+PNWWizard Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 Last weekend we found the shelter where a cache was hidden. There was a muggle taking a break, so we chatted with him. He was hiking the trail around the lake, and asked us to confirm that he was about halfway around. We told him that he was only about 7% of the way around. He didn't believe us so DH whipped out our Garmin Vista and showed him where we were, and where the rest of the lake is. We finally managed to convince him that he'd only travelled 1.5 miles of a 22 mile hike! His parting words were "I've gotta get one of those!" Maybe we've brought another muggle into the light??? Quote Link to comment
+tirediron Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 Very cool... did you explain the whole Geocaching thing too, or just GPSr's? Quote Link to comment
+PNWWizard Posted August 31, 2004 Author Share Posted August 31, 2004 No we didn't. He was so embarrased to be so lost that he seemed anxious to get away. And we were anxious to find the cache! Quote Link to comment
+AuntieWeasel Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 The question is, which way did he walk away? The 1.5 mile hike to the beginning, or the 20.5 mile hike to the end? Quote Link to comment
+Team GPSaxophone Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 The question is, which way did he walk away? The 1.5 mile hike to the beginning, or the 20.5 mile hike to the end? Hope he's not still there when the next cacher heads out Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 I've used my GPS several times to show lost hikers where they were in relation to their destination. One was amazed. He didn't even know these things existed. Quote Link to comment
+PNWWizard Posted September 1, 2004 Author Share Posted September 1, 2004 He headed onward, but there's no way he could have made it all the way around the lake before dark! Hope I don't stumble over him next time I'm there (Oooh, grim) Quote Link to comment
+Team DEMP Posted September 1, 2004 Share Posted September 1, 2004 I spent about 15 min in Sterling Forest showing a group of hikers my GPS about 6 weeks ago. I showed them Topo on it, the tracks I had gone already and how far (as the crow flies) we were from the parking area they were asking me about. A couple of them were real interested and asked me about the costs, different models/features, etc. I didn't discuss geocaching with them but they sure were likely candidates for a GPS purchase. Quote Link to comment
GeoPup&ShelpieGirl Posted September 1, 2004 Share Posted September 1, 2004 I'm newly converted Muggle (is that lost non-GPS user?) - anyways, I just used my Garmin 76s for a few days driving to dairies to work. I have them marked at waypoints (with the Garmin "Zoo" Icon ;-) Its amazing to see the relationship in distance amongst them on one map. This will be handy on pre-light mornings when its foggy (and I am, too sometimes b4 coffee!). Im about to search for my first geocache - maybe this weekend! PS: Maybe the manufacturers could send people into the woods to undercover market to lost people. Talk about a receptive audience Quote Link to comment
+EraSeek Posted September 1, 2004 Share Posted September 1, 2004 I was on Mt Rainier once in a whiteout. A couple guys asked me if I knew the way down. I said "sure" and whipped out my Garmin and lead them down off the snowfield. Quote Link to comment
+PNWWizard Posted September 1, 2004 Author Share Posted September 1, 2004 Yes, we save lives!! Hands on hips, cape flowing in the wind... Quote Link to comment
+The Jester Posted September 1, 2004 Share Posted September 1, 2004 Yeah, GPSr really rock in whiteouts. I used mine to bring my climbing team off Mt Baker in a full whiteout (I used a trek pole, like a white cane, just to see what the surface was in front of me). Of course, they're not any better than map & compass if you haven't marked waypoints (such as trail ends at snow fields)! Quote Link to comment
+AuntieWeasel Posted September 1, 2004 Share Posted September 1, 2004 Of course, they're not any better than map & compass if you haven't marked waypoints (such as trail ends at snow fields)! Well, even if you don't mark waypoints, you can follow your own track back out. I'm forever forgetting to waypoint the car, and I just backtrack. I might be a bit more conscientious if snow were coming Quote Link to comment
GeoPup&ShelpieGirl Posted September 2, 2004 Share Posted September 2, 2004 you can follow your own track back out Im so new, I dont know how to do that. On my Garmin 76S, do I press the NAV button to start recording my track? How will I ever outgrow my muggle-ness -- Im lost in the manual Quote Link to comment
+AuntieWeasel Posted September 2, 2004 Share Posted September 2, 2004 On my Garmin 76S, do I press the NAV button to start recording my track? How will I ever outgrow my muggle-ness -- Im lost in the manual Manuals are for wussies! The eTrex automatically plots your track unless you turn it off. Looking at the spec sheet for the 76S it says "Tracks: Automatic track log; 10 saved tracks let you retrace your path in both directions" so I'm guessing it does the same. Page through the various menus and see if "tracks" isn't one of them. It's the screen with the map -- your track is plopped on top of the area map. You might have to zoom way in to realize what you're looking at, especially on foot. In a woodsy hike back to your car, the track screen is the most useful screen. It's the one that answers the question, "is this the fork of the path I took coming in?" The coolest thing about saving tracks is that you can bring them home and upload them to the computer. A program like Mapsource will plot out your track on a topo map for you. After a day of caching, you see the long, straight lines where you were driving, and the tortured, squiggly lines where you were stumbling around in the woods searching for Tupperware. Also, if you're a hopeless geekburger, you can go out in a big field and try to draw pictures with it. Quote Link to comment
+The Jester Posted September 2, 2004 Share Posted September 2, 2004 you can follow your own track back out Im so new, I dont know how to do that. On my Garmin 76S, do I press the NAV button to start recording my track? How will I ever outgrow my muggle-ness -- Im lost in the manual Garmins have a "TrackBack" mode. Check your manual using that term. Quote Link to comment
+KC0GRN Posted September 3, 2004 Share Posted September 3, 2004 I use a program called USAPhotoMaps. It gets the USGS Sat maps from terraserver and incorporates your GPS info onto it. So when I upload my tracks, I can see a satellite image of the area I walked (or usually stumbled) through. Quote Link to comment
+faithbookqueen Posted September 5, 2004 Share Posted September 5, 2004 VERY cool! I didn't realize all the various features you can have on a GPS system or how to use them. Glad I read this thread since...um..yeah....manuals. I don't do manuals. Anyway, I just picked up a Magellan SporTrak Map off Ebay for a good price (came with the Mapsend Topo software and PC cable, etc). So I'm glad to see what other stuff it'll be able to do! :-) Can't wait until it gets here and my hubby and I can get out hunting caches! Angela <>< Quote Link to comment
+marmetion Posted September 6, 2004 Share Posted September 6, 2004 Also, if you're a hopeless geekburger, you can go out in a big field and try to draw pictures with it. NO WAY, u didn't, did you? And I thought I had it bad Quote Link to comment
GeoPup&ShelpieGirl Posted September 6, 2004 Share Posted September 6, 2004 (edited) Garmins have a "TrackBack" mode. Check your manual using that term. Thanks. I learned something (now I can call it a day ;-) Got it: (on the Garmin 76s screen called "Track Information Page" ) Ok - I can turn it on , select options for recording, and then follow it back: "track back" - hey even their name for it is backarsewards makes sense now. Ahhhh, so that is the electronic bread trail. If only Hansel & Gretel had a Garmin - they wouldn't have had to bake that nice old lady edited for attempted humor timing. Edited September 6, 2004 by GeoPup&ShelpieGirl Quote Link to comment
+WindChill Posted September 6, 2004 Share Posted September 6, 2004 Also, if you're a hopeless geekburger, you can go out in a big field and try to draw pictures with it. Evidently there are bigger GPS geeks than us. Check out these: http://www.gpsdrawing.com/gallery.htm Quote Link to comment
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