Garmin Topo Maps W/ Google Earth?

[user2600844]

Has anyone had any luck making topo maps with google earth, and successful in having lakes, streams, roads, dirt roads, and everything made into a topo for garmin?

Please let me know, thanks, or what is the simplest way to get all details on a topo transferred to garmin map for mapsource. What programs do you use?

[MtnHermit]

How big of an area, what country?

[+Red90]

http://code.google.com/p/gpsturbo/ will use Google maps, satellite views and Garmin maps.

[+myotis]

There are various tutorials on how to make custom topo and trail maps for garmin. You get your topo and water data from USGS servers not GoogleEarth. However, sometimes the USGS data can be off and sometimes I will use googleearth to trace a lake or stream and then add it to a map. But do not use GE as your primary source of topo and water data. Many times I will also trace a trail in GE then import it into a map. So you use GE as a supplemential source of data, not a primary. You just save what you trace as a kml file, then use GPSbable to convert it to mapsource which you can import into your map. For a lake I will trace it as a line not a polygon. When you import it into your map, you import it as a polygon.

[user2600844]

Thanks for all the replys, you can get your water and data from USGS servers, will that include all the other features, such as dirt roads, road names, POI's, or is there another place you can download this other info?? Also if you are doing other countries, such as Panama, how can you get the info such as water and data if USGS only does United States??? Thanks

[+myotis]

Not sure about other countries, but there are lots of different sources for data. There are also lots of free maps already made

 

http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/

 

http://mapcenter.cgpsmapper.com/

 

Check these places first to see if someone has already made a map for what you want/