I'm getting better but still techno challenged. I supposedly have loaded WCP into my Garmin 60csx. In fact it says I have loaded a portion of topo Canada but naturally I want to be sure I have in fact loaded the correct area.

I highlight the map and it has a checkmark but when I press enter I'm still looking at Florida. Surely I must be able to view the maps I have downloaded correct? Any suggestions?

I guess I have done everything right as it will take me to the waypoints I have installed using Garmins basecamp. Still it would be nice to be able to have verification.

I am assuming the numbers following the map recognition points to the coverage area........or at least I'm thinking it should.

Lots to learn.......lots of fun.

mastertangler wrote on Jun 4^th, 2011 at 12:14am:

I highlight the map and it has a checkmark but when I press enter I'm still looking at Florida. Surely I must be able to view the maps I have downloaded correct? Any suggestions?

Your GPS unit will always want to give you your current location ... obviously Florida.

If you want to pull up your Canadian maps, go to your MapSource software, pull up your Canadian map and add a waypoint.  Then upload that waypoint to your GPS.  Then, on your GPS, find that waypoint and select the "Map it" or "Show on Map" option.  You'll then be looking at the Canadian map you have loaded.

dd

Quote:

Surely I must be able to view the maps I have downloaded correct? Any suggestions?

Or zoom out to a zoom level of something like 100 miles.  Then use the pointers to move your cursor north and west to the area you want to see.  Once the pointer is in the general area, zoom back in.

Thanks guys
I'll keep monkeying around until I get familiar with it. I only just turned the thing on last night for the first time. I was very impressed over the last handheld unit that I had at least a decade before.

Hopefully I will do some geocaching (as per DD's suggestion) before the trip to get some real time use. Lots of gadgets. Depth finder, spot, and GPS. Mixed emotions I guess in spite of being a "gear guy". Ultimately I think I will grow to be glad I have them........a tool is a tool regardless if it runs on batteries or just points north (did I just inadvertently point out their inherent weakness ;) ).

The learning curve can be a bit steep.  It' a nice machine.

wally wrote on Jun 4^th, 2011 at 12:24pm:

The learning curve can be a bit steep.  It' a nice machine.

I'm a neophyte, a true beginner with it. Any "AH-HA" moments you had you care to share?......... Tricks or tips........? Generalized bits of wisdom?........ Nuggets of truth?..........

OK FINE :exclamation........who wants a free flight to Florida to show me how to drive this thing ;D.

WOW! I had assumed since it would "go to" a waypoint that the maps had been installed properly. But after going through DD's suggestion which enabled me to "find" the map of the park and then using Azaleas advice to "zoom" in it was apparent I had only 1/2 the park loaded.

Interesting in as much as I had thought I had done it correctly the first time. I will add more waypoints to each corner of the park to be sure all is as it should be.

DD your help has proven very valuable to me. One day I hope to carry some bags across a portage for you. Azalea has me thinking I should put the gloves back on when we engage in the full contact sport of politics ;).

Thanks guys :).

Mixed emotions prevail. Waypoints are installed using Garmin basecamp..........just click, make an icon, zoom in, zoom out...........move along your projected path. Rinse and repeat. When your done just a few clicks and all is transferred to the GPS.

My first time in the Q I did the Hunters Island route. Well over 100 miles traveling the historical trappers route. I had no GPS. I broke the compass out once on crooked lake. I had a real feeling of satisfaction when I finished.

I can't help but wonder if I will have that same feeling of satisfaction while using the GPS. It will certainly be more relaxing granted. But will that be a good thing? I sort of liked having that little bit of heightened awareness. That feeling that you had better pay attention.

I suppose the remoteness of WCP will compensate and push me into having my game face on, GPS or no GPS. I will give it a whirl........Being a gear guy I will probably end up liking it..............it just seems so much like cheating though.

 

mastertangler wrote on Jun 5^th, 2011 at 2:03am:

I can't help but wonder if I will have that same feeling of satisfaction while using the GPS. It will certainly be more relaxing granted. But will that be a good thing? I sort of liked having that little bit of heightened awareness. That feeling that you had better pay attention. I suppose the remoteness of WCP will compensate and push me into having my game face on, GPS or no GPS. I will give it a whirl........Being a gear guy I will probably end up liking it..............it just seems so much like cheating though.

Truth be known, I'd say that my GPS is not likely on for more than 2 hours over a 2-week trip.  That includes time for me to log various things I see in route to remember where I saw them.  For navigation purposes, the usage is probably less than 30 minutes, if that.  But I know that its there and it is one source of backup map should some ill befall my printed copy.

dd

Quote:

My first time in the Q I did the Hunters Island route. Well over 100 miles traveling the historical trappers route. I had no GPS. I broke the compass out once on crooked lake. I had a real feeling of satisfaction when I finished. I can't help but wonder if I will have that same feeling of satisfaction while using the GPS.

My first trip were done with the only map being the park map which was the entire park on one map, showing portages but no campsites.  During one trip we crossed paths with someone who had a McKenzie map and were amazed.  Like you, even the compass was seldom used but we wee constantly looking at our maps, keeping track of where we were.  On later trips using better maps, it was just more fun having better info.  yes it perhaps was easier to navigate to campsite, but for me, just successfully getting from point A to point B was not something from which I derived "satisfaction" (I can understand how it would be a plus for others, just not my thing).

My GPS is mounted on the canoe and always on.  Not so much to get me where I want to go but because like with the earlier paper maps, I enjoy "placing" myself.  But then again, because of computers and digital mapping, before I even get to the trip, I have already been on the adventure in cyber world.  The planning is all part of the enjoyment of an outing.  Using the GPS during the trip is just an extension of that effort.  To me it is no different than instead of carrying just one kind of map, immersing yourself with copies of different kinds of maps.

So there are a number of ways to use a GPS.   Just a different perspective, your mileage may vary.

(Then there was the one rough day in the wind, rain, fog, and waves on basswood lake
that the GPS became a safety item.  Being able to instantly know exactly where we were without ever having to stop paddling to pull out a compass or map, that made that day a safer one.)

DentonDoc wrote on Jun 5^th, 2011 at 2:30am:
Truth be known, I'd say that my GPS is not likely on for more than 2 hours over a 2-week trip.  That includes time for me to log various things I see in route to remember where I saw them.  For navigation purposes, the usage is probably less than 30 minutes, if that.  But I know that its there and it is one source of backup map should some ill befall my printed copy.

dd[/quote]

My thinking is probably in line with yours DD. I will probably have it on during runs on the big water with lots of islands. I suspect I will come to appreciate it very quickly then.

You make mention of logging points of interest. That is certainly a huge advantage from a fishing perspective. Nothing like marking a reef or two eh? That is something to look forward to. I'm thinking a pair of batteries per week. Does that sound about right?

And yes another spare set of maps certainly is a good thing. I need to practice plotting the numbers and entering them manually using the UTM grid. I have some helpful tools to do just that. I will bring them along in case I decide to alter my route for some reason I can't foresee. Might come in handy.

mastertangler wrote on Jun 5^th, 2011 at 4:20am:

You make mention of logging points of interest. That is certainly a huge advantage from a fishing perspective. Nothing like marking a reef or two eh? That is something to look forward to. I'm thinking a pair of batteries per week. Does that sound about right?

I buy lithium batts to power my GPS.  They are more expensive, but they are lighter weight and have a longer service life.  At my usage level, one set of AA's is more than sufficient for a 2-week trip.  The only reason I take any backup is in the event I do something stupid, like leave it on.

As far as marking waypoints, let me recommend that you complete the process and then use the search function to see if you can find the entry you just made.  I have a bad habit of marking a spot, giving it a name and then managing to exit without saving it.  I don't necessarily discover my error until after I've moved on.  So, if you can find it, then it has been saved.

dd

Interesting. I have lithium batts for my depth finder but the 60csx specifically mentions not using them. I will probably stay with the duracells.

Beautiful advice on checking to see if you can "find" the waypoint you just marked while you are sitting on it. My biggest problem is likely to be redundancy in labeling. big fish hole, big fish hole A, big fish hole B............. ;D

I have my GPS on and saving a track almost all the time I am traveling. When I get home I save the tracks to my computer.  Helps when I am reliving the trip later. I also have a good record of where the portages are.  A set of lithium batteries will last me 4 to 6 days in a garmin etrix in battery save mode.

Quote:

My biggest problem is likely to be redundancy in labeling. big fish hole, big fish hole A, big fish hole B

One thing to watch out for, depending on how your software works.  In Garmin's Mapsource software, you can give waypoints with maybe 14 characters in the name.
But the maximum length of a waypoint name in my old Garm 60c is much shorter than the length in the software.  So if I create BigFishHole1 and BigFishHole2 in the software, then download to the GPS,  Both the waypoint names get truncated to BigFishHol and I lose one of the waypoints.  Depending on the specs of your software and GPS, this is something to be careful of.

Another excellent tip Azalea. I could see something like that happening easily enough.

While I'm familiar enough with my route (I bet I have stared at it 10,000 times) I failed to make use of the "message" portion of the garmin base camp program to provide mental "cues" on the GPS as to what I was thinking when I established the way points. Probably 1/2 of my waypoints are cuts not portages. Unlikely it will be required but would of been more comprehensive usage of the program.

In preparation for your trip I would become familiar with the difference in navigating using "North up" and "Track up." I much prefer moving with the map set on "Track up" and using "North up" when working with the GPS in camp.

To keep this simple, using "Track up" will keep my map view matching my surroundings. A bay on my right will be on the right of the map even if I am heading south.

Sometimes the electronic compass will keep the map jumping around. If you hold down the page button you can turn it off and on as needed.

Now to get a little more complicated, you can set at what speed and what duration the compass takes over navigating. I probably have mine set to take over if my speed falls under one k per hour for ten seconds.

Having said all this, my GPS is rarely turned on during most water travel. It is very handy though on island studded lakes where you have to navigate to a hidden bay. It allows me to enjoy the scenery and still go directly to the portage.

wrote on Jun 9^th, 2011 at 2:03pm:

In preparation for your trip I would become familiar with the difference in navigating using "North up" and "Track up." I much prefer moving with the map set on "Track up" and using "North up" when working with the GPS in camp.

Different strokes, I guess.

I tried "Track up" for a few trips and didn't particularly care for it.  Since  I mostly use maps and will generally orient the map with North up, I found it to be sometimes difficult to make the mental translation between what the printed map said and what the GPS representation was.  So, I now generally just leave the GPS with a "North up" representation.  (However, I do find that map direction pointer helpful, rather than use something like to "go to" feature.)

I'd recommend giving each selection a try in relatively known or involved water before you commit to one or the other for the extent of a trip.

dd

I leave my GPS in North up and lay it on my lap with the little direction arrow facing the front of the canoe.  As long as I am moving (my unit does not have a compass in it) the top of the GPS is North.

wrote on Jun 9^th, 2011 at 2:03pm:

In preparation for your trip I would become familiar with the difference in navigating using "North up" and "Track up." I much prefer moving with the map set on "Track up" and using "North up" when working with the GPS in camp. To keep this simple, using "Track up" will keep my map view matching my surroundings. A bay on my right will be on the right of the map even if I am heading south. Sometimes the electronic compass will keep the map jumping around. If you hold down the page button you can turn it off and on as needed.

Do you still have to move a few feet to register?

Quote:

Sometimes the electronic compass will keep the map jumping around. If you hold down the page button you can turn it off and on as needed.

Do you still have to move a few feet to register? [/quote]

If the compass has been turned off the GPS will assume you are pointing the same direction as when you stopped movement. If the wind spins the canoe you will need to turn the compass back on or move a short distance for the GPS to reestablish direction of travel.

In regard to the length of names for waypoints, routes and tracks be aware that Garmin software only reads the first 9 digits of a name when it downloads from computer to GPS unit. It will only download the first of a list of names that contain the same first nine characters. Tech support told me this a few years ago. I wish it was in the manual, I would have more hair left! >:(