How do I display trails on a map

[truebleve]

I've tried searching various places for this answer and it may not be possible (at least easily by me) but I thought I'd finally ask. I have a Vista HCx and have been very happy with it, especially after I found all the free topos at gpsfiledepot.

 

I understand how to display a track of a trail I have already been on and saved or uploaded back to my GPS from Mapsource. What I do not understand how to do is to create those tracks as trails on my maps in Mapsource and then upload that map with the trails displayed. Like when I go to a state park that has separate hiking / biking and equestrian trails and I want to know how close I am to each one and where they go and where I'm at relative to the trail. I'm thinking of the My Trails map that I can download from gpsfiledepot but I can't figure out how to then overlay that on a topo map of the same area (nor more importantly can I figure out how it was created).

 

I hope I was able to explain my question clearly enough and I hope someone can assist. Thanks.

[snowfleurys]

Tracks and info (trails or otherwise) in a mapset are entirely different. You can not add tracks/trail info to a mapset. You can convert the track(s) info to a feature and make an overlay/transparent mapset. MapSource, etc. can then combine mapset this with any other mapset(s) and send one file (gmapsupp.img) to your Vista.

[+cliptwings]

Well if the intention of the writer is to add selected trails to their map display, they can do it with a GPX file. I use everytrail.com to download GPX trails I am interested in. The GPX file loads just like a pocket query and displays on my Garmin as a line showing the trail of your choosing. I must be missing something, because it is REALLY easy. If you can't find the trail of your choice, google something like "Ventana Canyon trail GPX." I guess it also depends on how sophisticated a receiver you have.

[truebleve]

Tracks and info (trails or otherwise) in a mapset are entirely different. You can not add tracks/trail info to a mapset. You can convert the track(s) info to a feature and make an overlay/transparent mapset. MapSource, etc. can then combine mapset this with any other mapset(s) and send one file (gmapsupp.img) to your Vista.

 

Okay, so how do I convert my track into a feature? And then make a mapset? I'm only using Mapsource.

[truebleve]

Well if the intention of the writer is to add selected trails to their map display, they can do it with a GPX file. I use everytrail.com to download GPX trails I am interested in. The GPX file loads just like a pocket query and displays on my Garmin as a line showing the trail of your choosing. I must be missing something, because it is REALLY easy. If you can't find the trail of your choice, google something like "Ventana Canyon trail GPX." I guess it also depends on how sophisticated a receiver you have.

 

So treat me like a moron and explain how I create a GPX file out of my tracks. And when I try to download a GPX from everytrail.com it will not open it and if I try to open it with Mapsource out of a saved file it says it cannot import it.

[+Red90]

Making maps is somewhat involved. There is one hopefully easy utility, http://www.gpx2img.com/ I have not used it as I know the manual ways...

 

Everytrail GPX files are built incorrectly..... causing the problem.

http://www.everytrail.com/forum/viewtopic....t=60&p=2029

[+facade66]

Don't know if this is what you want, but I use Google Earth.

 

 

I use the "create path" icon (looks like a dot to dot drawing) to draw over the trail that I want to follow.

ThenI save the trail as a kmz file, and upload to the Vista as a track with GPS Utility (www.gpsu.co.uk)

Then I can turn the track on or off, and change the colour using left button> left button > tracks on the HCX

 

Walkthrough......

 

Fire up Google Earth

Zoom around until you can see the trail.

Create a path (dot to dot icon)

A box appears. Name your trail with a short name.

Click on style/colour and change width to 3.0 and colour to bright pink

Do NOT click on ok.

 

Draw the path by clicking and moving the mouse. Scroll the screen with the keyboard arrows.

when done, click ok in the big box.

Find your trail in the left hand "places" frame

Right click and choose "save place as..." then save as a kmz.

 

(If you are a premium member, you can send the kmz file to the "Find caches along a route" pocket query, useful if you just worked out a road route)

 

Use GPS Utility to load the KMZ and send to the Vista.

 

Or you could have saved as a KML file and used GPSBabel to change to GPX, then easy GPS to send to the Vista.

[+facade66]

Also, I use EasyGPS to extract the track of where I've been, and my found geocaches (it downloads everything, but you can delete what you don't want)

then I use gpx2ge (I bought this, but gpsbabel works as well) to make a kmz file, then I send it to the others in my team, and we can all see exactly where we went on Google Earth, together with the caches we visited.

 

If you keep the tracks as gpx files, you can load them back into the HCX with EasyGPS should you wish to revisit an area.

 

 

I love my Vista HCX So much more useable than the Oregon I bought as an "upgrade"

[truebleve]

Don't know if this is what you want, but I use Google Earth.

 

 

I use the "create path" icon (looks like a dot to dot drawing) to draw over the trail that I want to follow.

ThenI save the trail as a kmz file, and upload to the Vista as a track with GPS Utility (www.gpsu.co.uk)

Then I can turn the track on or off, and change the colour using left button> left button > tracks on the HCX

 

Walkthrough......

 

Fire up Google Earth

Zoom around until you can see the trail.

Create a path (dot to dot icon)

A box appears. Name your trail with a short name.

Click on style/colour and change width to 3.0 and colour to bright pink

Do NOT click on ok.

 

Draw the path by clicking and moving the mouse. Scroll the screen with the keyboard arrows.

when done, click ok in the big box.

Find your trail in the left hand "places" frame

Right click and choose "save place as..." then save as a kmz.

 

(If you are a premium member, you can send the kmz file to the "Find caches along a route" pocket query, useful if you just worked out a road route)

 

Use GPS Utility to load the KMZ and send to the Vista.

 

Or you could have saved as a KML file and used GPSBabel to change to GPX, then easy GPS to send to the Vista.

 

Thank you for this detailed reply. Hopefully I'll get a chance to try it out tomorrow morning to see if this what I was hoping to accomplish.

[truebleve]

I was able to follow the described method to create a track and use GPS Utility to upload it so thank you, that was something I was unable to do before. I can still only display one track on the map at a time though. I was hoping to overlay a trail network onto the topo map so I can see where I am in relation to other trails. Can that be done (by me )? Like when you go to the state park and you can get a map showing the hiking trails in one color/style, the biking trails in another color/style, the equestrian trails in a third form.

 

I found the way on Garmin's website to create a custom map from say an existing pdf map but it apparently doesn't work with the Vista. Anything like that maybe is what I'm thinking.

[+facade66]

I can still only display one track on the map at a time though. I was hoping to overlay a trail network onto the topo map so I can see where I am in relation to other trails. Can that be done (by me )? Like when you go to the state park and you can get a map showing the hiking trails in one color/style, the biking trails in another color/style, the equestrian trails in a third form.

 

 

If you save each trail in google earth as a separate path (with a totally different name, the vista doesn't like names like "my favourite path 1" "my favourite path 2" because it can't have more than 6 characters (I think) in a name) and load to the Vista as separate tracks, they will all show if they are turned on.

 

Left button> left button > tracks

 

The named tracks appear in the lower window (SAVED TRACKS).

Highlight one with the cursor, press the joystick, then select a colour and ensure show on map is ticked.

 

Trouble is when you are outside, none of the colours show up anyway.

 

Not sure how you can trace out a network of paths, I tend to plan my expeditions sat in front of the PC with guide routes to follow.

 

Now if you get an Oregon, you can overlay a bitmap image, which can be a tracing of all the paths or a google earth photo, or so I am led to believe....

[truebleve]

 

If you save each trail in google earth as a separate path (with a totally different name, the vista doesn't like names like "my favourite path 1" "my favourite path 2" because it can't have more than 6 characters (I think) in a name) and load to the Vista as separate tracks, they will all show if they are turned on.

 

Left button> left button > tracks

 

The named tracks appear in the lower window (SAVED TRACKS).

Highlight one with the cursor, press the joystick, then select a colour and ensure show on map is ticked.

 

Trouble is when you are outside, none of the colours show up anyway.

 

Not sure how you can trace out a network of paths, I tend to plan my expeditions sat in front of the PC with guide routes to follow.

 

Now if you get an Oregon, you can overlay a bitmap image, which can be a tracing of all the paths or a google earth photo, or so I am led to believe....

 

I was able to only show one saved track on the map at a time. Are you saying it is possible to show multiple tracks?

 

Can you use your method described above to create a series of tracks in an area (that may not necessarily be connected) as one track that you can upload to the Vista?

 

Thanks again for your help.

[+facade66]

Provided that you draw each track in Google Earth separately, with a unique name, and export separately from google earth, then load from GPS utility one at a time, they appear as separate tracks in the saved tracks window, unless the first one has too many points I suppose..

 

I do this all the time, turning off the return track until I've done the out track, to avoid confusion when they cross.

[truebleve]

Provided that you draw each track in Google Earth separately, with a unique name, and export separately from google earth, then load from GPS utility one at a time, they appear as separate tracks in the saved tracks window, unless the first one has too many points I suppose..

 

I do this all the time, turning off the return track until I've done the out track, to avoid confusion when they cross.

 

I can upload several tracks, that's not a problem. I can only get them to display on the map one at a time. I was hoping to display more than one track at a time.

 

Or find a way to add the tracks as a feature (trail) on a topo map that I could then upload. I guess using someone else's topo map and adding my own features and then uploading them to Mapsource/GPS is probably beyond my capabilities.

[+myotis]

I've tried searching various places for this answer and it may not be possible (at least easily by me) but I thought I'd finally ask. I have a Vista HCx and have been very happy with it, especially after I found all the free topos at gpsfiledepot.

 

I understand how to display a track of a trail I have already been on and saved or uploaded back to my GPS from Mapsource. What I do not understand how to do is to create those tracks as trails on my maps in Mapsource and then upload that map with the trails displayed. Like when I go to a state park that has separate hiking / biking and equestrian trails and I want to know how close I am to each one and where they go and where I'm at relative to the trail. I'm thinking of the My Trails map that I can download from gpsfiledepot but I can't figure out how to then overlay that on a topo map of the same area (nor more importantly can I figure out how it was created).

 

I hope I was able to explain my question clearly enough and I hope someone can assist. Thanks.

 

Reading the responses it sounds like your orginal question was never answered. I make the "My Trails" maps at gpsfiledepot that you refer to. The maps are transparent and desiged to be used on your GPS. They will overlay on your GPS, but not in Mapsource. What you do is upload My Trails and the other maps to your GPS. My Trails will then show on top of the other maps. So if yoiu load My Trails and a Topo map of the area, My Trails will display as an overlay of the topo map.

 

You do not mention what State you are in. If you are in one of the states My Trails covers, you can send me a GPX or mapsource file with the tracks of the trails and I can add it to My Trails. Then all you have to do is install the new version of My Trails and then send the maps to your GPS again. It is real easy for me to add stuff to maps and I am disappointed in how few people send me addiions to the maps. The more people contribute, the better the maps will be.

 

One can also trace something in GoogleEarth and save it as a kml file and send that to me. That is also easy to add to a map.

[truebleve]

I'm in MI but came across the MyTrails when I was planning for a MO/IL vacation last fall. Then I kinda forgot about it over the winter. I'd be happy to share some of the places I've been, they're mostly biking / equestrian trails (I haven't been backpacking much in the past year since I got the GPS). You might have to walk me through what kind of files to send and where I find them.

 

As far as loading info on my GPS, I'm really only familiar with doing that via Mapsource (until facade's great help with gpsutility) and I'm not in front of my home computer right now. I recall highlighting the parts of the map I wanted to upload and that overwrote whatever previous map I had on the GPS so I'm not sure I understand how to add MyTrails and a Topo map section at the same time.

 

I'd also be curious how to make these "overlays" and was wondering if there was a tutorial somewhere.

 

Thank you for the info.