need a Google Maps A Boon to
Hunters, Anglers, and Other Outdoor Enthusiasts
by: Jeremy Henricks
How many times have you wondered what's
on the other side of that mountain or what's beyond
the next river bend?
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Sure, topo and road maps provide part
of the picture, but to get a real sense of a particular
area, I find it easier to use a combination of topo
and aerial photography maps. For hunters, anglers,
4-wheel, camping, hiking, and other outdoor enthusiasts,
Google Maps provides a great perspective on the outdoors
with its new satellite imagery maps.
On April 5, 2005, Google announced
the integration of its Keyhole digital mapping service
with the popular Google Maps service (http://maps.google.com).
In addition to a great overhead view, Google Maps
allow you to click and drag maps with your mouse,
zoom and pan, search for specific locations, get
detailed driving direction, and more.
How It Benefits Outdoor Enthusiasts
Google Maps benefits outdoor enthusiasts
for a number or reasons. The main benefit is that
Google Maps allows you to see what you couldn't see
before, at least without spending money on aerial
maps, as they provide free access to their satellite
imagery.
I live in Springfield, Oregon near
the McKenzie River and Willamette River. Both rivers
are great for fishing trout, steelhead, salmon, and
more. With so much river frontage passing less than
half a mile by my house, you'd think it easy to find
a new spot to fish. The only problem is that the
area is riddled with housing and farm tracts, with
no easy way to access the river without traveling
a couple of miles near the edge of town or several
miles outside of town.
Plus, topo and road maps only tell
part of the story. In regards to fishing, what about
current, trees, weeds, rocks, gravel, and other structure?
We all know that aerial maps answer a lot of these
questions. With Google Maps' satellite imagery, I've
already determined several locations that I'll be
trying this year. With deer hunting season around
the corner, I'll also be using these maps to scout
out some new hunting locations.
I also recently visited Moab, Utah
for the 2005 Easter Jeep Safari, and could have benefited
greatly from the use of such detailed maps while
traversing many of the offroad trails in the area.
4-wheel and offroad enthusiasts, bikers, hikers,
and scenery buffs will notice the trails, trailsheads,
and landmarks such as Lion's Back, Arches National
Monument, and other spots of interest.
Check out the following links to see
the power of Google Maps:
* Cliff Hanger Trail Overlooking Factory
- overhead view
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=moab,utah&ll=38.524847,-109.648275&spn=0.015814,0.020900&t=k&hl=en
- from lookout
http://www.discusstheoutdoors.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=12&pos=98
* Lion's Back and Potato Salad Hill,
Moab, Utah
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=moab,utah&ll=38.576903,-109.531288&spn=0.031629,0.041800&t=k&hl=en
* Arches National Park, Moab, Utah
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=moab,utah&ll=38.680973,-109.514637&spn=0.126514,0.167198&t=k&hl=en
* McKenzie River in Springfield, Oregon
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=springfield,+oregon&ll=44.064274,-122.905254&spn=0.031629,0.041800&t=k&hl=en
The Good and Bad
Google Maps provides both detailed
street level and satellite imagery maps. While the
street level maps cover the entire United States,
Canada, and the UK, the high resolution satellite
images seem to cover only more populated areas. For
outdoor enthusiasts visiting urban areas, this is
great. But for those visiting rural or wilderness
areas, Google still has a ways to go before more
detailed imagery is available.
Images seem to be pretty up-to-date,
at least within the areas I checked. For example,
my house is located near a new housing development,
and I can see houses that were started within the
last year on the map.
With Google aiming to expand its reach,
I'm sure that we'll see maps with greater detail
and higher resolution in the future. That's good
news for outdoor enthusiasts.
Things to Note
* Image resolution varies by distance.
At the lowest resolution/farthest distance, you can
identify large landmarks such as mountains, rivers,
and large lakes. At the highest resolution/closest
distance, you can locate specific cars, buildings,
trees, hills, creeks, and more.
* Satellite images are current within
a year or so, but they are not in real-time.
About The Author
Copyright © Henricks Outdoors.
Jeremy Henricks is an outdoor writer
and founder of Henricks Outdoors (www.henricksoutdoors.com).
Henricks Outdoors is a leading provider
of hunting, fishing, survival, and other outdoor-related
Web sites for outdoor enthusiasts, including HuntTheOutdoors.com,
FishTheOutdoors.com, and SurviveTheOutdoors.com,
as well as OutdoorHits.com, an outdoor-related search
engine and directory.
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