crowd-sourced data
Posted by: sapien
on Dec-31-12 10:51 AM (EST)
Since more and more USGS gauges are getting decommissioned -- and attempting to develop and install your own might get expensive -- maybe the next best thing would be to have a way for paddlers to report the level on an RC-type gauge at popular put-ins, via the internet. (If a measured gauge weren't available, you could report a generic level such as low/average/high, maybe a 0-10 rating scale would work.) Maybe have the ability to punch in a short blurb on paddling conditions too.
Imagine Paddling.net incorporating this feature into the Launch Site Map and the accompanying smartphone app. Power to the people.