From NRS and Paddleways:
Takes Aim at Breaking Down Barriers to Paddlesports 
and Giving Back to Conservation
Northwest River Supplies (NRS announced the launch of PaddleWays, the first-ever navigation app built specifically for paddlers. Joining forces with onWater, NRS is excited to serve paddlers with new tools and technology to help improve experiences on the water.
“While other adventure sports have long benefitted from widely used mobile technologies, paddlesports has been left behind, until now,” says NRS Chief Marketing Officer, Mark Deming. “Our vision for PaddleWays is to continue breaking down barriers to the outdoors, delivering the tools that help all paddlers access the information they need to get out on the water.”
Known for its fishing app, onWater provides detailed information on thousands of miles of rivers, creeks and shorelines across the United States. Satellite imagery provides GPS-specific points of interest and public vs. private property boundaries along river corridors. Using a mobile device, users can track their current location and movement or calculate distances, in river miles, to any point of interest including access points, boat ramps, campgrounds, river hazards, rapids and more. A fully integrated photo and journal feature also allows users to use GPS-specific data to record and relive their adventures. PaddleWays harnesses this powerful technology to deliver an all-in-one tool for discovering, planning and navigating experiences on the water.
“It’s about time we brought these tools to the paddling community,” says Alex Maier, onWater Chief Marketing Officer. “We’re proud of our deep bank of data and mapping that gives paddlers all the beta they need—right at their fingertips. And because we’re constantly adding rivers and updating information, the community plays an active role in building this experience as we go.”
The PaddleWays app will serve as a guidebook and GPS navigation technology, with offline capabilities, to help paddlers make informed decisions on and off the water. Additionally, in cooperation with American Whitewater, a river conservation organization, the team aims to utilize the app to promote responsible use and to protect rivers and streams across the country. NRS is donating 1% of its PaddleWays app sales to American Whitewater.
“American Whitewater has been committed to providing easy access to river information in pursuit of creating a safer river going experience for almost 70 years, and we’re excited to partner with NRS and the PaddleWays app to offer new and exciting tools to better inform river runners,” says Evan Stafford, American Whitewater Communications Director. “We hope PaddleWays app users will take seriously the river safety and responsibility code we’ve helped to include with its purchase, and that as river users we can all work together to help protect, restore and maintain access to our rivers!”
