backup caches for etrex 20

[+RussLinda114]

Hello. My wife and I are planning an out of state geocaching trip. We plan on staying for four days. I have loaded 1000 geocaches on my garmin etrex 20 to cover the area. My question is can I store my geocaches on a micro sd card for backup and then only use the card if needed? The reason I ask is that a few  in the past I have loaded caches on my etrex and while caching the batteries have died causing me to loose all my caches. I know that this is my fault for letting the batteries die but sometimes while on long adventures things happen. I would hope that having a backup that  i would have piece of mind. If I can load them on a micro card for my etrex how would they be displayed on the etrex. Would i be able to go to geocaches and they would be there. Or will they show up as a way point? Will the info about the cache be present? I will not have access to a computer so if someone could walk me through this it would be great. thanks

[alandb]

Exhausted batteries shouldn't cause you to "lose" all your caches, whether stored in internal memory or SD card. My guess is that what happened is that indexing of GPX files became corrupt which can cause the caches not to load even though the correct cache files are still in storage. If that was the cause, you are actually better off having the files on SD card rather than internal storage. You can force a reindexing of the cache files in the field by removing the SD, booting the device without the card, shut down, reinstall the card and reboot. This will usually clean up the corrupt index and display all the caches. On the other hand, if the cache files are in internal storage, there is no way to force a reindexing without connecting to a computer.

[+Mineral2]

It's tough when caches get loose. Gotta keep 'em tight. The short answer is no. Whether stored on the device's onboard memory or on an SD card, geocaches will only index once, so having multiple copies won't give you any advantage. I would recommend that you keep your geocache files on the SD card rather than the onboard memory for the reasons that alandb gives. You can always remove the SD card and put it back in, a procedure that can be performed while out in the field. Otherwise, you'll have to connect to a computer to remove and reload caches. 

[+RussLinda114]

Thankyou. What i meant was I was going to put the caches on the internal memory and if a problem arises only then will I insert the card. If I only load them on the card will the etrex read them as a geocache or a waypoint?

[alandb]

Yes, put them in folder \Garmin\GPX on the card and they will be read the same as when they are in internal storage. Again, my recommendation is to keep the GPX files on the card and not in internal storage for the reasons stated above (to allow for in-field reindexing).  Note that when you create a waypoint on the device itself, it will go in internal storage, but that is not a problem as all gpx files (internal and card) are merged and indexed for display on the device.

[+Red90]

Keep in mind an etrex 20 will hold 5000 caches.  If they were on the card to start with, you are safe.  If the unit messes up, remove the card, reboot, insert the card, reboot and they will come back.

If they are in internal memory, this will not work.  It will not re-index and you are not able to fix the problem.

[+RussLinda114]

39 minutes ago, Red90 said:

Keep in mind an etrex 20 will hold 5000 caches.  If they were on the card to start with, you are safe.  If the unit messes up, remove the card, reboot, insert the card, reboot and they will come back.

If they are in internal memory, this will not work.  It will not re-index and you are not able to fix the problem.

I went and bought a new card and did as you said. 1000 loaded up great.So what your saying is that if the unit messes up after lets say 500 finds that all i have to do is Re index and all is good or will it start at the beginning with 1000 new caches?

[+Red90]

I'm not completely sure what you are asking.  The 1000 caches are always on the unit.  They can't be deleted.  Finding them changes them to found status.  It has nothing to do with the GPX file.  The found/not found status is not affected by a re-indexing.  It changes either by the status on the original GPX file or what is in the geocache visits file.  The GPS never changes the GPX file.  It only reads it.

Edited August 30, 2017 by Red90

[+RussLinda114]

4 minutes ago, Red90 said:

I'm not completely sure what you are asking.  The 1000 caches are always on the unit.  They can't be deleted.  Finding them changes them to found status.  It has nothing to do with the GPX file.  The found/not found status is not affected by a re-indexing.  It changes either by the status on the original GPX file or what is in the geocache visits file.  The GPS never changes the GPX file.  It only reads it.

I only loaded them on the card like you said. When I pull the card they the caches are gone so I thought everything is on the card and that the unit is just reading them. This problem of loosing them happened to me twice and actually i not only lost the caches but i lost all my waypoints. Good thing i had them backed up at home. The two times this happened to me the caches were on the eternal memory and the batteries had died. It was like i was in the middle of a cache hunt and when the batteries died the unit didn't power down correctly. Thats all I can figure happened.Thanks for your help. I now have them on the card. 

[+Red90]

When it happens.

1)  Turn the unit off.

2) Remove card.

3) Turn unit on, wait for it to full boot.

4) Turn it off.  Insert card.

5) Turn it on and the caches will be back.

Waypoints are different.  They are read and then stored to hidden internal memory.  They can only be deleted on the unit manually or by doing a master reset.

[+RussLinda114]

Thankyou very much....

[+RussLinda114]

I have one more question. I bought a 16gb card cause thats all they had. I read that I need to format it to FAT32. I didnt do any of that. All i did is stick the thing in and loaded the caches. should i take it back out and format it or let it alone. I am using windows 10

[+RussLinda114]

I did load the caches on the new card and then erased them and loaded them again just to make sure i did it right.

[+Mineral2]

Your card likely came pre-formatted with the FAT32 file system. It's the default for external media these days.

3 hours ago, Red90 said:

Waypoints are different.  They are read and then stored to hidden internal memory.  They can only be deleted on the unit manually or by doing a master reset.

Waypoints shouldn't be any different. The internal database gets synced with all gpx files, so if you delete a GPX file with waypoints, or remove the SD card containing GPX files with waypoints, they will no longer show up in the device. Garmin's automotive devices (Nuvi, Drive, etc.) work a bit differently. They will copy waypoints into their own location. But the handhelds index all tracks, routes, waypoints, and geocaches into a database, but read from the GPX files directly.

[+Red90]

13 hours ago, Mineral2 said:

Waypoints shouldn't be any different. The internal database gets synced with all gpx files, so if you delete a GPX file with waypoints, or remove the SD card containing GPX files with waypoints, they will no longer show up in the device. Garmin's automotive devices (Nuvi, Drive, etc.) work a bit differently. They will copy waypoints into their own location. But the handhelds index all tracks, routes, waypoints, and geocaches into a database, but read from the GPX files directly.

Nope.  Try it.  Once waypoints are loaded, the GPX file is not required and they will stay on the unit forever until manually deleted on the GPS itself.  Waypoints are treated differently to geocaches, tracks and routes.

[+Mineral2]

I have tried it. I just delete the gpx file and the waypoints go away. That's how it worked on my Oregon 450, that's how it works with my Oregon 600. I can also remove waypoints in Basecamp.

None of those methods work for removing waypoints/favorites with my Nuvi. Those I have to remove manually on the device.