Trout Routes Phone App

[Joerugs]

Does anyone have it? I have the free download, and I was wondering if the 60$ a year pro version was worth it. I'm primarily a homebody but I do enjoy searching for new water about a third of the time. Can anyone chime in and give me some insight on this app and your experience? Thank you in advance.

 

[Swattie87]

Does anyone have it? I have the free download, and I was wondering if the 60$ a year pro version was worth it. I'm primarily a homebody but I do enjoy searching for new water about a third of the time. Can anyone chime in and give me some insight on this app and your experience? Thank you in advance.

No. And No.

All the resources and maps you need to research streams and accessibility in PA are available online, and free. And can be saved or downloaded onto your smart phone, also for free.

The only mapping software I use is Google Maps, which has a really good topo mode.

 

[tjsingle]

My understanding is that it just takes public data already available online and packages it in an app. Only benefit would be probably offline data, but most people (like myself) are doing the research on streams beforehand. So for those reasons I would say no.

 

[Nocktavius]

I'm a firm believer in not donating my hard-earned money to spot burners, so no. As others have already stated, all the info there is all available elsewhere, for free (it just requires a bit of technical expertise and experience to cross-reference... something that used to be considered valuable within the sport).

As soon as I saw they had a pro-version, I knew the score.

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

Even if you're planning a cross-country trip that includes fishing, you're better off researching available online maps and other content, followed up by calls to tackle shops or guides in the area.

 

[Broodstock]

I agree with the no assessment. We are lucky here in PA with the available data we have. I could see it being useful for someone who does not want to go to three or four websites to find that data, and does not want to use google maps or other map tools. If you have the skills, save that money and use the publicly available data. Even in other states, with less data - there is still data available to find if you go looking. Bottom line is that you are not paying for better data - you are paying for that data to be easier/faster to find - if you do not already know how to find it.

 

[Swattie87]

I agree with the no assessment. We are lucky here in PA with the available data we have. I could see it being useful for someone who does not want to go to three or four websites to find that data, and does not want to use google maps or other map tools. If you have the skills, save that money and use the publicly available data. Even in other states, with less data - there is still data available to find if you go looking. Bottom line is that you are not paying for better data - you are paying for that data to be easier/faster to find - if you do not already know how to find it.

This sums it up well IMO.

I’ll add that the quality of data you get from the original source or sources, is higher than once it’s repackaged into a phone app. The app is speed and convenience based.

 

[PennKev]

Does anyone have it? I have the free download, and I was wondering if the 60$ a year pro version was worth it. I'm primarily a homebody but I do enjoy searching for new water about a third of the time. Can anyone chime in and give me some insight on this app and your experience? Thank you in advance.

After seeing it in use I was not impressed. Their stream rating system is rubbish and is misleading in terms of stream quality if you are a serious wild trout fisherman. I already have onx and see no reason to change. Almost all the relevant access info is already in onx plus a lot of other stuff I use for hunting. No reason for me to change or have both. For a person who has neither, yes Troutroutes is useful, but don't expect it to lead you to secret gems or even the better streams in a given area. It won't replace researching the areas you want to fish.

 

[cpc1027]

Despite all of the data being publicly available, I think it's convenient to have the data from different states accessible in one place if you fish multiple states. However, the lack of GPS coordinate support was a deal breaker for me.

I'm happy with Onx hunt as my primary mapping tool, but now that Trout Routes was acquired by Onx, I"ll be interested to see if their app is improved in the near term with some of the features that seem to be common across the other Onx apps.

 

[AVL]

It’s a crap app, i tried it for a few minutes and deleted.

 

[sam]

I find it most valuable when traveling to different states/regions where I'm unfamiliar with local streams, access points, etc. Yes, you could find that data elsewhere, but last year, when we took a cross-country trip in our RV, I didn't have as much time to research areas before fishing. Generally, I only had a few hours in each state, so I thought it was a helpful tool, and it did save me some time.

If you're staying in PA, you probably don't need it.

I agree with others on the stream rating systems. I find them misleading at best. Some of the best streams I've fished in recent years have been categorized in their lowest tier.

I still need to try the OnX maps. A few months ago, they bought TroutRoutes, which I think will be rebranded as OnXFish.

 

[wbranch]

Even if apps like this had been available to me as a young fly fisher I would never of bought it. Half the fun of finding new water was fishing the morning (in the summer) on the Beaverkill or Willowemoc then in the afternoon driving all around Sullivan& Delaware counties looking for new places to park and fish. That was during the hippie period and I often found young nymphs hitchhiking and I would often stop to offer a ride. I'll leave the rest of the story to your imagination. The VW Campmobile came in handy.