If I have starting coords, bearing and distance, how can I get the location coordinates?

[+achstone]

Long story short.

I have starting coordinates.

I have a bearing.

I have distance to location.

I would like to find the location coordinates, so I can check out the location on a map.

I can not post the starting coordinates online for fear its a spoiler, but can email them to anyone that can help.

 

Thanks,

 

AchStone

[+unclerojelio]

Does your GPSr have a feature called 'Project A Waypoint' or something similar. That feature will allow you to enter a distance and bearing from a waypoint and create a new one at the correct coords.

 

Other than that, you are going to need a little math.

 

... Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--

I took the one less traveled by, ...

 

unclerojelio

[+achstone]

I have a garmin Legend, I'm not aware of that feature, if it has it.

 

Math is ok, I just don't know how to go about it.

 

AchStone

[Dinoprophet]

The yellow eTrex can project a waypoint, so I'm sure the higher end models can as well. On the yellow, you select the waypoint, then you have four options: Delete, Goto, Map, and Project. Choose Project, enter the bearing and distance, and poof, you have a new waypoint right where you want to go. The only problem is, with the yellow, the distance is entered in tenths of a mile, so smaller distances can only be estimated.

 

I made a big decision a little while ago.

I don't remember what it was, which prob'ly goes to show

That many times a simple choice can prove to be essential

Even though it often might appear inconsequential. -- Bill Watterson

[dsandbro]

Easily done in a spreadsheet even by a spreadsheet novice.

 

Simple trig.

 

===========================================================

"The time has come" the Walrus said "to speak of many things; of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and Kings".

[+achstone]

Now that I know the term, I was able to find it in the manual easily. Should be able to that fairly easily.

 

As for a spreadsheet wiz...use them everyday...still have no clue.

I guess the problem is I don't know how to convert coordinates to distance.

 

AchStone

[+Ish-n-Isha]

What do you usually do mathmatically then when projecting a waypoint when you have the distance in feet and 10ths of feet, and your GPS goes to miles after 528 feet?

 

 

Cachin's a bit sweeter when you've got an Isha!

[claypigeon58]

Actually I'd like to see the "simple spreadsheet / trig" solution recommended above, as I don't think it's as simple as implied. The distance between longitude lines is a function of latitude, i.e. as you get closer to the poles, the lines get closer together. So I tend to disagree that it's simple trig, since the problem is to solve for coordinates given bearing and distance. For example, if you're on the 90W meridian in northern Wisconsin and go due east 47.18 miles, you're on the 89th meridian. If you do the same thing in Louisiana, your resulting longitude is 89.10. Same bearing, same distance, different longitude. Of course if you know what the inter-meridian distance is for the local area in question, yes, simple polar coordinate geometry will do the trick.

 

As for projecting a waypoint, even if a GPS doesn't have that feature, it will still allow you to move your cursor around the screen from a set location, all the time showing the distance and bearing (and coordinates) of the current cursor position.

[+bitbrain]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Ish-n-Isha:

What do you usually do mathmatically then when projecting a waypoint when you have the distance in feet and 10ths of feet, and your GPS goes to miles after 528 feet?

 

---

 

Guesstimation has always gotten me close enough for the find in those cases.

[+smithdw]

Try this

 

You can enter coordinates, distance, bearing, etc in almost any configuration and have it calculate the needed info.

 

"The best way to accelerate a Macintosh is at 9.8m/sec/sec."

-Marcus Dolengo

[+eroyd]

Try Ed Williams' Aviation Page.

 

http://williams.best.vwh.net/

 

click on-line calculator This will give you a great circle route calculator which presumes round world which will be different than the flat world projections your GPS will give. Especially over great distances.

 

You may have to translate some of the coordinate and distance formats.

[+parkrrrr]

quote:

---

Originally posted by eroyd:

Try Ed Williams' Aviation Page.

---

 

Careful, though. Most aviation calculations assume that west longitude is positive.

 

[dsandbro]

quote:

---

Originally posted by claypigeon58:

Actually I'd like to see the "simple spreadsheet / trig" solution recommended above, as I don't think it's as simple as implied. The distance between longitude lines is a function of latitude, i.e. as you get closer to the poles, the lines get closer together. So I tend to disagree that it's simple trig, since the problem is to solve for coordinates given bearing and distance. For example, if you're on the 90W meridian in northern Wisconsin and go due east 47.18 miles, you're on the 89th meridian. If you do the same thing in Louisiana, your resulting longitude is 89.10. Same bearing, same distance, different longitude. Of course if you know what the inter-meridian distance is for the local area in question, yes, simple polar coordinate geometry will do the trick.

 

As for projecting a waypoint, even if a GPS doesn't have that feature, it will still allow you to move your cursor around the screen from a set location, all the time showing the distance and bearing (and coordinates) of the current cursor position.

---

 

The correctional factor for longitude is the cosine of the latitude.

 

Some purists will argue that is not right, since the earth is not perfectly round and ignores the curvature of the earth. However for relatively close distances (say less than 10 miles) the error is out in decimal place land somewhere and can be safely ignored for geocaching applications.

 

===========================================================

"The time has come" the Walrus said "to speak of many things; of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and Kings".

[claypigeon58]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Dave54:

 

The correctional factor for longitude is the cosine of the latitude.

 

Some purists will argue that is not right, since the earth is not perfectly round and ignores the curvature of the earth. However for relatively close distances (say less than 10 miles) the error is out in decimal place land somewhere and can be safely ignored for geocaching applications.

---

Cool! I think I see what you mean. The distance between meridians at any latitude X is the cosine of X times the distance at the equator. I too had wondered about great circle and curvature stuff but am not surprised to see that at small differences it's negligible. Thanks for the info. You just gave me a reason to write a new web component to calculate this problem that I can drop into my geocaching web page!

[+Team GPSaxophone]

The Etrex Venture can project 0.01 miles away, so about 50 feet minimum. I'll have to try this out in the field sometime.

 

Took sun from sky, left world in eternal darkness

[+Logscaler and Red]

I have found it easier on the ground to just "go to" the location I am at, add or subtract 180 degrees from the bearing I need to go on and this gives me a "backsight". Then I just head in the direction I need for the distance I need. But on a map before heading out I use NG TOPO! and its waypoint feature in the same manner.

 

If your in the area, This hunt will let you practice projection.

 

logscaler.

[+EScout]

Ish-N-Isha asked about projecting distances in feet.

 

For the Legend, you can only project in tenths and hundredths of a mile, when you are over .10 mile. You can measure the distance between two waypoints in a route, in yards, when you set the Distance/Speed setting to yards. It will be in yards under a mile, then in miles, tenths and hundredths.

 

For the Meridian, you can also measure the distance between two waypoints in yards. You can do this in the database area, or routes. (Again, in yards when less than a mile, then in miles, tenths and hundredths.) You can also project in yards. In the projection screen, you have to go to the coordinate area and press enter three times, then go up and enter the yards and bearing. The Meridian has more utility when working with distances under a mile.

[+unclerojelio]

quote:

---

Originally posted by claypigeon58:

You just gave me a reason to write a new web component to calculate this problem that I can drop into my geocaching web page!

---

 

This might be useful:

http://www.indo.com/distance/dist.pl

 

... Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--

I took the one less traveled by, ...

 

unclerojelio

[+achstone]

Thank you all.

Based on all of your advice, I've tried several different programs and the project waypoint feature.

All points that I have calculated are in the same general area but slightly off from each other(approx .2mile).

I'm projecting(depending on location) either just over 11 miles or just over 8 miles.

So the margin for error goes up a bit.

Still haven't found what I am looking for yet, but I didn't have a lot of time to search last night.

 

AchStone

[+RJFerret]

quote:

---

Originally posted by achstone:

I have starting coordinates.

I have a bearing.

I have distance to location.

I would like to find the location coordinates, so I can check out the location on a map.

---

 

Yesterday this gave me a great chance to review Trig.

 

Today I thought outside of the box--if you have a map, you don't need any of the math!

 

Simply find your starting coords on the map, turn the base of a compass to the bearing, line up the lines in the base of the compass dial with north on the map, use the edge of the compass base to measure out the correct distance according to the scale.

 

Voila! That pinpoints the location on the map. (Took me long enough! Should've though of that yesterday, it's funny how you overlook the simple tools when the more complex are handy...)

 

Enjoy,

 

Randy

[+Marky]

quote:

---

Originally posted by eroyd:

Try Ed Williams' Aviation Page.

 

http://williams.best.vwh.net/

 

click _on-line calculator_ This will give you a great circle route calculator which presumes round world which will be different than the flat world projections your GPS will give. Especially over great distances.

 

You may have to translate some of the coordinate and distance formats.

---

Just what makes you think my GPS would project using flat world calculations? I know of no GPS that does this.

 

--Marky

"All of us get lost in the darkness, dreamers learn to steer with a backlit GPSr"

[+rldill]

Trythis.

 

Former EarthNOlink user!!!!!!!!!

 

Take a chance or you'll never know. Let your spirits soar!

[2oldfarts (the rockhounders)]

If you have access to Magellan "MapSend Topo"then all you need to do is enter a waypoint at the starting coordinates then click on the compass and move the curser the direction needed and the program will tell you how far from the first point you have moved the curser. Look at the lower right hand corner of the map and it will give the coordinates of the curser. You can then set a second waypoint. It's easier to let the program do the math.

[+Cachetrotters]

quote:

---

Originally posted by 2oldfarts (the rockhounders):

<snip> move the curser <snip> moved the curser <snip> of the curser <snip>

---

You'd think 2 old rockhounding farts would know how to spell c-u-r-s-o-r, unless you're trying to be a wurser curser than the other guy...

 

don

[2oldfarts (the rockhounders)]

When you get old you can't remember --- what were we discussing?

[+bfrueger]

This website also helps in projecting a waypoint:

 

http://www.geolifeline.com/projection.php

 

bfrueger

[Pup Patrol]

Has this been providently bumped?

 

13 years later...OP is "inactive".

 

My old gps can project waypoints and display the new location on the map.

 

 

B.

[+lodgebarn]

GSAK is your friend if you cant it do it on your GPS. Alternatively use GCC (Geocache Calculator) on your phone.

Edited August 29, 2016 by lodgebarn

[+Mudfrog]

GSAK is your friend if you cant it do it on your GPS. Alternatively use GCC (Geocache Calculator) on your phone.

 

Old thread but the info in it could be helpful to cachers who want to try something a little different than basic traditionals.

 

Out in the field, i use my handheld gpsr to project. If i happen to be at home figuring things out, i use the Delorme mapping software which works very well. I believe i've even used Google Earth to do it. Like you stated, GCC works fine for this.

[+Jayeffel]

On 5/27/2003 at 5:52 AM, dsandbro said:

Easily done in a spreadsheet even by a spreadsheet novice.

 

Simple trig.

 

===========================================================

"The time has come" the Walrus said "to speak of many things; of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and Kings".

simple trig? I could not get through algebra!

 

Ran into this exact dilema recently, had a puzzle cache to decipher which I was able  to do with a bit of help, a bit more than I expected actually, but the clue led to finding the cache by bearing and distance, I wanted to try to get coordinates for the second part, mostly to see  if could do it.The second part of the cache involved is lessthan 100 feet away so eyeball navigation should suffice - have not yet made it back to get the cache.

Edited November 21, 2023 by Jayeffel
fix som spelling and grammar errors

[+Smitherington]

I did a geocache several years ago that required several successive distance & bearing calculations and I completed it on my computer with a map of some sort.  I have also done some in cemeteries where I used a compass. Enjoyable.

[+barefootjeff]

11 hours ago, Jayeffel said:

Ran into this exact dilema recently, had a puzzle cache to decipher which I was able  to do with a bit of help, a bit more than I expected actually, but the clue led to finding the cache by bearing and distance, I wanted to try to get coordinates for the second part, mostly to see  if could do it.The second part of the cache involved is lessthan 100 feet away so eyeball navigation should suffice - have not yet made it back to get the cache.

 

The Geocaching Toolbox (geocachingtoolbox.com) has a Coordinate Projection tool for doing that.

[+SW00P]

Try this.

 

https://www.geocachingtoolbox.com/index.php?lang=en&page=coordinateProjection

[+Jayeffel]

Thank you, learn something everyday--sometimes remember it also.

[+TeamRabbitRun]

The Geocaching Toolbox resource discussed above is great! But, if you can't connect well to the internet, then read on...

 

Several people up above have sort-of mentioned this, but it's tough to use their advice unless you have a compass.

 

Here's what I've done for a Quick&Dirty Field Projection, using only the Official App, out there, in the middle of a hunt.

 

Let's say you have instructions that tell you to go due East for 600 feet from a starting set of coordinates, or from where you're standing.

1. If your starting coords are already a waypoint listed in your cache, skip ahead to Step 2. If they're not, add them to the cache. Go to the 'Waypoints' section of the cache display and select the plus sign to add a waypoint. If you're not standing at the starting spot, enter the coordinates by hand. If you ARE standing at the starting coords, tap on 'Current Location' to move it up into the new waypoint's edit lines, and save it.
    
2. From the list of the cache's waypoints, select the Starting Coords and tap the 'navigate' icon. This puts you on the map display, telling you that you've arrived at your waypoint.
    
3. Then, on the map display, tap the compass icon at the top to display the compass. Again, it should indicate that you've arrived at your waypoint. 
    
4. Proceed in the direction of your projected bearing, in the example, 90 degrees. Wander about until it tells you that the starting waypoint is the proper distance away from your position, IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION.  Meaning, of course, that if your projection instructions tell you to go east (90 degrees) for 600 feet, you want to end up at the spot where you're told that the waypoint is 600 feet away at 270 degrees!     
   
   10 degrees/350 degrees, 45 degrees/225 degrees, etc.
    
5. Look down; there's your cache.