GPS Mapping, Signage Designed to Promote, Enhance Land Trust Trails

Most Canton High School juniors are adept with technology but Karl Ide-Pech may be the only one who can quickly and casually identify coyote scat while walking in the woods.

And Karl is using his technological skills and love of the outdoors to help the Canton Land Conservation Trust in an effort to better map and promote its trails and properties.

His father John has been a long-time member of the land trust and when Karl heard the organization needed someone to map the trails with a global positioning system unit he offered to do it. He hadn't used GPS but was adept with computers. 

“I figured it couldn’t be too bad,” Karl said. 

"The mapping part of it’s really not all that bad you just have to walk the trail," he added. "I walk all these trails anyway."

On a recent walk in Barbour Woods off Barbourtown Road, he put his skills to work, setting a handheld GPS unit to record his position at three-second intervals, putting it in his pocket and walking the trail with his dog Sophia, careful to stay on the path.

Along the way, he took some photos of interesting or notable landmarks. He said it’s the hardest part of the project since he has to remember where the photos were taken to accurately add them to the GPS data he later transfers to his computer. 

For Karl, who plans to stay active in conservation, it's not only a worthy effort but will help him show a sense of community involvement. 

“It will be a good thing to say I did for college,” he said.

Once the GPS unit has recorded the trail route, Karl transfers it into the computer, adds the photos and descriptions and saves it in formats the trust can use on its Web site and in future endeavors. 

Currently several of the trail routes are overlaid on Google Earth maps on the site.

However, it’s just a first step. Eventually the plan is to overlay the routes on topographical maps. One of the organization’s main goals is to post laminated maps and provide paper versions at the kiosks it has been installing at its trailheads.

In September of 2010 the organization received a Farmington River Coordinating Committee Grant grant for up to $5,000 for the kiosks and signs on the trails and trailheads that are in the Farmington River watershed, land trust president Barry Deutsch said.

Three types of signs are being posted — a property identification sign, a smaller trailhead sign and the roofed kiosk at trail networks.

Land trust member Ted Cowles has lead a volunteer team in building and installing the kiosks and local businesses, including Canton Sign Shop and Miner’s Inc., have been employed for some of the materials and work.

The goal is to post two laminated maps on the kiosks — one of the trails provided by the trust and another of the location in the watershed.

Most of the kiosks and signs have been installed. Unfortunately one kiosk was stolen but Deutsch said the trust hopes the theft of a 200-pound unit was a unique case and is working on a more secure way to install them.

The trust will now look at ways to have the maps generated and may employ some professional help in that area.

The trust is also considering other options for the maps, Deutsch added. The web site will, of course, be updated as more complete versions become available and the organization's board will consider ideas and options such as putting out a new map booklet or offering downloads direct to GPS units.

While some of those details still need sorting out, Deutsch is excited to see progress at the trailheads and is looking forward to offering the improved maps.

“We’re thrilled to do it and I think it’s going to enhance the look the properties and make them a lot more user friendly,” he said.

Keep up with the land trust at its Web site or facebook page.