Looking for an excuse to spend more time on the lake? Here’s a great one—help your fellow boaters by mapping the markers that keep us all safe. This summer, we’re inviting you to take part in a community effort to map out every buoy on the lake—and rewarding you along the way.
Why Map the Lake?
Lake Winnipesaukee is one of the most beautiful and popular boating destinations in New England, but its thousands of islands, channels, and buoys can be tricky to navigate—even for locals. While Argo’s charts and navigation tools cover the basics, we want to make the lake even easier to explore by adding every marker, verified by real boaters.
Your contributions will help:
- Add missing buoys and markers to the Argo app.
- Verify the accuracy of existing data.
- Make the lake safer and easier for everyone.
With your help, we’ll have the most complete, up-to-date map of Lake Winnipesaukee—built by the boating community, for the boating community.
How the Contest Works
We’re running this contest all summer long, with weekly cash prizes for the top contributors. Here’s how to participate:
Step 1: Add Buoy Pins
- Pull your boat up near a marker on the lake.
- In the Argo app, drop a “New Buoy” Report pin at the marker’s location. Here’s a tutorial on how to add a report pin.
- Take a clear photo of the buoy or marker.
- Add a description, such as buoy type, color, number, lighted, and a good name (channel, island, etc)
- Each verified New Buoy pin = 5 points.
Step 2: Verify Existing Pins
- If you see a buoy or marker that’s already pinned:
- Tap on the existing pin.
- Give it a thumbs up if it looks correct, or a thumbs down if something’s wrong.
- Add a quick comment explaining what you found.
- Each thumbs up/down = 1 point.
- If the marker pin is in the wrong spot:
- Give it a thumbs down.
- Then, drop a new NavAid Report pin in the correct location with a photo and description.
All pins and verifications will be reviewed by the Argo team to make sure they’re accurate before awarding points.
Win Weekly Cash Prizes
Every week (Monday-Sunday), we’ll tally the points and award cash prizes:
- 1st place: $250
- 2nd place: $100
- 3rd place: $50
To be eligible for prizes, you’ll need to earn at least 50 points that week.
Winners will be announced in our weekly newsletter and on Argo’s social media. Keep an eye out—you might see your name in the headline!
Contest Timeline
- Starts: July 14, 2025
- Ends: September 7, 2025 (with opportunity for extension if needed)
You can jump in anytime, but the sooner you start, the more chances you have to win!
Helpful Tips
1. Need to edit your pin’s location or info?
Tap on the pin on the map, tap the 3 dots in the upper right to Edit or Delete. Read the step-by-step tutorial on editing your pins.
2. Have poor connectivity?
Go offline to drop your pins by tapping on the orange poor connectivity icon or go to Offline Settings.
Ready to Get Started?
If you love exploring Lake Winnipesaukee and want to help your fellow boaters, this is your chance to make an impact—and have some fun doing it.
Head out on the water, fire up Argo, and start mapping those buoys.
Let’s see how much of the lake we can chart together this summer.
