Ham Radio Portable Operating Insights: Mapping Resources for POTA

I love activating parks, but even more, I enjoy finding new parks to activate. Picking a park and researching a good operating location is all part of the fun. From my conversations with some of you, I’m quite sure I’m not alone. So, let’s talk a bit about resources which are available to help you choose an operating location at those new-to-you references.

Parks on the Air® (POTA) locations consist of all manner of public areas. There are parks and nature preserves, historic sites, scenic trails, and more. For this article, let’s just refer to them as “references.” Also, most of my examples will be from Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

POTA doesn’t have “enforcers” to critique your activation locations. If you are certain that you are inside the borders of the reference, then that’s good enough for them. But we still must make an honest effort to ensure that we are within the location’s boundaries.

Parks, historic sites, and other places that see a lot of visitor traffic are easy to find. A simple map search gets you into the area, then the brown signs will guide you to your destination. Once there, the roads are usually well marked, and an operating location is easy to find. Wildlife areas and nature preserves can be more of a challenge. In those cases, I prefer to use at least two sources to confirm where the boundaries are.

The POTA Map at pota.app/#/map is the official map, but POTA documentation reminds us that the yellow dots on their map are approximate locations—not actual boundaries. To find the boundaries, you may need to check some of the sources that are listed here.

POTA Reference Summary Pages: This is the first stop for most activators when picking a destination. The page lists a ton of data about the reference.

Parks on the air website screengrab — POTA Reference Summary Page example (Image/WG8X)

In most cases, there will be a link to the website for the reference. Sometimes there will be info in the Notes field advising you of access and activation methods, and whether a pass or entrance fee is required.

The coordinates listed on the summary pages for Pennsylvania references take you to an actual parking area, or at least a location where you can operate from. Big thanks to the PA volunteer Mapping Rep for doing this!

If you click the map on a POTA summary page, it will take you back to the main POTA map, while keeping you centered on the location. This is a real time-saver!

The page also lists the top activators for that location. Sometimes an email to one of them will pay off with info on their favorite operating spot.

Google Maps: I use Google Maps frequently. They are easy to use and allow me to send destinations to my phone. But sometimes inaccuracies sneak in. For example, there is one nature preserve in Ohio that Google has mislocated 1,000 feet to the south. That is why it is recommended to confirm locations using a couple different sources before heading out to the field.

Once you have found your location on the map, right click it and choose “Share this location.” In the window that opens, you should see a button labeled “Copy link.” Click it and then paste the link into your smartphone notes app for later reference. This is especially helpful if you are researching multiple locations. As you finish one activation, open your notes app, click another link, and you’re on your way. The link should go straight to your default map app.

Coordinates on a website screengrab — Notes page from a recent multi-park rove (Image/WG8X)

Another method is to get directions to the reference, then click on “Send directions to your phone.” This works well if you are planning a trip to an individual location. Both your browser and phone should be logged in to the same Google account for this to work.

screenshot of a satellite view map — An example of Google Maps satellite view (Image/WG8X)

national park map screenshot — (Image/WG8X)

The Reference’s Website: Most references have a website which gives a ton of resources about that location. There are usually maps, hours of operation, and any unique rules governing the property.

State GIS Maps: These are interactive maps that accurately show the boundaries and sometimes link back to the web page for the reference. Several U.S. states have GIS maps posted on the web. They can usually be found by doing a quick Google search. They are not all easy to find, but this should change with time. Some examples are:

Birding Sites: Some birders will travel the country identifying various species of birds to add to their Big Year lists. Each New Year, their quest begins again. They even post information online about their progress, and, yes, notes about wildlife areas they have been to. These can offer particularly useful information to POTA activators.

Birdinghotspots.org is one site that I have used; I’m sure there are others. Birding Hotspots maintains links to pages specific to wildlife locations around the world. It is a great resource to bookmark.