Google Street View Trekker is here. Here’s our thoughts.
We have quite a few camera toys at Element, but nothing quite compares to this!
You know the Google Street View camera? The one that captures 360 degree views of local streets all around the world? Well a similar camera called the Google Street View Trekker is now making its way through hiking trails worldwide, allowing viewers a full virtual tour of bush walking trails online.
The Google Maps Street View Car
Google Street View Backpack Camera, Source: Eli Duke (linked)
NSW National Parks have set the standard in Australia, releasing a few ‘street view style’ maps of the Blue Mountains’ trails online. We haven’t included any of their images here but there is a link below for you to check out.
As far as technology goes, it’s pretty impressive being able to view the wilderness and all its beauty through an online medium. We can definitely see how this would be handy for planning trips in unknown areas, or in trying to cater your next trip for different fitness and skill levels.
On the other hand, is the wilderness becoming less and less remote with the more technology we introduce? Is the connected-ness of modern society keeping people from getting out and exploring the great outdoors, or is it merely providing more opportunities to do so?
My thoughts?
Personally I’m drawn to the technology and I love exploring the trails online; it only motivates me more to get out there and see it for myself. However it does provide an easy opportunity to poke fun at the “lazily-inclined” amongst us. It’s like my mate joked the other day when I was looking for a good mountain to view a sunrise from, “I’m sure you can find a good sunrise on Youtube”. True that.
You can view the interactive trails shot on the Google Street View Trekker over on the NSW National Parks page here:
http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/google-trekker
Let’s do it Queensland!
While we’re at it, let’s get Queensland National Parks on board! We’ll put our hand up to map out some of Queensland’s best locations for you! How convenient that Google has a ‘loan program’ you can read about here.
So…are you going to explore your next trip on Google, or would you rather keep the surprise and enjoy taking your own photos next time you hit the trails?
Note: We have caught wind of a similar project for rock climbing routes…stay tuned for future posts, and don’t forget to subscribe to our email newsletter (down below).
Enjoy your wilderness adventures!