Adirondack Advocates - Digital Hiking Trail Usage Data System

The Adirondack Wilderness Advocates is a non-profit organization committed to the betterment and enjoyment of the Adirondack Park. For many years, trail usage at the Adirondack Park has been managed via paper trail logs. However, due to a recent increase in trail usage and difficulty in aggregating information from numerous paper trail logs around the Adirondack Park, there is an opportunity to improve the trail usage management system. The goal of this project is to address the challenges of paper trail logs and promote sustainable growth by implementing a digital trail log system. The digital trail log system will consist of a trailhead kiosk, a remote kiosk, and a web app. The trailhead kiosk, which will be connected to a power source and have WiFi access, will replace the existing paper trail log. Hikers will be able to check-in and check-out via the trailhead kiosk. The remote kiosk, which may be connected to a power source but will not have WiFi access due to the nature of the Adirondack Park and will collect trail usage information. Lastly, the web app will allow hikers to pre-register their trip and view relative information about every trail. The app will also allow park rangers to view aggregated trail usage statistics. Together, these three tools will enable the Adirondack Park community to safely manage trail usage and better enjoy the park experience.