eTrex Legend Question

[bmasters]

Hello all. New to the forum and GPS as well. I can tell you that the couple of caches that I have found have been a lot of fun. I just got a Garmin eTrex Legend and have a couple of very newbie questions so please bare with me.

 

1. I drove about 3 hours on the highway and noticed that my track was way off the interstate that was loaded in the system. I only have the base map right now with no downloaded detailed maps. Is there a way to calibrate that or do I have to download something?

 

2. I will be hitting some trails in Florida and was wondering if there are maps that will have any details listed? Do maps get that granular?

 

This is primarily for geocaching but driving would be nice to have as well. Right now, I'm looking at a blank screen. Thanks for your help.

[+JSWilson64]

Hello all. New to the forum and GPS as well. I can tell you that the couple of caches that I have found have been a lot of fun. I just got a Garmin eTrex Legend and have a couple of very newbie questions so please bare with me.

 

1. I drove about 3 hours on the highway and noticed that my track was way off the interstate that was loaded in the system. I only have the base map right now with no downloaded detailed maps. Is there a way to calibrate that or do I have to download something?

 

2. I will be hitting some trails in Florida and was wondering if there are maps that will have any details listed? Do maps get that granular?

 

This is primarily for geocaching but driving would be nice to have as well. Right now, I'm looking at a blank screen. Thanks for your help.

1. I've got a Legend, too. It's a great start into this addiction hobby. The built-in map isn't that great, but I think you can "Lock On Roads" with that map. With the Map screen visible, pull up the menu, select Set Up Map, and select Lock On Roads. See if that helps.

 

2. One of Garmin's Topo products will give better detail in the boonies. I'm not sure how compatible the newer versions are with the Legend's limited memory, though. When we went on vacation a couple of years ago, I took a laptop with me. Used "Roads & Recreation" (old but small files) for highway nav, and then when we got to our destination, I swapped out those maps for Topo maps. Then the reverse for the trip home.

[GreatCanadian]

Hello all. New to the forum and GPS as well. I can tell you that the couple of caches that I have found have been a lot of fun. I just got a Garmin eTrex Legend and have a couple of very newbie questions so please bare with me.

 

1. I drove about 3 hours on the highway and noticed that my track was way off the interstate that was loaded in the system. I only have the base map right now with no downloaded detailed maps. Is there a way to calibrate that or do I have to download something?

 

2. I will be hitting some trails in Florida and was wondering if there are maps that will have any details listed? Do maps get that granular?

 

This is primarily for geocaching but driving would be nice to have as well. Right now, I'm looking at a blank screen. Thanks for your help.

 

Hello there. The legend is a fine gps. I had one and it served me well for a number of years. Now my brother owns it. It's a little beyond a basic gps as it has WAAS and mapping capabilities. The preloaded basemap is very very basic, with only major roads and highways. But all the gamins and magellan basemaps are limited to detail like that. Not so good for an automotive gps. It won't autoroute. However if you have a waypoint marked, the gps will continue to point you in the right direction and get you there. Anything beyond what you have is only bells and whistles. Nice to have, but not necessary. Get yourself Topo USA and you'll have everything you need. Many roads and sideroads are included in topo. If you want to know what your area looks like on garmin topo maps, pm me with your email address and gps coordinates and i'll send you a pic.

[bmasters]

Thanks all for the information. Looks like Topo USA is over $100 on Garmin's site. There are others like Delorme that seem to be available. Are those compatible or is MapSource the way to go? Also, are there any other local stores that I can run out and get find it at?

[+JSWilson64]

Thanks all for the information. Looks like Topo USA is over $100 on Garmin's site. There are others like Delorme that seem to be available. Are those compatible or is MapSource the way to go? Also, are there any other local stores that I can run out and get find it at?

 

Only Garmin products work on Garmin receivers, without a LOT of work. DeLorme, Magellan, etc. won't work on a Garmin, and vice-versa. You can roll your own maps, if you've got the patience.

 

You might find TopoUSA at local computer, discount, or other stores that carry Garmin products.

[+apersson850]

You can't use "lock on road" with the basemap.

Road on the basemap are often several hundred meters off. The resolution isn't great on that map. If you have zoomed in so much that you can see the difference, then you have overzoomed.

[bmasters]

One more quick question as I just noticed the Explorist 400 has expandable memory. Is the 8MB in the Legend enough for all of the Topo US? I like the idea of the memory expansion in the Magellan but if 8MB is enough, I like what I am reading about the Garmin.

[+StarDoc]

One more quick question as I just noticed the Explorist 400 has expandable memory. Is the 8MB in the Legend enough for all of the Topo US? I like the idea of the memory expansion in the Magellan but if 8MB is enough, I like what I am reading about the Garmin.

 

The 8MB is enough for a few counties worth of data, but that's about it. The topo maps are pretty data-dense, so they eat up memory quickly. The Metroguide city maps are smaller memory-wise, and cover wider areas, but I still couldn't get the entire 250 miles of interstate from Fargo to Minneapolis on. That was my only major complaint about the Legend. The other drawback is that you can't have both types of maps onboard at the same time.

 

I really liked my Legend, but I just recently got a great deal on a Legend Cx, with the expandable memory. The stock 64MB card is enough to hold all of ND in Topo and Metroguide, and you can switch between them at will. I'm keeping the older one as a backup GPSr. I can't say anything about the Magellan, as I've never used one.