Scenic. Yet this fraction of one percent of rivers are spread out around the country. Some Wild and Scenic Rivers are remote and ideal for a multi-day float trip, such as Idaho’s Salmon and Selway rivers. Others are more developed with roads and bridges and close to population centers, such as New York’s Upper Delaware. Take a day trip to escape the city and enjoy the soothing tranquility of the rushing water.

Often, only sections of a river are designated as Wild and Scenic. Other parts of the river may have dams or other development. Such is the case with the White Salmon River in Washington. The Condit Dam was intentionally breached in 2011, allowing this river to flow unimpeded for the first time in nearly a century. Now, these 27.7 miles of protected river are home to exhilarating Class III and IV rapids.

How to get the Wild and Scenic Rivers Map

Access the Wild and Scenic Rivers Map with a Premium Membership. Add this map by clicking the layers icon, selecting Add Map Layer, tapping Nautical/Aviation Overlays, scrolling down and adding the Wild and Scenic Rivers layer.

Layer the Wild and Scenic Rivers map on top of Gaia Topo or use it with your favorite base map. Boaters and fishers may also want to use Wild and Scenic Rivers in conjunction with the USGS Streamflows map, where they can get current streamflow in cubic feet per second (cfs) and status rankings against historical daily means. For tips on adding the Wild and Scenic Rivers layer and any other layer on Gaia GPS, visit this help center article.

0 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
A screenshot of a Gaia GPS desktop map shows color-coded by use trails on the updated USFS map layer.
Gaia GPSNew FeaturesNew Maps

Find Trails for Hiking, Biking, and Offroading with the USFS Roads and Trails Layer

by Mary Cochenour
written by Mary Cochenour

Pursue Your Favorite Activities with Color-Coded Trails in the USFS Roads and Trail Layer

The USFS Roads and Trails layer displays color-coded trails for different activities so you can see if your favorite outdoor activities, like hiking, biking, motorcycling, and horseback riding, are allowed on your next trail destination. Each color on the map signifies which activity is allowed on the trail. Click on the trail and a pop-up displays even more information, including the name of the trail, all of the allowed uses for that trail, and trail specifications and characteristics.

Whether you are wondering where to ride your mountain bike or looking to avoid areas that allow bikes and motor vehicles, this layer makes it easy to find the right trail for your next adventure.

The USFS Roads and Trails Layer

The USFS Roads and Trails layer shows maintained routes, 4×4 trails, backroads, and little-known paths across U.S. national forests and grasslands. This map contains many routes unavailable in any other map in Gaia GPS, including water routes, winter-only routes, and canoe trails. Road labels indicate the level of maintenance and accessibility by passenger vehicles.

The new color-coded trails in this updated layer display the permitted uses on the trails. Trails colored with a dashed black line indicate trails open to hiking. Green indicates a trail open to horseback riding, red open to mountain biking, and purple open to motorcycles and ATV use. A blue dotted line signifies a water route and light blue shows a winter-use trail. Gray double-dashed lines display 4×4 routes and dirt roads.

Two mobile phone screen shots of the updated USFS layer in Gaia GPS show the allowed uses for trails in Helena National Forest, as well as the surface material and tread width needed for vehicles.

Tap the trail and a pop-up displays the trail name, the trail number, all the allowed uses for that specific trail, the grade of the trail, and the trail’s surface material and tread width.

The USFS Roads and Trails layer is designed to lay on top of your favorite base map. Pair it with Gaia Topo, USGS Topo, or Open Cycle Maps HD, just to name a few, to find the best trails for your next adventure.

How to Add the USFS Roads and Trails Layer

Access the USFS Roads and Trails layer with a Premium Membership. Add the layer by clicking the layers icon, select Add Map Layer, tap Feature/Weather Overlays, scroll down and add the USFS Roads and Trails layer. Layer it on top of Gaia Topo or use it with your favorite base map. For tips on adding the USFS Roads and Trails and any other layer on Gaia GPS, visit this help center article.

18 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
two mobile phones showing public tracks on the Gaia GPS map on the screen
AndroidApp UpdatesGaia GPSiOSNew FeaturesNew Maps

Discover Millions of Routes with the New Public Tracks Overlay

by Mary Cochenour
written by Mary Cochenour

Wondering if a route goes? See if anyone’s blazed the trail before you with the Public Tracks layer in Gaia GPS. Available on both gaiagps.com and in the app, the Public Tracks layer shows the two million public tracks Gaia GPS users have recorded all over the world. You can choose to make your tracks public and make them available for others to access, too. Turn on this layer to discover new hiking routes, connect 4×4 roads, and plan backcountry trips with information from people who made the journey before you.

Use public tracks to enhance your own creative route planning. Whether linking up remote roads for your next overlanding adventure or connecting trails for a new loop to hike, the new public tracks overlay offers deep insights on what’s humanly possible in the outdoors.

Public tracks can be viewed online in any Gaia GPS map, including Gaia Topo, USGS quad maps, MVUMS, satellite maps, and more. Click on any public track on the map to see the distance traveled, elevation gain and loss during the trip, and the total time it took that user to complete the journey. When you’ve found the track you want to explore, save it to your account and follow it in the field — even when you are miles away from cell service.

delicate-arch.png

Get Detailed Trip Stats from Any Public Track

Public Tracks give you all the information you need to get ideas for new routes and to plan a successful backcountry trip. Click on any track on the map to see the total distance traveled. Check the track’s time so you can estimate how long it will take you to complete the same journey. See the total elevation gain and loss on a track to know how much climbing to expect if you follow the same path.

Trip stats also show the date and time the track was recorded so you can account for varying weather conditions when viewing the track. For example, if someone recorded the track in the winter months, you can consider whether the track was likely recorded in snowy conditions. If the user selected the mode of travel, you will be able to see whether they recorded their track on foot, bike, skis, or motorized vehicle. Also, keep an eye out for trip notes, giving you personalized, first-hand information from the user who recorded the track.

track example .png

Save, Share, Follow, and Get Turn-by-Turn Directions to Any Public Track

Once you find the perfect public track for your next adventure, you can save it to your account and pull it up on your map even when you’re offline. Share the track with your adventure partners and the people who are staying home so they know your backcountry plan. Use the “Get Directions” button within the app to get turn-by-turn directions to the beginning of the track. When you’re set to begin the journey, press the “Guide Me” button to stay on course.

To access these features, click on the public track and tap the “i” icon to get more information. A new screen will open, showing all the stats of the track and all the buttons to save, share, follow, and get directions to the track.

How to Turn On Public Tracks in the App

Public tracks have always been a key planning tool on the web. Now you can access the same public tracks layer in the field on your iOS and Android devices online. To add public tracks in the app, tap the layers icon on the top right of your screen and select “Map Overlay” at the top of the list of options. Toggle on “Public Tracks” and public tracks will appear on the map in light green.

Make Your Own Public Tracks to Contribute to the Map

You can contribute to the bank of information on the map by simply recording tracks on your own adventures and sharing them with the public. When you record a track on Gaia GPS, your track is set, by default, as a private track. You can choose to manually set your track to public to share it to the map. Making your track public allows other outdoor enthusiasts to access your trip data to enhance their own trip planning.

The Public Tracks Overlay is Available to Everyone on Gaia GPS

Everyone can view public tracks in the app on iOS and Android and on the web at www.gaiagps.com/map/. However, you will need an account to save public tracks for use offline. Visit www.gaiagps.com to create a free account or purchase the premium membership to see all the public tracks on your favorite maps in Gaia GPS’s expansive catalog.

4 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
A screenshot of the Historic Topo 1900 map on gaiagps.com shows archival map footage of Leadville, Colorado. There are multiple train lines running into the downtown.
Gaia GPSNew Maps

See a Snapshot of the Past With Historical Topo Maps

by Abby Levene
written by Abby Levene

Go back in time with the newly updated Historic Topo maps. Join experts in using these maps to research areas steeped in history. See how your hometown has changed. Search for undiscovered historic sites. Or turn any hike into a walk through the past with this quilt of scanned archival maps. Enjoy higher image quality plus more coverage of the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico thanks to fresh updates to these layers.

Two map sources provide two different periods of history to examine: the Historic Topo 1900 shows digitized historic topographic maps from 1885 to 1915. The Historic Topo 1930 shows digitized USGS topo maps from around 1930.

Preserving the Past through Patented Digitization

Scientists, historians, environmentalists, genealogists, and others researching a particular area use these Historic Topo maps to aid in their work. Use these historic maps to see snapshots of the country’s physical and cultural features at a particular time. Or compare maps to see how an area has evolved.

These maps come from The National Map’s Historical Topographic Map Collection (HTMC). HTMC maps are published in Portable Document Format (PDF) with geospatial extensions (GeoPDF®), patented by TerraGo Technologies. In 2011, USGS released these high-resolution scans of more than 178,000 historical topographic maps of the United States. Now you can easily access them at home on gaiagps.com or in the field on your iOS or Android device.

Historic Topo 1900 shows the first telegraph line from Brest, France to Duxbury, MA.

Two Historic Topo Maps Document 1885-1930

Gaia GPS offers two topo map layers from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Historic Topo 1900 shows digitized historic topographic maps from the continental United States and Hawaii from 1885 to 1915. Use this layer to get a sense of the US from the time the Dakotas were ratified as states (1889) to Arizona (1912). You can now enjoy roughly 150 million acres in new coverage.

Historic Topo 1930 shows digitized USGS topo maps for the continental United States and Hawaii, circa 1930. See what the US looked like at the dawn of the Great Depression. Explore 190 million acres in new coverage with this updated map.

Map scales for both layers include 24k, 31,680, 48k, 62,500, 96k, 125k, 192k, and 250k. When multiple maps covers the same area, maps get stacked upon each other until you zoom further into a particular area.

Take a Walk Through Time

A gif shows maps from 1900, 1930, and present day of San Fransisco. Notably, the Golden Gate bridge is missing from the first two.
Historic maps show how San Fransisco has changed over the past century.

Use the historical maps to see bygone features, and get to know an area in a whole new way.

  • Download a map for your area to see old rail road lines, street names, town lines.
  • Pair Historic Topo maps with your favorite base layer, such as the Gaia Topo, to get your bearings.
  • Toggle between current maps like Gaia Topo and these historic map layers to quickly compare and contrast how an area has changed.
  • Find overgrown stone foundations and settlements.
  • Discover old bridle and carriage paths, which may still be passable.
  • See old telegraph lines running under the ocean.
  • Use these maps to help on treasure hunts.

Remember to be mindful of who’s land you are on. You can check land ownership using the Public Land (US) and Private Land (US) map layers. You can also learn more about the history of an area by viewing the Native Lands map.

How to Get the Historical Topo Maps

The Historical Topo maps are available with a Premium Membership. To add these maps to your Gaia GPS app, open the app, tap the layers icon, and select “Add map layers.” Go to “United States” and select the Historical Topo 1900 and/or Historical Topo 1930.

To add these maps to your Gaia GPS account on the web, go to gaiagps.com/map. Click the layers icon, and select “Add map layers.” Go to “United States” and select the Historical Topo 1900 and/or Historical Topo 1930.

1 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
Gaia GPSNew FeaturesNew Maps

Identify Avalanche Terrain with the New High-Res, Worldwide Slope Angle Map

by Mary Cochenour
written by Mary Cochenour

Identify avalanche terrain quicker and easier this winter with the Slope Angle map. We brought development of the slope angle overlay in house and tapped into the US Geological Survey’s 3D Elevation Program and NASA’s Digital Elevation Model. These sources allowed us to expand our coverage globally, integrate high-resolution data, and fine-tune color details. These improvements help make picking out steep, avalanche terrain on the map a snap.

Whether you’re backcountry skiing the bowls or snowmobiling deep into the forest, add the Slope Angle layer to your favorite base map to help plan a safer route through the backcountry. If you’ve downloaded slope angle maps in the mobile app before, you will see a notification at the top of the “Saved” tab that will let you update your old maps.

Graded Color Style for Finer Details

A continuous color ramp shows terrain changes in a graded fashion, making the change in terrain easier to read on the map.

The new layer emphasizes 30 to 45-degree zones in orange and red colors, recognizing and calling your attention to the fact that these slopes comprise the starting zone for most avalanches. Less steep terrain — in the 20 to 25-degree range — is highlighted in green. Slopes steeper than 45 degrees are shaded in greyscale colors to point out the steepest terrain on the map. The grey shading also helps people with red/green confusion color blindness see the map details.

High Resolution in the US and Worldwide Coverage

The new Slope Angle layer applies the most up-to-date data to deliver insanely crisp resolution for most areas within the United States. USGS 3D Elevation Program provides the best resolution for parts of the US with LiDAR data at 1 to 3 meters. This high-resolution coverage is expanding and will be updated as the USGS releases it. Other parts of the US are covered by 10 meters of resolution through USGS NED data.

Get 25-meter resolution in Western Europe with EU DEM and 30-meter resolution elsewhere around the globe with NASA’s Digital Elevation Model. The higher resolution shows smaller terrain features that would otherwise be hidden with lower resolution data.

Warning and Limitations

Avalanche forecasting uses many tools to analyze avalanche risk in the field. Slope shading is best used for a big picture overview of terrain. All slope angle maps, including the new Slope Angle layer, fail to show micro terrain such as small starting zones. Snow features like wind pillows and cornices will not be on the map. Be prepared to use an inclinometer and other on-the-ground assessments in the field in addition to the slope angle map. Change your plans accordingly if terrain does not match up to data depicted on the slope angle layer. Educate yourself about avalanche and snow safety before traveling in any areas prone to avalanches. For more information on how slope angle maps are made, see Jeff Deems’ presentation about how these map overlays are made from the 2019 Colorado Snow and Avalanche Workshop or the article “Digital Mapping: Do You Know What Your Map Knows?” in September 2020 issue of The Avalanche Review.

How to Get the Slope Angle Layer

The new Slope Angle layer is available with a Gaia GPS premium membership. To access the layer, visit the layers menu, and select the “Features/Weather Overlays” tab. Scroll down and tap “Slope Angle.” Tap the “Add Layer“ button. Learn how to add and manage overlays here.

Pair this map with other useful backcountry skiing maps available with a Premium membership on Gaia GPS. Read up on how to use maps, including the slope angle layer, to help avoid avalanche danger.

If you’ve downloaded slope angle maps in the mobile app before, you will see a notification at the top of the “Saved” tab that will let you update your old maps.

3 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
A satellite image shows the red arid landscape and wide chasm of the grand canyon.
Gaia GPSNew Maps

View Recent Conditions with Two New Satellite Imagery Maps

by Abby Levene
written by Abby Levene

Check out backcountry conditions from the comfort of your couch using two new satellite imagery maps. FreshSat – Cloud Free shows a new and mostly unobstructed view of the earth’s surface. FreshSat – Recent displays all conditions and provides an even more up-to-date picture of ground conditions.

Both maps are updated at least every 14 days. FreshSat – Cloud Free and FreshSat – Recent pull data from Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2 government satellites to give you a clearer picture of conditions on the ground. Use these maps to find areas with peak fall foliage colors or to check for lingering snow on high mountain passes.

FreshSat – Recent

A computer screenshot of the FreshSat - Recent satellite imagery shows a snowy mountain range.

FreshSat – Recent shows all scenes, regardless of cloud cover. It is updated more frequently than FreshSat – Cloud Free. Even when clouds obscure a specific zone, you can use this map to get a sense of fall colors or snow cover in the mountains. Use FreshSat – Recent and FreshSat – Cloud Free in tandem to get the most accurate visual of recent conditions.

FreshSat – Cloud Free

A computer screenshot of the FreshSat - CloudFree satellite image shows snow around lake Tahoe.

Clouds can ruin a good satellite image by obscuring ground features and covering up landscape details. The FreshSat-Cloud Free map solves this problem by displaying images that are mostly unobstructed by clouds. The map only uses images with less than 20-percent cloud cover to create a patchwork of sunny, mostly cloudless images of the earth’s surface.

Satellites

Both maps source images from two satellites: United States Geological Survey’s Landsat-8 and the European Space Agency’s Copernicus Sentinel-2. Landsat 8 orbits earth at an altitude of 438 miles every 99 minutes, snapping about 740 scenes per day. Sentinel-2 satellites cover a wide expanse of the earth (290 km) and complete a lap around the equator every 10 days. At higher latitudes, closer to the poles, Sentinel-2 images overlap with some regions getting photographed twice every 10 days. FreshSat – Cloud Free and FreshSat – Recent import data from these satellites to bring you the latest aerial imagery from around the globe.

Date Stamps

Date stamps on both FreshSat maps make it easy to identify how recently a location has been updated. Simply look at the corner of a map tile to see the date when that image was taken. Since these tiles constantly get replaced, make sure you check the date on the tile to see just how recent the footage is. Sometimes a single tile will be made up of multiple satellite scenes. In these cases, data comes from the most recent scene.

Resolution

Both FreshSat maps have a resolution of 10 to 15 meters per pixel. This level of detail lets you pick out large aspects on the map, like whether a mountain pass is covered in snow. For higher resolution maps, use Gaia GPS’s Satellite and World Imagery maps, which give you a clear view of the landscape for scouting out clearings for campsites and studying avalanche paths, alpine descents, and off-trail routes.

How to Get the FreshSat Maps

FreshSat – Cloud Free and FreshSat – Recent are available for all users on the web, and on the application with a Gaia GPS premium membership. To access the layers, visit the layers menu and select the “Satellite” tab. Scroll down and tap “FreshSat- Cloud Free” and “FreshSat – Recent.” Tap the “Add Layer” button at the bottom of the screen.

Pair these layers with the Satellite layer and other satellite maps to get a detailed bird’s eye view of a region. You can also use these maps with other useful layers for overlanding, trail running, bikepacking, backcountry skiing, or your activity of choice. Download these layers for offline use so you can check conditions in the field.

6 FacebookTwitterLinkedinRedditEmail
Load More Posts