Map takes tourists off beaten path

geo-tourism (n): Tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place - its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and the well-being of its residents.

Consider it a map packed with so much detail that it reads like a book about some of the most offbeat and interesting places from Missoula to Calgary.

The "Geotourism MapGuide" was developed and recently released by the National Geographic Society in partnership with dozens of community groups, featuring the "Crown of the Continent" region. And it is available for free on a Web site that is a multi-dimensional mirror of the map.

"You could spend a couple hours reading this single piece of paper, there's so much information on it," said Steve Thompson, a MapGuide project coordinator with the National Parks Conservation Association. "That's one more reason it's such a unique map; it's like a guidebook on a single piece of paper. I don't think people are so used to seeing so much detail on a map."

What truly sets the map apart from others is the way it was developed, and its theme of conserving the authenticity of special places around the Crown of the Continent.

Thompson was involved with 64 community presentations last year that were largely aimed at soliciting nominations for sites, events and attractions to be featured on the map.

After a long selection process, 130 sites and events were selected for the two-sided map depicting the same region - one side showing natural attractions with jurisdictional boundaries and the other side featuring cultural heritage sites.

The Geotourism concept emphasizes places and events that make an area unique, with the goal of protecting the character of those places.

As Rhonda Fitzgerald, a Whitefish business owner put it: "I've seen the authentic character of too many places get flushed down the drain once they've been discovered by an influx of new residents and travelers. Places that were once authentic and interesting end up looking like everyplace else. We've been lucky that hasn't happened here yet, but the potential certainly exists. With this map, we want to reach those visitors who are hungry for unique experiences and want to help maintain local character."

Thompson said the map doesn't really reveal any secrets, it simply shows off places that wouldn't be found on a run-of-the-mill tourism map. In Kalispell, for instance, it features Moose's Saloon, and the city's downtown historic walking tour. The train depot is featured in Whitefish.

Attractions on the East Front include the Two Medicine Dinosaur Center in Bynum, the Kootenai Brown Pioneer Village in Pincher Creek and the American Legion Rodeo and Parade in Augusta.

"There's a growing market of people who are interested in distinctive, authentic places," Thompson said. "People don't want to get gussied up when they go to the Augusta Rodeo."

The map features a wealth of interesting attractions in Alberta and British Columbia that are most likely unknown to many Montanans. There's the Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden in Lethbridge, the Cobblestone Manor restaurant in Cardston that was built in 1889 and the historic Island Lake Lodge near Fernie.

Thompson said there is a strong educational element on everything from wildlife to the region's natural and cultural history. The map emphasizes Native American heritage, letting visitors know that Chief Mountain, for instance, isn't just any old mountain in Glacier National Park - it is a spiritual destination in the Blackfeet culture.

"All of the content, the ideas, and most of the photographs came from people here," Thompson said.

But the map's production was handled by about a dozen people with the National Geographic Society, which Thompson describes as "the leading source of information about places anywhere on the planet."

About 190,000 copies of the map were printed, and their gradual distribution is expected to fuel constant development of the Crown of the Continent Web site.

The map features 130 sites and events, but the Web site already features 300 content entries, many of them submitted by knowledgeable locals around the region.

"We're asking people who live here to sort of step up as field experts," Thompson said. "I think the Web site is so cool. It is constantly changing."

The Web site is partly driven by GoogleEarth, allowing visitors to scan the region and its attractions through satellite imagery. A click on the town of Seeley Lake, for example, reveals attractions, including a music icon that leads to information about the town's annual Tamarack music festival.

There is a "My Backpack" feature, similar to "shopping cart" features on other Web sites, that allows visitors to collect their favorite attractions in the region for easy reference.

Thompson said there is potential for the site to someday allow visitors to generate customized maps for the Crown of the Continent.

"There is just so much we can do with this Web site," he said.

The MapGuide was unveiled at a travel exhibition in Washington, D.C. last week. Its Canadian launch will be in Calgary on April 17, the same day that it will be featured at Montana's Governors Conference on Tourism and Recreation in West Yellowstone.

It is the fourth geotourism MapGuide developed by National Geographic: Earlier projects focused on the Appalachian region, northeastern Vermont, the Sonoran Desert and Mexico.

Similar projects are now being pursued for Baja, Calif., and the Greater Yellowstone Region of Montana, Wyoming and Idaho.

Copies of the Crown of the Continent MapGuide can be ordered by visiting:

http://www.crownofthecontinent.net

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com