Every bit as much as I go into the wilderness to escape work and technology, I’m deeply fascinated by how technology can help us and enhance the experience in the outdoors. As great as it can be to rely on the old ways of doing things, they don’t always work in the modern era. Time is limited. People are distracted. And sometimes it’s nice to cut the learning curve down a little. Not only that, but regardless of your stance on technology and the outdoors, the reality is we nearly always have our phones with us when we fish.
An App To Improve Your Day and Gives Back to Conservation
A while back, I had the chance to check out an app called onWater. I was skeptical, as I am with all new apps (I’m a technology writer for my day job; it comes with the territory). What I quickly noticed, though, was not only do they provide all kinds of helpful resources in one place, but they’re working to help improve fisheries across the United States.
According to Alex Maier, chief marketing officer of onWater, the app started as a way to help fly anglers have a good day on the water, but evolved from there. “Our founder initially had the concept while doing a dual boat float in Colorado with his son,” says Maier. “His son missed the take out and nearly ended up having a very tragic ending. He thought to himself, ‘There’s got to be an app to prevent this."
Maier continues, “The concept was to increase safety and elevate experiences on the water. The initial vision was to create a tool that allowed anglers to discover new places to fish, build a robust plan, and then execute that plan in the field (on water).”
An All-In-One Tool for Fly Anglers
Stop me if this sounds familiar. You’ve got hundreds of waypoints and fishing spots marked out on Google Maps. You’ve got a notes app somewhere filled with observations, recommendations, and things you’d like to explore. You keep your photos on your phone (but forget where you took the pictures), and you have to visit a website to see what the current water conditions are like. Does that sound about right?
Most of us are likely doing something like this without even thinking twice about it. onWater gives you a way to manage everything that you’re likely already doing in a single place (and then some).
Your Day of Fly Fishing Improved by Our Use of Data
“Data is truly at the core of what we do, what we curate, what we model, what we visualize, and what we disseminate to all of the aforementioned stakeholders,” says Maier. “To that end, we make it very easy for anglers to input any and all data from their activities into the product and have it produce knowledge they would otherwise not easily be able to derive, such as trend data, historical context, catch-specific information like species length, and more.”
Take Better Notes
Fishing diaries have been around for ages and are a great way to keep track of where you’ve been, what the conditions were like, what you caught, and more. I love the idea and often have a couple of notebooks with me at all times, but I’m terrible at actually sitting down to fill in the details. I often rely on the dozens of photos I take to track important information.
onWater lets you take note-taking to a new level. Within the app, you can pinpoint the exact location you caught something on a map, add a photo of the fish, and include measurements, flow rates, time of day, hatches, and any other important details. onWater has even integrated an AI system for measuring fish based on pictures you add to the app.
More Than Just a Note Taker and map...much More
I love spending hours poring over map books and comparing them to online maps to get a sense of what access is like or what spots look like good fishing. The problem is, though, sometimes online doesn’t line up with reality. On top of that, you still need to figure out where the fly shops are, how flow rates are looking, and whether or not you’re going to stay on public land the whole time. All of that can take a long time to sort out and, frankly, takes away from the time you get to spend looking at maps.
Up to the Minute Water Conditions and Flow Rates
All of that information can be found in-app with onWater. Flow rates, access points, private property, and more can be found quickly and easily. onWater even includes information about local fly shops and the services they offer, so you can drive right up, buy the fly that is working, and get the inside scoop on how the rivers are fishing that day. There’s even information about access points that are ADA-compliant, making it easy for anyone to get on the water.
Dial in on the Species You Are Going After
What’s really cool is that you can also add a fish species layer to your map to help plan trips where you’re looking for something specific, like walleye or bass.
Giving Back to the Fly Fishing Community
“Conservation, much like data, is part of the glue that holds this whole thing together,” says Maier. “We wouldn’t have the recreation opportunities we have today without the continued focus being put towards protecting the watersheds we all love and those who inhabit them.”
In the Spirit of Fly Fishing, onWater Takes Care of the Waters it Depends On
This idea is what led onWater to connect with organizations like Trout Unlimited and Science on the Fly to help ensure that both water and fish are around for future generations to enjoy. “When talking with our conservation partners like Trout Unlimited, USGS, and Science on the Fly, we found a common struggle that all of them shared, which is ‘how do we communicate what we are doing, where we need help, and how do we solicit more feedback from the angling community?’,” says Maier. “This is where onWater Fish comes in with many solutions that are rolling out as we speak.”
The Free Version Goes Deep With Useful Information
The thing I find most interesting about onWater is that they don’t monetize all the data they collect. There are features of the app that you have to pay for, but they make data that is largely freely available already more accessible.
“Many, if not all, companies in our space have decided to place this data, like boat launches and access points, behind their paywalls, in turn, playing gatekeepers,” says Maier. “We strongly believe that gatekeeping is bad, which is why we’ve made the most basic data needed to find a place to go fishing for the day easy and free to access. Gatekeeping goes against our stance on conservation. If we make it hard for people to find a place to fish, how on earth are we going to enable positive experiences that get participants to fall in love with the sport and the places they go, thus becoming advocates for the land, water, and fish that live in their beautiful destinations.”
"Fishing Access For All"
Maier adds that they take accessibility seriously and, among other things, it’s part of why they’ve partnered with organizations like Warriors & Quiet Waters and Project Healing Waters. “Our tagline is ‘Fishing Access For All’,” he says. “No matter your age, identity, race, or experience level, we believe that everyone can have a transformative experience on the water.”
There are premium features for the app, so not everything is free. But all the information you need to get started, like access points and boat launches, is free.
Learn more about onWater
onWater is available for both Android and Apple devices and comes with a free seven day trial for premium and offers a lot of functionality at the free level.
You can visit their website or find them in your app store.
More must-reads: