I use SOTAGoat to plan activations including the link to Google Maps. Using Google Maps provides travel directions to the trailhead and includes the estimated time of arrival which helps when preparing an “Alert.” However, the link from the summit page to Google Maps appears to be broken. I wonder if there is any information on the plans WW1X has for updating this application? Also, any easy work arounds for linking summits to google maps.
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Perhaps the Google Maps link is broken in SOTAwatch3. I just tried the “view” link in SOTAwatch3 and it failed. However, when I located the summit from SOTAwatch2 the information remains available. So confusing!
I, too, am interested in when SOTA Goat will be updated and available in the Apple App Store. I am still able to use it as normal, although I don’t know if it will continue working after Sotawatch2 is eliminated in a couple of days. Also, one of my friends is very new to SOTA and he is unable to get SOTA Goat for his iphone.
Dave, AE9Q
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Since I use my iPhone as my travel map tool, I figured out two work arounds.
One - Using Google Maps on my phone type in the latitude and longitude in the search field.
Two - Using the link to Google Maps in the summit database, click on the “send to my phone” to get a map link that will work.
I must be doing it wrong.
I saw Tom K6TAA spotted on W5T/FR-003 on SW3. I clicked the summit and was transferred to the summits website. Lots of info about South Franklin Mountain. I clicked the Google Map button and up came Google Maps in “satellite” view with a marker for the summit.
Worked on all the summits spotted that I tried.
If you are doing this differently and it isn’t working, can you list the steps you take to get it to fail please?
Yes, I agree with the google map process working when accessed thru the SOTAwatch3 alerts and spots. I was able to do it just as you described.
My problem is with the SOTAGoat app on my telephone - in that app when you click on “more information” the link fails.
But the work around of going directly to Google Maps and typing in the latitude and longitude in the search field provides the map access and travel routing.
Bottom line, SOTAwatch good - SOTAGoat bad. And looking forward to WW1X’s updates!
Hi Joe,
I suggest you create a URL (browser) link on your iPhone to https://sotl.as - this website automatically scales to smartphones - whether they be Apple, Android or even Windows Phone, hence the features within the web-App work across all smartphones, tablets and PCs/MACs/Linux etc. Clicking on a SOTA reference in the Alerts page takes you to a resources page which may give you some of the information you are looking for. If there is for example a track for the summit, clicking on that brings up SOTA Maps which can indeed link to many other mapping systems.
Try it out. Unfortuantely there seems to be very few SOTA Apps for Apple systems compared to on Android, so this approach of web based soultions may be good news for those SOTA chasers and activators with Apple phones and tablets.
73 Ed.
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Thanks Ed. Good tip. I will experiment with this tool.
The MT went to great lengths to make SW3 and its companion sites adaptive. SW3 will fit your phone screen correctly, the spotting in SW3 will fit your screen correctly, clicking a summit in the SW3 spots page will take you to summits site which will size to your phone screen correctly and finally hitting the Google map link will take you to Google Maps which will size correctly.
It all just works on a phone using your browser. Apps… just say no!
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So Rockwell chimed in back in Nov or Dec saying he was going to have an update out soon , but I think the old DB is about to get shut down later this week? Good call on having a link to Sotlas!
Agree, the link from the spots and alerts to google maps works perfectly. Many thanks!
but, the “view” link from the summit page comes up empty for me.
Applause and lauds for the MT - your work makes this a fun pursuit and all your work is greatly appreciated. And your responsiveness to questions and quirks is impressive!
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Big +1 for sotl.as. Love it!
For off-line planning, I like Gaia. You can download all the summits for a particular region as a .GPX file (from sotl.as) and import that into Gaia. If you have a Gaia membership, you can download all the maps before you leave home… then you are all set for off-line planning. I also really like the land ownership layer in Gaia - very useful when trying to plan summits that have a lot of private land on/around them.
I enjoyed the SOTAGoat app and will be sad to see it die. I do hope a new version is eventually released, but sotl.as has mostly filled the gap for me. Nirvana would be a sotl.as app that has all the summit data in an internal database so it could work off-line. 
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Josh - I agree that Gaia is an excellent tool. I use it off line for pre-planning activations and on the trail for an accurate track. For example, when I activated Gold Star Peak (W6/NS-189) I bushwacked the final approach to the summit because I could not find a trail. I had turned on the “record track” feature of Gaia as I began my hike. I marked with my eye several places that caught my eye to facilitate my return. Once the activation was complete I opened the Gaia app and followed my recorded track back to the fire road. I would likely have had no problem navigating without Gaia, but having the Gaia track to follow made it easy. I often print snips from Gaia as hard copy references - belt and suspenders - paper maps and battery powered devices!
The “More Information” link has been fixed in the upcoming SOTA Goat update.
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Brilliant, thanks. Will it be on the App Store again? I deleted my copy.
Yes it will return – it is pending app store review right now.
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