A new way to plan your outdoor recreation is coming to Cape Cod.
Working with other organizations around the region, the Cape Cod Commission is developing an interactive online map of trails, parks, places to swim, and more, called Cape Cod Outdoors.
Jessica Rempel, natural resources analyst at the commission, said they hope to have it finished by next summer.
“When people visit the site, they'll be able to look at a map, or maybe filter by different types of activities that they're interested in, and then find out information about the outdoor spaces that are available,” she said.
Even people who know the Cape well can learn new places to go.
“I experienced that, even myself,” she said. “I live in Wellfleet, and I was working on the Wellfleet sites. And I got to do some of the research and go out to do some of the site visits, to places that I had never visited before, even in the town of Wellfleet.”
The commission is working with the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce and the Compact of Cape Cod Conservation Trusts, using a state grant of about $60,000.
The project will aggregate information from across the Cape. Interns and a member of AmeriCorps Cape Cod will help collect the data.
Rempel said they aim to connect people with nature and promote outdoor recreation. Those goals help the regional economy, too, because experiencing nature is a big draw for visitors, she said.
The tool will be modeled after a similar one from western Massachusetts called Berkshires Outside.
It allows users to filter by activities, such as boating and horseback riding, and by specific features, such as accessible waterfronts and whether the site allows dogs.
