Location & Outdoor Safety Disclaimer — FishFinder Engine™

Status: DRAFT — for attorney review. Effective Date: [Effective Date] Version: 0.1-draft Read alongside: EULA / Terms of Use, Data Accuracy Disclaimer, AI Disclaimer, Privacy Policy, Mobile App Terms Addendum.

This disclaimer applies whenever you use any feature of FishFinder Engine that involves maps, lake locations, GPS, addresses, trip planning, weather references, or outdoor activity — including the website, the iOS app, the Apple Watch app, and the SMS Trip Companion.

By using these features, you acknowledge and agree to this disclaimer.

1. The Service is not a navigation, emergency, or safety system

FishFinder Engine is a fishing-research and planning tool. It is not:

• a marine or terrestrial navigation system;
• a chartplotter, depth sounder, or sonar;
• a real-time weather, lightning, ice, current, or water-condition service;
• an avalanche, flood, or storm-warning system;
• an emergency-response, search-and-rescue, or 911 service;
• a substitute for a U.S. Coast Guard- or state-approved navigation product;
• a substitute for the judgment of a licensed captain, guide, or conservation officer.

Do not rely on the Service for any decision involving personal safety, navigation, ice safety, water rescue, or emergency response. In an emergency, dial 911 (or the relevant local emergency number).

2. Map pins, depth contours, and coordinates may be inaccurate

The map data and lake coordinates on the Service are derived from public state and federal sources, including state DNR APIs, the National Hydrography Dataset, and Esri ArcGIS feature services. Coordinates may be:

• approximate, generalized, or off-shore;
• mis-projected (the source data may use a different coordinate system than expected and our parsing may not catch every case);
• placed on the wrong lake when two or more lakes share a name;
• shifted because of map-tile rendering or zoom-level rounding.

Depth contours, where displayed (currently disabled in the lake profile UI pending legal review), are taken from PDFs published by state agencies years or decades ago and may not reflect current bathymetry.

Use a properly calibrated marine chart or sonar for any decision that depends on depth or position.

3. Lake access and shoreline status may be wrong

A lake appearing on the Service does not mean:

• the lake is open to the public;
• a public boat ramp exists;
• a boat ramp is operational, dredged, or accessible by your vehicle;
• the surrounding land is public;
• it is legal to access the lake from any particular point;
• there is no posted "private" or "no trespassing" boundary nearby.

Verify access rights and any relevant easement, with the landowner or the state, before you go. Trespass is your responsibility.

4. Water and ice conditions can change at any moment

We do not display real-time water levels, water temperature, currents, visibility, debris, dam release schedules, ice thickness, ice-out status, algal blooms, or contamination advisories. Conditions may change rapidly:

• a calm lake can turn dangerous in minutes;
• "safe" ice on a January date is not safe on a March date;
• spillways can release without local warning;
• weather forecasts can be wrong, especially for inland lakes.

Check current conditions with the appropriate authority — the state agency, the local marina, the National Weather Service, the U.S. Coast Guard, or your local sheriff's department — before going on or near the water. If you are unsure whether ice is safe, stay off it.

5. Weather, moon-phase, and environmental references in AI output

Some AI Features may reference seasonality, regional climate norms, or moon phases as general context for fishing patterns. They do not reflect actual current weather, lightning, wind, water temperature, or real-time conditions. See the AI Disclaimer. If you need current weather, use a real weather service (e.g., weather.gov / the U.S. National Weather Service).

6. Device location, GPS, and background location

When you grant the iOS or Apple Watch app permission to access your location, the app may:

• use your location to show nearby lakes, sort search results by distance, and pre-fill the GPS field on a catch log;
• record your precise GPS coordinates (latitude and longitude) on catch logs you save (see CatchLog.latitude / longitude in the backend schema);
• use background location (where the iOS app declares NSLocationAlwaysAndWhenInUseUsageDescription and the UIBackgroundModes: location capability) to support fishing-session tracking on the Apple Watch.

You may revoke location permission at any time in your device settings. Doing so will disable nearby-lake features, distance sorting, and any GPS-driven catch-logging convenience. [Attorney Review Needed] — confirm whether the app uses background location continuously or only during an active fishing session.

We do not broadcast your live location to other users. Even if you have a public profile, your live position is not shown.

7. Trip planning and lodging addresses

The Service stores lodging and meeting addresses, check-in / check-out times, and the list of trip companions you have invited. We treat this as private trip data. You are responsible for not entering address information for third parties without their consent, and for not relying on stored times or addresses as a substitute for confirmation with the lodging provider.

8. Boating, fishing, and outdoor safety remain your responsibility

You must:

• carry the safety equipment required for your craft (life jackets, kill switch, throwable flotation, navigation lights, fire extinguishers, signaling devices) and use it correctly;
• comply with all state, federal, and tribal boating, fishing, and natural-resources laws;
• carry a valid license where required;
• check current weather, water, and ice conditions before going out;
• bring appropriate clothing and emergency supplies for the conditions;
• exercise good judgment; if conditions are not safe, do not go.

We are not your captain, guide, or conservation officer. Nothing on the Service overrides applicable law.

9. Children

Children should be supervised by a competent adult in any outdoor setting. The Service does not assess fitness for purpose for any particular age, ability, or experience level.

10. Limits

To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim all liability for any decision you make in reliance on map, location, GPS, weather, moon-phase, or environmental information shown on the Service. See the limitation-of-liability section of the EULA / Terms of Use.

[Attorney Review Needed] — confirm scope of background-location use, whether opt-in for background location is gated to an active fishing session, and decide whether explicit click-through acknowledgment is required before location features are enabled.

This document is a non-attorney first pass and is not legal advice.