Blog
Field guides for the people who use it.
Tactical, data-forward writing. No marketing fluff. Every post written by someone who's used the data in the field.
Tutorials
The Baseline Maps River Gauge Widget for iPhone: Setup & Tips
Put live river flow on your iPhone home and lock screen. Here's how to add the Baseline Maps River Gauge widget, cycle between rivers, and switch flow and stage.
By Baseline Maps Team · June 30, 2026
Tutorials
How to Import & Migrate Your Waypoints Into Baseline Maps
Bringing your waypoints from onX, Gaia, or any GPS app into Baseline Maps takes about a minute. Export a GPX file, import it, preview, and you're done — nothing lost.
By Baseline Maps Team · June 30, 2026
Community
From Beta to Launch: The 669 Founding Members Who Carried Us
From private beta in January 2026 to public launch in June, 669 founding members shaped Baseline Maps through the in-app feedback box. This is what they taught us.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Philosophy
The Case for a Feedback Box Over a Roadmap Committee
Most companies decide what to ship through quarterly roadmap meetings. We decide through an in-app feedback box. Here's why a box beats a committee.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Philosophy
Why We Don't Gamify the Outdoors
Streaks, badges, leaderboards, kudos — the toolkit that turned exercise into Strava. We chose not to bring any of it into Baseline Maps. Here's why.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Building
Why We Built for iOS and Android from the First Day
Most indie outdoor apps launch iOS-only and add Android later. We did it both ways from day one. Here's why — and what it cost us.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Community
The First 100 Users Came From One Instagram DM
Before paid acquisition, before any press, the early growth of Baseline Maps started with personal Instagram outreach and a single DM that snowballed.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Marketing
App Store Optimization for a Niche Outdoor App
What actually moved installs for Baseline Maps — and what didn't. ASO advice that's specific to outdoor apps, not generic SaaS marketing playbooks.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Building
How We Built Baseline Maps from a Frustrated Fishing Weekend
The origin story of Baseline Maps — what we couldn't find in any existing outdoor app, what we shipped first, and how a fishing tool became a three-mode platform.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Marketing
The Honest CAC Math for an Indie Outdoor App at $34.99 a Year
What it actually costs to acquire a subscriber for a $34.99-a-year outdoor app, and the LTV math that pushes a niche product toward community-first growth.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Marketing
We Tried Google Ads for an Outdoor App. It Didn't Work.
A modest paid-ads experiment over a few months underperformed for our niche outdoor mapping app — here's what we learned, and why we turned it off.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Philosophy
The Calm App Philosophy: Software You Don't Want to Open
Most consumer apps are designed to be irresistible. Baseline Maps is the opposite — useful, then invisible. The case for software that gets out of your way.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Building
How We Keep Hunting and Fishing Regulations Current
State agencies publish 200-500 page rule books and change them mid-season. Here's how we keep every river and GMU in Baseline Maps tied to the right rules.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Philosophy
Why Our Subscription Has No Tiers (And Why Every Other Outdoor App Does)
Most outdoor apps split features across Premium / Elite / Pro tiers. Baseline Maps has one feature set — every feature for every subscriber, monthly or annual.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Philosophy
How We Decide What to Ship Next (The Actual Process)
Not the slide-deck version — the real one. How a feature request becomes a shipped feature at Baseline Maps, including the ones we say no to.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Foraging
The Morel Soil Temperature Trigger: When and Where Morels Pop
Morels emerge on a soil-temperature trigger, not a calendar date. Here's the temperature range, the burn-scar bonus, and how to track soil temps where you forage.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Community
What We Learned Reading a Week of In-App Feedback
We read every in-app feedback submission as one document instead of a stream — the patterns in what users actually ask for, and where the surprises lived.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Building
Voice Memo to Production: How We Ship Features in Under Two Weeks
From a 45-second voice memo on a riverbank to a shipped feature in users' hands — the exact process that turns user requests into code in days, not quarters.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Marketing
How a Reddit Post Outperformed Our Paid Ads
One unpaid Reddit comment in r/flyfishing brought in more genuine signups than our paid-ad experiment ever did. Why community trust beats broadcast for outdoor apps.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Comparisons
Is onX Hunt Worth It? An Honest Comparison for 2026
onX Hunt vs. the alternatives in 2026. A fair comparison covering coverage, parcel detail, pricing, and where each app actually wins. From people who've used both.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Fishing · River Flows
What Is CFS in Fishing? A Plain-English Guide to Reading River Flow
CFS — cubic feet per second — is how rivers are measured. Here's what it means for anglers, what range is fishable, and how to read a USGS hydrograph at a glance.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Maps & Tech
What Is Hillshade on a Map? A Plain-English Guide for Outdoor Use
Hillshade is the soft 3D shading that makes terrain feel real on a flat map. Here's how it works, how to read it for hunting and hiking, and where it misleads you.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Hunting · Mapping
What Is a GMU? A Hunter's Guide to Game Management Units
GMU — Game Management Unit — is how states divide hunting territory. Here's what they are, how seasons and tags map to them, and how to find the right unit for you.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Marketing
Why We Don't Have a Marketing Team (And What We Do Instead)
Most app companies have a marketing team. We have a feedback box and an Instagram inbox. Here's why — and how we grow without one.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Community
Why We Credit Users by Name in the Development Queue
When a feature ships, we credit the user who asked for it by name. It feels like a small decision. It's actually the entire community model.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Community
How a Yakima Steelhead Guide Became Our Most Active Feature Requester
One Yakima guide turned into our most prolific feature requester. Many of his ideas shipped, some didn't, and the relationship taught us how to build software in public.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026
Building
Why We Obsess Over Offline Maps
Most outdoor apps treat offline maps as a tier feature. We treat them as the default. Here's why — and what it changes about how the app is built.
By Baseline Maps Team · May 25, 2026