Mapping the Sheltowee

[hellbillylarry]

I just got back from my first trip to RRG. First off let me say what a beautiful area to backpack in, Almost reminds me of bryce canyon with trees.

The reason I made this post is because I am very disappointed with the Outragegis map pack I bought. The maps themselves look great and are pretty easy to read and I love the fact that campsites are marked on the map.

BUT, the quality of the paper they maps are printed on is terrible, they started ripping the first time I opened them. They are not very waterproof either. Also the scale and legend are on a separate sheet that has no map on it so you either have to memorize the legend or carry a useless piece of paper with you(I have no idea what they were thinking when they did this).

I think for a $15.00 set of maps they could have done better. I wish they were made out of the same material the Nat-Geo maps are mad of. Or better yet the material that the John Muir Trail map pack is made of, I'm not sure what it is but it is ultra lightweight and absolutely indestructible.

[Boyd]

hellbillylarry,

Glad you enjoyed your trip. The Red is a beautiful hiking area. Sorry you got frustrated with our map.

Did you keep them in our provided polyzip bag? The heavy, 4mil polyzip bag if sealed is a durable, waterproof case. I'm confident that if you kept the maps in the bag sealed and only unfolded them in sheltered conditions, your maps would last. Of course sweating over them can be problem. I have tested this solution over years and know it to work well.

We have investigated printing on waterproof paper and the corresponding inks to make it like the plastic National Geo maps, but at our volume it would make a $14 map $26. Most folks would choose the plastic bag over the plastic paper at this price difference. I know Tom Harrison and he prints huge volumes with a dedicated synthetic paper printing company. We own our own press and do our own printing. If we had as much recreation in Kentucky as he has in California, there might be a big enough demand to go synthetic.

As for the scale, it is on all maps in the margin. The symbol legend is on one sheet and is similar to corner legend on a large folded map. If you don't memorize your symbols, then you'll need to unfold the map to discover their meaning. The legend sheet gives the rules and regulations for the area...an accommodation we gave to the NFS, so it's not useless.

[10-k]

I know this is an old thread but I just ordered the Outrageis map and was wondering if it was on waterproof paper (similar to Nat Geo) when I bought it.

I would gladly pay $26 for a waterproof version printed on high quality paper that didn't require TLC in order to keep it from falling apart.

[10-k]

I just wanted to follow up on this and say that almost a year later I did, indeed, pay $26 for a laminated version of the northern half of the ST trail.

Thank you for providing the laminated option!