OnX Spring Accuracy

[WannabeHunter]

Been E-Scouting for about a year now. Numerous spots picked out and hunting (really locating) strategies in mind.

Do you guys find the "spring" markings on OnX to be relatively accurate? I know that springs can be seasonal and year-to-year depending on rain/snow fall etc, but are these spots reported by hunters or by fish and game?

 

[muddydogs]

Most of the info on any gps program comes from maps or maps that are overlayed on the photo's. There isn't someone setting on a computer all day marking stuff on the photo or info being reported by hunters or anyone. I'm sure that some company's do some accuracy checking.

Most of the accuracy has to do with the map and its age. If there is nothing of value in an area then the Forest Service, BLM or USGS are slow to update maps because there is no money in it and a 1960's map is good enough. In areas where there is money to be made or a lot of land activity then maps are kept up to date. You see a lot of old maps in the sage or pinyon juniper forests were there isn't a lot of timber or land value and nothing is really changing out there unless its in an area where there drill for oil and gas then updated maps are coming out every few years.

Same can be said with Ariel photo's, ever wonder why the quality of a photo drops out in the middle of no where sage brush city? The photo is probably from the 1960's and something around 1:40000 scale while a good photo of timbered land is at 1:16000 or 1:24000 scale. Photo's do seem to be improving overall the last few years which is probably due to our current technology and multiple company's offering map services.

So the accuracy of anything on a map or photo is only as good as the data that was entered and the only way to know for sure if something is there is a little photo recon and in the end ground truthing. The spring that was added to the map in the 1960's could be long since dried up.

 

[Felix40]

Id say they are about 50:50. And of the ones that are accurate theres a 50:50 chance its actually running.

 

[Ebruce]

Onx pulls shapefiles (features) from state and federal data bases, so like a stream layer or lake layer was already drawn and done by someone else, most of the sat imagery is reasonably up to date USGS did nearly a nation wide thing in like 2010-2011?? but you'll still see imagery from late 90s and early 2000 in some of the really rural areas that like was said above dont hold anything monetary value like timber or gas. You could always call and ask a local ranger r park office if they know about that spring sometimes back country springs are used by them on work details