By Jack Delano
GIS Intern
My name is Jack Delano and I am the Northern Forest Canoe Trail’s GIS intern this summer. I am a rising senior at Middlebury College in Vermont where I am majoring in Geography and Environmental Studies. I am excited to help collect data and images for all of the campsites that line the trail. This will help the management of the trail by having thorough and complete information on its campsites, along with benefiting the public through the data’s integration into the nonprofit’s online Trip Planner Map Tool.
So far, I have worked closely with trail director Walter Opuszynski to develop a campsite data collection form and instructional booklet so that we will have standardized data across the trail. The instructional booklet outlines how to collect the data while the collection form is what we will use to move forward with the project and have better information to share about the trail.
The map below illustrates the scope of this project. While the yellow triangles represent campsites managed by the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, the orange dots symbolize all other campsites within three miles of the trail. For the collection portion of this project, we are not including private campgrounds, even though they will be a part of the final product.
In addition to collecting data myself, I hope to work closely with current volunteer trail maintainers and new volunteers. By providing personalized maps and instructions, and onsite training when possible, those interested will have the chance to take part in this project. With more than 400 campsites lining the water trail, we hope that many volunteers will be involved in helping us achieve our goals.
I am eager to begin making progress. If you would like to participate, please email me at [email protected].
SHOW COMMENTS