CJOttawa

This applies to compasses and other instruments as well. Best advice I was given related to this: take a bearing on a point on the horizon that's in the direction you want to go. Without looking at the compass or GPS, just walk in a straight line to your point on the horizon. Glance down occasionally to see if you're still on track.

I wouldn't have thought of this one until today. I needed to calculate "sun's true bearing" for a local cache and then project a shadow from the top of a air navigation beacon tower to the point where the cache was. I found it but had to do the calculations at home using dead-reconing altitude and azimuth tables. My annoyance: the 60CSx has the ability to find this information; it's simple math and you can already enter a date, time and position and have it tell you sunrise/sunset, position of sun in sky etc. I'd REALLY like that page to have the option of a sun's true bearing display. All the underlaying data should be the same but it just shows an illustration of the sky, nothing numeric. Grumble.

Sure! Maha/Powerex has little translucent plastic cases for AA and AAA batteries. They come in 4 and 8 cell varieties. I keep the 4-AA variety in my caching pack. I've yet to actually have to swap out batteries but I do drive with the GPSr plugged into a 12v socket most of the time so that saves a lot of battery power.

Uh huh, and how do you put the cache description (long OR short) into your GPSr? How do you put the hint in? The default description loading with MapSource is cache name and owner, but even that usually runs out of room somewhere in the middle of the owner's name. How do you get it to display a list of only traditional caches? You don't, at least not as a waypoint. Custom POI's give you 88 characters for the description and another 44 in the title I believe. Plenty for BASIC descriptions - at least better than a waypoint. Back to the problem with custom POI's though: can't view directly on the map unless zoomed WAY in. If it weren't for that, they'd actually be useful for caching - even better, you can store an unlimited amount of them up to your memory limit. Still relying on an old Palm m130 here for now.

SunnyWalker, I too have used some very cheap, off-brand cards. They seem to work fine. My suggestion would be to go with a MicroSD that comes with an adaptor. A lot of devices are starting to use MicroSD/Transflash (cell phones, the Garmin "x" series GPSr's) and this will give you maximum compatibility no matter what electronic device you end up owning.

Dashmount: I've bought a spare "belt clip" and bolted it to my dash. (theoretically, you could attach with some kind of sticky tape) It's easier to attach the power cable before clipping in but it can be done after. Gotta get a photo of my install one of these days... Set your routing preference to "always ask". When you get near your cache while navigating, hit "recalculate" and select "off-road" when it prompts you for a method. It only adds one more keystroke to a recalc and it's super convenient. I've found some annoyances with maps too. One that really stumped me the other day: it wouldn't find a POI (a restaurant I'd been told about) until I specifically guided it to "use THIS map". I would think it would check all the installed maps. Odd. I'm with you though - all minor annoyances. The CSx is fantastic despite all that.

If you're in a different location and/or have poor reception (in a car, building, heavy tree cover) it takes longer to get a fix. Normally though, if mine's been off for 8 hours, and I've moved about 5 miles away, a lock, outdoors, only takes about 30 seconds.

MENU MENU SETUP HEADING You might switch the threshold speed and time to something that disables the auto selection of the magnetic compass when you slow down. I had "ishoos" as you're having before doing this.

Customer Service Reps have been known to make mistakes. I'm not convinced it isn't compatible. Look at this page: http://www.garmin.com/cartography/mapSource/citynavnt.jsp On the right, pull down the "DVD Product Compatiblity" box - the entire "x" series is in there. Perhaps what the CSR meant was "designed for auto-routing models" not just dedicated automotive use models.

Respectfully, the icons are *PERFECT.* They let you quickly identify what you're looking at without thinking or having to read the text. That's a challenge on a small screen and Garmin has addressed it perfectly. If you've seen the older style icons from a few years ago, they were much more detailed but far more difficult to identify at a glance. PLEASE don't complain to Garmin about the icons - the last thing we need is those redesigned. Regarding the memory card icon, what did you have in mind for that? I'd love to have the ability to read text files on the memory card - I'd dump all my cache description pages there so I didn't need a PDA. That would be a HUGE leap for the 60CSx to me. I've often wished for an alarm on the unit too.

Track-up below 800meters (about 2500feet). For local navigation, north up just gets confusing - I want to know what's left and what's right of me - and I'm usually zoomed to this level when auto-routing. For long-range nav, north-up gives that "global view." BTW: I was taught to use a map "track up" when flying a plane. I have no idea what the norm is for nautical or terrestrial navigation.

I have two Sandisk 1GB micros. Echoing other comments, no issues with Sandisk's reliability. I love the bonus of the included adapter and the neat little transparent case. I have a map backup on the 2nd card but keep it in my Palm m130 (with the included adapter) and use it to backup the Palm too. If I'm travelling and really need extra map space, I'll load different products on each card. My PC is an HP laptop with a card reader so it's super convenient to pop either SD card onto the laptop to load maps but if I'm travelling I may not have the laptop so having two cards breaks some dependance on it.

An issue with a laptop or in-car unit is possible theft. I've had my car broken in to in what should be "good" neighborhoods. This is a 1992 Toyota Tercel with absolutely nothing of value left inside. Convenience is another: compare a GPS you actually carry with you versus one cringe at the thought of packing with you for a hike. Even if you don't get the "turn right" voice prompts, the turn warning beeps are quite good from any of the Garmin auto-routing models like the 60CSx or eTrex. My 60 is mounted on the dash with a bolted on belt clip. (gotta take a photo of that...)

When navigating to a cache, select "Off Road" instead of "On Road." There's an option in a setup menu to "Always Ask" - that's the setting to tweak so you're always given the option.

Thanks for your responses guys. However, I realize that the newest x series is the best, but it is way out of my budget, which was $200. The cs is a stretch, but if it's worth it I'll keep it. So the question is, of the cs and the Venture Cx, which is superior? The Venture Cx does have an expandable memory slot. However, for my National Parks topo software, I would only need to have one National Park loaded at a time. Based on what I've read other users map loadings, the 56k of the cs would be more than enough. If this is correct, I would think I would prefer the better performance of the cs. But if this is incorect, then I'll return the cs and keep the Venture Cx. What do you guys think? ChrisDM, I've used the eTrex Legend Cx (it's basically a Venture with a different coloured case I believe) and a 60CX side by side. The little eTrex does very well when not challenged by really dense tree cover. Even in a young forest where much sunlight was blocked out by leaves, the eTrex did well, though slightly less accurate than the 60Cx. Personally, I'd go with the eTrex Venture over the older CS. I don't think the 60CS had the SIRF3 chip and that's a big part of what makes the 60Cx so accurate. If I had to give that up, I'd still want the ability to expand the memory. I did a little experiment using Mapsource. I travel through the Quebec-Windsor corridor for business and leisure. Topo Canada of that area takes about 70MB. Metroguide Canada of that same area takes another 72MB. You can see where things start adding up. You might be able to get by with 56MB - human nature is to adapt to the resources we have. I'd be mighty annoyed if I had to swap maps out constantly though. BTW: the eTrex Venture/Legend/Vista Cx series is pretty much identical to the 60Cx in terms of user interface, street mapping, autorouting etc. It's slightly smaller display seems to be made up for by being significantly brighter.

For the past few days, I've been able to get a lock onto a WAAS satellite numbered "50." Never saw that before. I'd thought the WAAS SV's were numbered 25 through 35 or something in that range. Anyone in North East USA or Eastern Canada noticing the new satellite?

White Sage, I've tried and tried. (60CSx but same deal as the eTrex Cx's) You get a very small text field for description if the caches are loaded as waypoints. Often, I found myself wishing for the whole description page and have DNF'd as a result. Another option is to export as "Custom POI's" using Garmin's POI Loader but you're still limited to something like 88 characters and you can't just "view" a custom POI while looking at the map, you have to search for them. (or zoom to 80 meters) Echoing what others have said, at least until Garmin makes Custom POI's more useful, a cheap Palm PDA is your best bet. Any unit with 8+megs of memory and/or a card slot will be great. (2MB Palm units are questionable as 1000-caches takes up 2-4megs)

Two seperate issues here. Cachemate isn't really free - you can only download 10 caches into it without registering. It's only $8USD so it's almost free - and would be a bargain at twice the price, IMO. Just extract the zip file and install "cachemate.prc" and "mathlib.prc" to your Palm. (I'll assume you've installed files to you PDA before) Do a search on "Pocket Query" on this forum to get those running. Suggest you also download "GSAK". (Geocaching Swiss Army Knife) It's the go-between that processes data for various formats. It can transfer to a GPSr, output to a .PDB file your Palm (with Cachemate) can read etc.

Is that actually a "60cs" or a "cx"? I would strongly suggest going with a "x" model, whichever style you prefer (eTrex or 60 series). The ability to accept a microSD memory card gives you unlimited memory. I've used the 60cx and the eTrex Venture Cx. The screen on the eTrex is a bit smaller but, oddly, much brighter. You can count on either displaying the same map almost identically. If you go with a 60Cx or CSx, (or 76Cx/CSx) you get a SIRF 3 chip which is extremely sensitive - moreso than the eTrex. (you'll get locks indoors & under heavy tree cover with the former)

-- Separate software must also then be purchased for topo data? -- When loading the maps are these saved to one's GPS unit? -- What could one expect to see on the screen of one's GPS? That is, does a small segment of the map data appear in the display? Basically yes, you buy different products for street mapping or topographical. Start with the street mapping software - a lot of people who think they need topo are fine with just the street mapping stuff. The topo maps are extremely detailed. They make sense for serious hiking in the Adirondaks or Rockies but for sub/urban use it's of dubious value. Conversely, the street-navigating maps have little to no topo data but include detailed autorouting information (turn left, turn right...arriving at destination) the topos don't include. Install the full map data to your computer. There's an included application - "Mapsource" - that downloads whatever sections you select to your GPS. It will display the total memory usage of whatever you select so you can adjust to fit your GPSr's memory. You should take a look at Garmin's website. They have sample screen shots of all of their map products. You see whatever area you're zoomed in to - zoom out, see more but with less detail. Zoom in, more detail, less area. http://www.garmin.com/cartography/mapSourc...nav.jsp#screens

Building on what CenTexDodger mentions, you should look for the Garmin products with the largest "tiles" or "chunks" possible. The issue: with a 1GB card (I have one too) is that you CAN run into a "number of maps" limit before an available memory limit. Usually only a factor if you start putting Topo maps on because they're divided into VERY small geographical regions but you may as well stack the deck in your favor. I don't know which of Garmin's street mapping products has the largest "chunks" but I gather City Navigator v8 NT may be the one. (the version that ships with the Street Pilot i3 indeed has HUGE chunks) As Timpat said, the Garmin Topo maps (24k or country specific) are the ones you'd want for rural hiking or riding. BTW: the reason I think this "chunk" problem exists is because memory has been expanding in GPS units and now with the "x" series we have virtually unlimited memory with microSD cards. I know Topo Canada takes about 3GB but I can't get NEAR that because selecting even a fraction of them will get me to the map number limit.

I've been using older City Select and City Navigator maps with my 60CSx. I BRIEFLY tried a StreetPilot i3 which shipped with City Select NT. The map "chunks" on that product were HUGE compared to other Mapsource products I've tried. Does City Nav v8 NT also have large map chunks? Here's the issue: I have a large SD card (1GB) BUT I run into the chunk limit before the memory limit. Large map chunks would be ideal - more area covered before running into the chunk limit.

Klossner... When I open Cachemate and randomly select caches, I see between 5 and 10 past logs. Perhaps there's a setting that needs tweaking for this...?

Is this a talent?? It's a super-power.

Are you using GSAK by any chance? (I highly recommend it...)