> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.mtnmanager.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Interactive Trail Maps

> Turn your static trail map image into a live, interactive map — trace your runs and lifts, connect them to real-time status, and embed it on your website.

A trail map in MtnManager starts with the map image you already have. You trace your runs, lifts, and facilities on top of it, and link each one to the run or lift it represents.

Guests get a map they can pan, zoom, search, and tap for details — and if you calibrate it to GPS, one that shows them where they're standing on the mountain.

## Before you begin

* **Add your runs and lifts first.** Every element you draw links to something in MtnManager, so the more you've set up — runs, lifts, terrain parks, amenities, parking lots, webcams — the more you can put on the map. See [Getting Started](/guides/getting-started).
* **Use a desktop browser.** The editor needs a full-size screen; the finished map works everywhere.
* **Have your map image ready.** Your printed map artwork works well, though a version without the runs and lifts already drawn on it works best.

## How it works

<Steps>
  <Step title="Upload your base map">
    Your existing trail map image becomes the background you draw on.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Trace your mountain">
    Draw runs, lifts, and markers on the image and link each to the matching item in MtnManager.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Publish it">
    Easily embed the map on your website.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Step 1 — Create the map

Go to **Trail Maps** and choose **Create Trail Map**:

* **Name** — for example, "Winter Trail Map".
* **Season** — **Winter** or **Summer**. Your public displays show the map matching your current season.
* **Background image** — the picture you'll draw on. PNG, JPEG, or WebP, up to 5 MB; **WebP is recommended** for the best performance.

### Choosing a base image

Your background works best as a **base layer only** — terrain, shading, and buildings, without the runs, lift lines, and trail labels drawn on top. You add those yourself in the editor, and the ones you add are the ones that carry live status and color. If they're already printed into the image, you end up with two sets of lines sitting on each other.

<Tip>
  Build separate winter and summer maps — each can carry its own season, so the right one appears automatically when you [switch seasons](/guides/getting-started#summer-mode).
</Tip>

You can swap the image later with **Replace Background Image** — your drawn elements stay put, so a fresh scan of the same map doesn't cost you the work. It's best to keep the replacement at the **same dimensions** as the original, though: elements are positioned against the image, so a different width or height shifts everything out of place and you'll have to drag it all back into position.

## Step 2 — Trace your mountain

Open the map to reach the editor. The toolbar across the top holds one button per element type:

| Element           | What it's for                                                                    |
| ----------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Lift**          | A lift line, drawn point to point.                                               |
| **Run**           | A ski run, as a line down the hill or a filled area.                             |
| **Terrain Park**  | A park, usually drawn as an area.                                                |
| **Summer Trail**  | A hiking or biking trail (on summer maps).                                       |
| **Amenity**       | A pin for a lodge, restaurant, rental shop, and so on.                           |
| **Parking**       | A pin for a parking lot.                                                         |
| **Webcam**        | A pin at a camera's real location, so guests can see the live view from the map. |
| **Custom Marker** | A pin for anything else — first aid, a bathroom, the tubing hill.                |

### Drawing runs, lifts, and trails

<Steps>
  <Step title="Pick the element type">
    Click **Run**, **Lift**, **Terrain Park**, or **Summer Trail** in the toolbar.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose what it is">
    Select the actual run or lift from the dropdown. This is the link that makes the map live, so it's worth getting right — a green pin beside an entry means it's already on the map, which makes it easy to see what you still have left to draw.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click along the shape">
    Click the map to drop points following the run or lift line. A line needs at least two points, a filled area at least three.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Finish">
    Choose **Finish** to place it. **Cancel** (or <kbd>Esc</kbd>) backs out.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Two options are worth knowing while you draw:

* **Path or Area** — runs and terrain parks can be a line or a filled shape. Runs default to a line and parks to an area, but wide-open bowls and glades often read better as areas.
* **Curved path** — for lifts with more than two points, this smooths the line into a curve instead of straight segments.

### Placing markers

Click **Amenity**, **Parking**, **Webcam**, or **Custom Marker**, choose what it points to (or type a label, for a custom marker), then click the spot on the map. Each marker takes an **icon** and a **color**; amenities pick up an icon from their category automatically.

Two options for markers:

* **Include in search** includes that custom marker in the guest-facing search, so someone can look it up by its label.
* Drop several markers on the same spot and they group together. You can optionally give the group a **label**, e.g. "Summit Lodge".

### Editing

Click any element to select it. The toolbar becomes that element's settings — swap which run or lift it links to, change its color or icon, or delete it.

<Warning>
  Your work isn't stored until you choose **Save**. The editor warns you before you navigate away with unsaved changes, but save as you go — especially on a big mountain.
</Warning>

## Step 3 — Calibrate GPS (optional)

Calibration ties your map image to real-world coordinates, which lets guests see their own position on the mountain as they ride.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Choose GPS Point">
    Click **GPS Point** in the toolbar.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enter the coordinates">
    Type the latitude and longitude of a spot you can identify on the map — a lift base, a summit, a parking lot entrance.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click that spot on the image">
    Place the point where that location sits on your map picture.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Repeat across the map">
    Add many points spread out across the whole image — including corners and edges, not clustered in one area. **The more points you add, the more accurate the result.**
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  You can pull coordinates for a known spot from Google Maps: right-click the location and click the latitude and longitude to copy them.
</Tip>

## Step 4 — Publish it

The buttons below the editor give you ways for guests to access your map:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Embed Code" icon="code">
    Opens the widget builder with this map selected. Copy the snippet into your site and you're done — see [Hosted Widgets](/developer/hosted-widgets) for details.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Copy Public URL" icon="link">
    A direct link to the map, ready to share or link.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>