outrageGIS.com Trails and Scenic Destinations » News

Map Discovery Night!

cartography — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:39:25 +0000

This past Thursday evening Boyd ‘mapped-out!’ Lexington’s Living Arts and Science Center’s January Discovery Night. This two-hour monthly event brings in families to learn about topics in science and art and often has a collaborative element.

Boyd focused on making maps of course, but he also discussed some basic ideas of what maps do (e.g., they show where stuff is) and possibilities they give us (e.g., understanding why stuff is where it is). The kids enjoyed seeing early Kentucky maps from 1733 & 1811 and a map of the modern world illuminated at night. They were a wonderful bunch and had bright responses to geography questions. As a bonus, he gave them a bird’s eye view of the Red River Gorge with two great destinations there to visit.

We would like to thank the Center for this opportunity to see the wonder and happiness in children’s eyes as they explored maps! Visit the Center’s site to see more Discovery Night events.

Bike Lexington Map

cartography — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 18:27:02 +0000

Draft of the Bike Lex Map

We’ve updated our map of bike lanes and pedestrian paths in Lexington’s urban service area. It is a big map and we’re considering options for release.

Please share any feedback about how we can make this map better.

Visit the map:
bikelex.com/map/front

Sheltowee Trace Bird’s Eye View Map

cartography — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 18:16:22 +0000

Draft of the ST 3D

We have been working on our 3D map of the Sheltowee Trace. This Bird’s Eye View map shows the official forest service trails and recreation areas on a 3D map of the Pottsville Escarpment that separates the rugged Cumberland Plateau with the more rolling Bluegrass and Pennyrile regions.

We encourage you to explore this map give us any feedback. We will probably print portions of the map as insets in the Sheltowee Trace north map on which we are currently working.

Visit the map:
outrageGIS.com/sheltowee/3D

Animated map of Town Branch Trail

cartography — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 18:32:24 +0000

This animation was made to accompany a short video that describes Town Branch Trail in Lexington, Kentucky.

New GPS and PDF maps for the Great Smokies

cartography — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:32:16 +0000

We are introducing our new map and GPS datapack series for the Great Smoky Mountains. We’ve created an easily printable map for every trail listed in the Great Smoky Mountains Association’s Hiking Trails of the Smokies, the brown book, also known as the “Hikers’ Brown Bible.”

Our maps show forest canopy cover, trail intersection elevations, and mileage between intersections & backcountry campsites, all at 1:50,000 scale. Our GPS data is the most detailed and current data available. We’ve structured the GPX file so you can easily select your hike and save it to your mobile device or GPS unit. Our maps are offered as a printable, 8×10 PDF file with each page centered on the listed hike. Print your maps and save them to your mobile device, but never worry about losing or damaging your map again!

Currently we are offering two regions, Cades Cove and Cosby & Greenbrier.

Trails in the Cades Cove region: Abrams Falls, Ace Gap, Anthony Creek, Appalachian Trail, Beard Cane, Bote Mountain, Cades Cove Nature, Cane Creek, Cooper Road, Crib Gap, Crooked Arm Ridge, Finley Cane, Goldmine, Gregory Bald, Gregory Ridge, Hannah Mountain, Hatcher Mountain, Indian Grave Gap, Lead Cove, Little Bottoms, Rabbit Creek, Rich Mountain, Rich Mountain Loop, Russell Field, Schoolhouse Gap, Scott Mountain, Turkeypen Ridge, West Prong, Wet Bottom.

Trails in the Cosby & Greenbrier regions: Albright Grove, Appalachian Trail, Brushy Mountain, Camel Gap, Cosby Nature, Gabes Mountain, Grapeyard Ridge, Low Gap, Lower Mt Cammerer, Maddron Bald, Mt Cammerer, Old Settlers, Porters Creek, Ramsey Cascades, Snake Den Ridge.

Gray’s Arch in the Red River Gorge

cartography — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 14:09:02 +0000

A quiet afternoon hike visiting D. Boone Hut, Gray’s Arch, and Butterfly Hill. This short video adds an audio component that maybe helps a viewer appreciate the unique solitude.

Woodland Art Fair!

cartography — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 14:41:55 +0000

It’s time of year when the morning glories bloom in full, locusts buzz softly with early sunsets, and the promise of drier, cooler days ahead stirs images of woodland travels. Come on down to the Woodland Art Fair this weekend to get some park trail maps and discuss our new projects. See you there, August 20-21. We’ll have lemonade, too!

Map to our booth:

Town Branch Trail

cartography — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 16:02:45 +0000

A map of the 2.2 miles of trail, including the connector trails from surrounding neighborhoods. Visit Town Branch Trail (townbranch.org) to learn more about Lexington’s historic stream, Town Branch, and the greenway trail that is slowly building along it’s banks.

Sunset and moonrise

cartography — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:02:15 +0000

Photo during a night hike.

Bike Lex Map in draft

cartography — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 19:15:18 +0000

After a few grueling weeks of cartography, we have posted a draft of the new Bike Lex Map. The goal of this map is to help pedestrians and bikers enjoy the public spaces of central Lexington, Kentucky. The map should also help veteran bikers find new biking routes through the city and direct newbie bikers to good resources about biking in the city. Parents will also find the map helpful, because we have mapped many of the public parks and their paved paths. They can discover a new park to take their child’s first bike!

Proposed format: 26″ x 40″ printed map and companion website. Samples can be found here: http://www.bikelex.com

What does this map offer?

Alignments for the Legacy Trail, Town Branch Trail, and other shared-use trails.
Mountain biking trails in Veterans Park.
Bike lanes & shoulders, walking paths, unpaved foot & bike trails, and other paths & spaces pedestrians might enjoy.
Best routes for biking on Lexington streets.
University of Kentucky bike routes.

This guide is in the early stages of development. If you would like to contribute, please contact us with your opinions, suggestions, or requests.

Thanks and happy trails!