I removed it along with a few others that slipped through the cracks. It defines the type of waterway in the Freshwater Atlas dataset and shouldn't have been uploaded to OSM.

@TeLewis and @DENelson83, do you have any input on this issue? Preferred tagging, whether the trails should mapped or not, etc.?

Hey eerib, thanks for the input. I'm in agreement about updating the trail_visibility=* and informal=yes tagging. I'm not not sure I agree with calling it abandoned. It's not maintained or sanctioned by BC parks but seems to be used actively used some and is part of a well know through hike (the VI Trail). At a minimum there is value in showing it as part of the intended route of the VI Trail, even if there were nothing on the ground yet (and I believe there is, based the VI Trail's description I included above).

You've stopped responding, so I'll take that as a tacit admission that the trail does exist. I've restored the deleted segments.

If you're sure the trail doesn't exist, please respond to the above questions and we can ask for the input of the previous editors of the segment. They might have visited the area more recently than you.

All the evidence is pointing to the trail existing and this being borderline vandalism by an overzealous parks employee.

The VI trail comprises many small segments, including a significant portion of logging road, so while the completed trail may only extend as far as Kokummi Pass, it is clear that many sections of it are complete beyond that point.

The VI Trail website specifically describes the section of trail by Schoen Lake.

https://vancouverislandtrail.ca/schoen-lake-park-to-woss/

"From here, the route cuts down (no trail) through mossy, old-growth montane forest of amabilis fir and western hemlock to near the lakeshore to pick up an old trail that leads to the log jam at the west end of the lake (this old trail is not sanctioned by BC Parks hence windfalls across the trail result from the lack of maintenance)."

So are you suggesting that the VI Trail team is incorrect about there being an old trail there, and that the public GPS tracks on Gaia following the trail are a complete coincidence, and that it's not possible for you to have missed the trail or it been constructed after you left the area?

I've found multiple public GPX tracks that run exactly along at least a section of that trail. I'm going to conclude that you are either incorrect about the trail not existing, or are being deliberately deceptive because you don't like the trail being shown on the map.

You first say there is no trail there, then you say it is not maintained or authorized, implying that there is in fact some manner of trail there.

OSM is not limited to official, maintained trails. If it were, you would also need to remove half of the very-well-used routes through Strathcona too.

It's also worth noting that the website you suggested I review specifically mentions a section of trail in Schoen Lake Park.

The VI Trail map shows this section as existing, and I imagine they would know better than someone from the East Kootenays. https://jarlo72.github.io/VITA2022/VITrailWebMap.html

It looks like you just deleted a segment of the Vancouver Island Trail. Have you verified on the ground that the trail doesn't exist, or are you relying on the official parks maps (which are often incomplete and wildly inaccurate)?

Nor is there flow from a small stream that travels out into the center of the lake before taking a sharp 90 degree turn. We're arguing over degrees of inaccuracy.

If it bothers you, fix it.

There is no loop. The path diverges, picks up various side-channels, and then reconverges before flowing down the NE arm to Sproat River. There is no circular flow.

I agree it's a bit odd how they chose to show it, but it's functional. Keep in mind that none of these lines reflect the actual fluid dynamics of the water bodies.

You're welcome to convert it into branching flow lines if you want though.

https://waterwaymap.org/ is a good reference to see how common it is to map linear waterways through waterbodies.

Are you referring to a particular circular waterway, or just generally the practice of connecting waterways within water areas? If the latter, it's an accepted practice, although it's not mandatory. See https://www.reddit.com/r/openstreetmap/comments/17gwo1i/waterwaymaporg_my_new_site_to_show_how_the/

If the problem is that you're seeing rivers mapped on top of lakes, that's a problem with your renderer.

Good catch... that's a vestigial tag from the Freshwater Atlas shapefile and should be removed. I'll deal with it when I can get back into JOSM, or you're welcome to delete it. I believe it describes the waterway type (e.g. stream, river, flow lines within a water body, canal, ditch, etc.)

Mapping for the renderer and all that...

But is that much better that natural=peak? Both are for local high points, and it's debatable whether there's a high point here.

Good catch. The tag is meaningless in this context and was leftover data from Freshwater Atlas. I've removed it.

Hey, yes I'm definitely open to doing that. I will have to play around with it as I have some time and refine the process a bit.

Hi alester, do you have any info on this rec site being retired? Or any other info on it? I can't find any record of its existence online other than this deleted object in OSM.

I have visited it and it is still used with a rustic firepit and fresh tire tracks but there are no signs of it being an official rec site.