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A sensory accesibility map of public parks, beaches, and trails for families with neuruodivergent kids.
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Visited a place recently? A quick reading from where you're standing helps replace our modeled noise with measured noise over time. Takes about 30 seconds.
On a laptop or desktop? The microphone button works in most current browsers if the computer has a microphone and you allow it. But a reading only means something if you are actually at the place, so a phone is the right tool. No microphone, or it doesn't work? Type a number from a sound-meter app instead.
For scale: 30 = whisper-quiet · 40 = quiet room · 50 = birds and light traffic · 60 = normal conversation · 70 = busy road · 85 = very loud.
Phone microphones are not calibrated, so this is a rough estimate (louder vs. quieter), not a lab-grade decibel measurement.
Readings are anonymous and public (location, level, optional note and time, nothing else). Unrealistic or inappropriate entries can be hidden by the SenseScape team.
SenseScape is a sensory-accessibility map of public parks, beaches, and trails in Orange County, designed for families with neurodivergent kids. It started with one question: what if planning a park trip were as easy as checking the weather?
For many caregivers, a trip to the park is hard to plan. Noise spikes, shade disappears, and a gentle slope can wear out a child who is already overwhelmed. SenseScape helps families skip the guesswork and find places that better fit their child's needs.
Each location receives two scores: an A-Score for physical accessibility and an S-Score for sensory comfort. SenseScape also provides practical details such as restrooms, parking, benches, and picnic tables.
SenseScape combines public data on trails, elevation, tree canopy, noise, and wind. Noise is currently a modeled estimate, and visitors can help improve it by reporting what they hear in the park on the Report Noise page.
Scores are estimates to help you plan, not guarantees.
Data sources: US Forest Service tree canopy, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), USGS elevation, National Weather Service, and the National Transportation Noise Map.
Accessibility (A-Score) blends OpenStreetMap trail surface tags, slope from USGS elevation data, and proximity to accessible restrooms, water, and parking. Sensory comfort (S-Score) blends a modeled noise estimate, tree canopy shade, and live wind.
It's modeled, not measured everywhere — a regional baseline from federal transportation noise data, refined near major roads/rail using distance and tree cover. Crowd-submitted reports (see the Report Noise tab) help fill in real on-the-ground readings over time.
They're a rough, uncalibrated loudness estimate from your device's microphone — useful as a relative "was it loud or quiet" signal, not a lab-accurate decibel measurement. If you have a dedicated sound meter app, you can type its reading in manually instead.
Reports are anonymous and public — no account or personal info is collected, just a location, a dB reading, and a timestamp.