Taking the Auto Trail Tour Offline
Part of what makes the Auto Trail adventurous is that you truly travel through undeveloped lands. That also means there are significant stretches of the Auto Trail with sketchy or even no cell coverage. So how do you get access to the Auto Trail tour information without cell service? You can now download to your device a "mobile map package" that contains the vast majority of the content of the online tour. You can view that map with the free ArcGIS Field Maps app. There are three steps:
1. Go to the Apple App Store or Google Play and search for ArcGIS Field Maps. It's free. Install the app.
2. Open the Field Maps app. You will see a sign in screen. Click on the third option that says Skip Sign In.
3. You will now see a list of the MANY maps Esri, and Esri users, make available for free.
-- Pull down on the display to make sure you see the Search bar.
-- In the search bar type nwsat_. The underscore is important. It makes the search quick and easy.
-- The first result will be the map package you want: NWSAT_Tour_2026_07_27. Click on it.
-- A popup appears with three options. Click on Download. The download is about 385MB so it may take a while depending on your internet connection. Recommendation: Do this download at home or on a fast WiFi network!
-- Click on the map package name again. You are in! Explore!
The next time you open Field Maps the Auto Trial map package will be the first you see. And if you didn't close the map before you last closed the app, the map will automatically reopen. And the map will reopen to the place and zoom level you were last viewing.
The best thing about using the app and the map package is when you visit the Auto Trail. Field maps will display a blue dot on the map to show you where you are. So you can easily see the path to follow to navigate between stops. Enjoy!
