Privacy Policy

Steelhead Almanac ("we", "our", "the site") is committed to protecting your privacy. This policy explains what information we collect when you visit steelheadalmanac.com, how we use it, and your rights regarding that information.

ChatGPT conditions and preparation plugin

The Steelhead Almanac Conditions Prep plugin retrieves public river observations, regional conditions, regional storm context and public preparation-guide excerpts. It does not require an Almanac account or access private member reports. We receive tool requests sent by ChatGPT, including relevant parameters such as a river slug, region or guide-search text. This does not give us general access to your ChatGPT history. Avoid placing personal or sensitive information in guide searches.

The application processes these parameters to retrieve public information, applies shared usage counters and caches results briefly. River and storm result cache lifetimes are 60 seconds; guide result lifetimes are ten minutes. Expired entries are removed during later service cleanup, rather than by a guaranteed deletion job at the exact expiry instant. Query-dependent cache keys use a keyed digest instead of storing raw search text. The application does not persist raw requests, full prompts, raw guide queries, ChatGPT account identifiers or persistent angler profiles. Support messages submitted separately follow the website support policies.

Minimal application diagnostics include request time, release, status, whether the connection passed the network restriction, tool name, limit reason, duration and public-observation age/source diagnostics. They exclude raw IP addresses, request headers, raw arguments and prompts. Audit retention covers seven UTC date buckets, with at most a current and previous approximately one-megabyte audit file per date; cleanup runs on requests. Expired usage counters are removed during service cleanup. Hosting-provider logs and backups have separate retention that has not been independently confirmed. Do not interpret application retention as a guarantee about provider records or backups.

The host processes connection information to operate HTTPS and restrict the service to permitted OpenAI networks. A connecting address may represent OpenAI infrastructure, not an individual angler. This restriction does not identify an angler or give the plugin access to a ChatGPT account. The plugin does not link requests to Fleet Radar website journeys. OpenAI and Hostinger process information under their own policies. Visiting a cited Almanac website page is a separate website visit governed by its existing privacy and cookie disclosures.

For plugin privacy questions or requests, use Contact Steelhead Almanac or info@steelheadalmanac.com. Do not include passwords, tokens, full private conversations or unnecessary personal information.

Directory and rig/loadout tools: next-version privacy

This section describes the next-version planning service. It adds a dated river directory and a Lake Erie spinning fixed-float rig/loadout planner to public river evidence and preparation guides. It does not require an Almanac account or access private member reports.

If you choose to describe equipment you own, we receive those descriptions as tool parameters from ChatGPT and use them to produce that response. The planning service does not save an angler or gear profile. Owned-equipment descriptions do not enter its source-cache keys, cached source results or application audit records. Avoid entering credentials, secrets or unnecessary personal information. The descriptions are treated as untrusted information, not instructions.

The service briefly caches public source results, including river evidence and guide excerpts, and keeps shared operational counters. River and storm source-result cache lifetimes are 60 seconds; guide-result lifetimes are ten minutes. Expiry limits reuse; physical cleanup happens during later requests rather than at a guaranteed deletion instant. Query-dependent source-cache keys use a keyed digest instead of raw search text.

Application audit records contain the request time, release identifier, tool name when applicable, status, network-admission result and elapsed time. They exclude raw tool arguments and owned-equipment descriptions. Audit files are size-bounded and rotated; request-driven cleanup removes files older than the current UTC day plus six preceding days. This does not promise that every operational counter is deleted on the same schedule.

ChatGPT may retain conversations and tool results under its own settings and policies. Our hosting provider may maintain separate access or security logs. These are separate from the planning application's source cache and audit. Do not interpret request-only processing by our planner as deletion of your ChatGPT conversation or a guarantee about provider retention.

Access is restricted to published OpenAI connector networks. This identifies an allowed network, not an individual angler, account or workspace, and is not mutual TLS or user authentication. A caller on an allowed network who knows the endpoint can reach these public-information tools. No private accounts, saved loadouts, member reports or transactions are provided.

For privacy questions, use our contact page. Send only the information needed to describe the issue; redact private conversation and gear details.

Information We Collect

We collect the following types of information when you visit the site:

• Usage data — IP address, browser type, device type, pages visited, time spent on site, referring URL, and similar analytics information collected via Google Analytics and our server logs.
• Cookies — Small text files stored on your device for session management, advertising personalization, and analytics. See "Cookies" below.
• Signed-in Radar visits — If Fleet Radar is enabled and your browser permits it, Almanac verifies your member name and account record against your current public-page visit for private site administration in BuellEA Fleet Radar and Fleet Deck. The association expires after 75 seconds without verification. Sign-out, privacy withdrawal and deletion remove the current link. We do not combine accounts or identify you across other websites.
• Account information — If you create an account, we collect your name, email address, username, and any profile information you choose to provide (home location, fishing preferences, experience level). Your email is never shared publicly.
• Fishing reports — Fishing reports are stored with your chosen audience: Public, Members only, or Only me. New reports default to Members only; existing reports retain their previous public visibility. You can change the audience on your profile or report card. Public Pulse summaries require your separate permission and editorial review; that permission does not make restricted report text, photos, identity, or exact locations public. Authorized site operators may access stored reports to operate the service.
• Voluntary information — If you contact us via email, we receive your email address and any information you choose to share.
• Affiliate purchases — If you click an affiliate link and make a purchase, the transaction is handled entirely by the retailer (e.g., Amazon). We do not collect payment or shipping information.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide and improve the site and its features
• Display relevant fishing conditions, gear recommendations, and content
• Process orders and respond to customer inquiries
• Analyze site traffic and usage patterns
• Credit affiliate referrals through partner programs such as Amazon Associates
• Comply with legal obligations

Cookies

We use cookies and similar tracking technologies for the following purposes:

• Essential cookies — Required for the site to function (session management, security, CSRF protection).
• Analytics cookies — Google Analytics tracks anonymized site usage to help us improve the site.
• Affiliate cookies — Third-party affiliate networks such as Amazon Associates use cookies to credit purchases made through our gear links.
• Preference cookies — Remember settings like map view preferences and recently viewed rivers.

You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but some features of the site may not function properly.

Fleet Radar Traffic Measurement

Fleet Radar, operated on our BuellEA platform, records public page paths without query strings, visit times, and whether a page is visible. It uses a random identifier saved in this browser for this site to show visits and earlier visits from the same browser. It does not establish who is using a browser, combine browser histories across our sites, or record form text, report text, email addresses or video titles through this collector. For pages without a referrer, we also record fixed navigation categories from the page request and browser (such as a reload or same-site navigation), initial visibility, and whether the browser reports automation. These are limited diagnostic clues, not proof of a person or bot; this feature does not collect IP addresses, user-agent strings, device fingerprints, or interaction text. Private account and report pages are excluded.

For permitted public-page observations, Fleet Radar processes the connection IP address in memory against local country and ASN databases and saves only an approximate network country code, registered network number (ASN), registered network organization and database provenance. It does not retain raw IP addresses, IP hashes or address ranges in Radar, and sends no visitor address to an external lookup service. It records no city, coordinates or precise location. The country describes the connection when the observation reaches Radar; VPNs, proxies and delayed delivery can make it different from the visitor's actual location. Neither country nor network organization identifies a person, referral source or bot. Matching network numbers do not establish the same IP address, device, customer or operator. The registered network organization may be an internet provider, hosting network or intermediary; no hosting or automation classification is inferred from its name. Country and network data: IP Geolocation by DB-IP, DB-IP Lite, CC BY 4.0.

This measurement starts without an Accept prompt. Use Turn off Fleet Radar at the bottom of a public page to stop native measurement in this browser. The choice is saved in site storage; clearing that storage can remove the choice. Global Privacy Control and Do Not Track signals also stop native measurement. If the preference cannot be read, collection stays off. Withdrawal requests removal of this browser's native journey records; if delivery fails, collection still stops locally. Routine cleanup targets a 90-day native journey window; operational logs, backups and records you submit separately have their own retention. This control does not disable Google Analytics or other services.

Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may collect information about your visit:

• Google Analytics — Site usage analytics
• Mapbox — Interactive maps on river conditions pages
• Google Maps Platform — Nearby places listings on river pages
• Amazon Associates Program — Affiliate link tracking
• Meta (Facebook) — Social media integration and automated page posting
• Cloudflare — Content delivery and security
• Hostinger — Web hosting
• USGS Water Services and National Weather Service — Public data sources for river conditions and forecasts

These services have their own privacy policies. We encourage you to review them.

Affiliate Disclosure

Steelhead Almanac is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, AvantLink, and other affiliate networks. We earn commissions on qualifying purchases made through links on this site at no additional cost to you. Affiliate links are marked with rel="nofollow sponsored" per FTC guidelines.

Advertising

Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our site or other websites. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visit to this site and/or other sites on the Internet. You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings or aboutads.info.

Data Retention

We retain analytics data for up to 26 months. Order information is retained as required by law and for legitimate business purposes. You may request deletion of your personal information by contacting us.

Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• The right to access information we hold about you
• The right to request correction or deletion
• The right to opt out of marketing communications
• The right to lodge a complaint with a data protection authority

To exercise these rights, contact us at info@steelheadalmanac.com.

Children's Privacy

This site is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected such information, please contact us and we will delete it.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision. Continued use of the site after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact Us

If you have questions about this privacy policy or our data practices, contact us at:

Steelhead Almanac
Email: info@steelheadalmanac.com