A number of us have discussed gathering information on previous hunts in various states which might assist others should they hunt in an area.
It appears Google Earth will be an excellent vehicle by which to share the location information.
I created a demonstration file containing a polygon and some important waypoints for a portion of the Bullard Creek Wildlife Management Area in Georgia as an example of a beginning. It took me about 15 minutes to draw the polygon and input the waypoints. If you have Google Earth just go to the post on
Coastal Outdoors Post or
Google Earth Post to download the KMZ file to see the sample. If you don't have Google Earth, or, if you got it before mid-December, 2007,
download Google Earth free here.
Even if you don't want to engage in the project, the free tool which shows aerial photos throughout the world can be a great tool for your hunting and management planning.
I have also taken the National Forest Boundaries posted elsewhere on Google Earth and sorted them by state and region.
If there is enough interest, perhaps someone with more knowledge than myself could begin to put together a Network link for hunting on Google Earth so that many can easily contribute.
Some things we thought about are below:
Species
Location (nearest city)
Location (county)
Location (state)
Time of year
Licensing requirements
Licensing fees
Application times, if applicable
Local contacts - government, private
Lodging/Camping alternatives
Dining alternatives
Public land (specifics regarding any specific needs)
Private land (specifics of contact, approximate price, lead times on booking, accomodations, etc)
Gear requirements for the hunt and weather
OPTIONAL:
General or specific GPS coordinates or units where you recommend hunting
If you are interested, let me know. I haven't addressed it much lately, but, would like to begin afresh in 2007.
The discussion began a couple of months ago on the
Coastal Outdoors Post
Thanks,
Joel
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