Author Topic: GPS tracks and how to import them  (Read 334 times)

Alabama Adventurer

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GPS tracks and how to import them
« on: October 12, 2014, 10:32:07 pm »
I don't know the answer to this one, I hope someone else does.

I have a GPS with topo 24 and Birdseye.  I can see some trails, but not a lot.

I read on another site that Garmin struggles with the concept so of trails, what defines a trail and so on.

I could certainly make trails on my GPS by going a riding the trail, but there must be a better way; especially if I have never been there.

The forest service has static maps which are a good reference, but they are not indexed for position for GPS use.

Perhaps there is some kind of collective groups that does this type of thing.

Any ideas?  :-\

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Rusty Shovel

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Re: GPS tracks and how to import them
« Reply #1 on: October 14, 2014, 08:20:51 pm »
I think Garmin is hesitant to declare a track a "trail" unless it is legally designated as such.  Birdseye is great for this in the desert, since you can just set up waypoints along the trails you can see from above.

In Maine the forest up north is thick.  There are tons of trails, but are hard to find from above.  The best I could do was set waypoints at any exposed trail and then ride around trying to link them.  I enjoyed the added element of exploration, though occasionally it proved frustrating.

Ultimately, I found that one of the best means of finding the local trails was striking up conversation with folks at gas stations.

D==[#)
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Alabama Adventurer

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Re: GPS tracks and how to import them
« Reply #2 on: October 14, 2014, 10:27:13 pm »
Rusty,

I don't have any real expectations from Garmin; what I have is pretty good; I do like the Birdseye.  Like you, I don't care for the topo lines, but one good thing about the topo map is that it does identify some interesting points such as mines.  I have also found websites that provide even more information about mines from the past.

I am sure plenty of people have made their own maps by making tracks on their GPS and then sharing the file with others.  I have seen it done by some groups for off-road use for a geographic area.

So far I haven't seen any groups that do that sort of thing for the areas that I'm interested it; maybe we should start one.

Colorado

RiverRunner

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Re: GPS tracks and how to import them
« Reply #3 on: August 31, 2015, 09:55:49 pm »
I found this Basecamp Primer on another bike club's website:

http://www.newenglandriders.org/Learn_BaseCamp.htm

mcnut

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Re: GPS tracks and how to import them
« Reply #4 on: September 01, 2015, 07:43:50 pm »
If you ride National Forest Lands they are required to publish a Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) which are often printed on newsprint with few geographic reference points. More and more these are being converted into Garmin compatible overlays (as well as smart phone) files. The BLM is doing the same but behind others.

Check with your local agency and ask, if not encourage them to move into the current century.

Bruce M