lost

[Guest bobandkarynm]

My wife got me a GPS unit the Garmin etrex Venture. I have been trying to figure out how to be able to look at the reading it has and find it on the map. Am use to military way of doing it and have talk to some shops but they were no help. I just want that when my GPS says N38d 47.093 w 104d 53.656 that I can look at my map and say oh there it is. When we go four wheeling I can tell where we are just by the trails and such but this thing is making me more confused the more I try to figure it out. HELP PLEASE.

Robert

[Guest garminpilot]

Robert,

 

If you are using 7.5 minute USGS topo maps and are used to using military MGRS maps you are in luck.

 

USGS topo maps are marked in Lat/Lon and in UTM coordinates, UTM is similiar to the military MGRS, actually MGRS (military grid reference system) is based on UTM coordinates (universal transverse mercator)

 

Get the book out and find how in the set up menu to change lat/lon (hdd mm.mmm) to (UTM) once accomplished you will see a decimal number in place of lat/long on the position page of the GPS.

[Guest garminpilot]

You will notice numbers along the edges of the topo map, the numbers along the left edge represent number of meters north of the equator you are located. Example 4060 represents 4,060,000 meters north of equator. On the GPS set to UTM you will see a zone number like S 4,060,122 if you are standing somewhere in the map area.

 

Numbers on along the top represent a number of meters east of a (unimportant) reference point they will match up to the other number displayed on the GPS set to UTM

 

I realize this was too quick but I hope you get the general idea. You will need a special UTM ruler to determine where the exact GPS location is between the 1000 meter tick marks along the map edges.

 

I will post some links that give a more detailed instreuctuions. You can also call GARMIN at 800-800-1020 for help.

 

Your wife made an excellent choice! The GARMIN ETREX Venture is one of the BEST<

 

[This message has been edited by garminpilot (edited 27 December 2001).]

 

[This message has been edited by garminpilot (edited 27 December 2001).]

[Guest kernbob]

[This message has been edited by kernbob (edited 04 January 2002).]

[Guest NeverLost]

Hello Bob,

 

the UTM way of finding where you are located on a map is by far the eaiest way when you are using maps such as 7.5 min quad TOPO'S

 

below is a link to some very good info to help you out.

http://www.cnde.iastate.edu/staff/swormley/maps/utm.html

 

Later,

[Guest Rich in NEPA]

bobandkarynm,

 

When using 7.5-minute quad USGS topo maps (1:24,000 or 1:25,000 scale are best) the UTM grid reference system is by far the easiest to work with. All of the above replies are correct.

 

You should also note that most USGS topo maps are based on the older NAD27 datum, although some of the newer ones use WGS83. The newest quads will even have full UTM grid lines printed on them at 1 kilometer intervals. It will state what datum is used in the legend of each map in the lower left corner.

 

It is very important to set your GPSR to the correct map datum whenever you switch grid systems. For example, this website (Geocaching.com) will always display cache coordinates in the hdd mm.mmm grid reference system using WGS84 datum. (For all practical purposes, WGS83 and WGS84 are usually considered to be the same.)

 

~Rich in NEPA~

 

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? A man with a GPS receiver knows where he is; a man with two GPS receivers is never sure. ?

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[This message has been edited by Rich in NEPA (edited 04 January 2002).]

[Guest JAMCC47]

Purchase a TOPO map program, then you can make your own maps. Learn how to use UTM'S.

Ask.Com (jeeves) will link you with some good sites. When you learn how to use a UTM roamer scale, $5, at REI, you can plot your way as you go. If you ever come to Northern Colorado, I'll be more than glad to help you with this. There may even be a GEOTEERING event this summer where these principles will be used. Found these sites which you might find useful.

http://www.maptools.com/UsingUTM/index.html

 

SYRKID1947@AOL.COM

 

------------------

JoseCanUSea

 

[This message has been edited by JAMCC47 (edited 14 January 2002).]

[Guest outbackjack]

One more bit of info. If you dont have a scale you can use a pair of dividers with the kilometer scale at the base of the topo quad. with a good eye you can point out a spot on the map to about 25 meters(+/- 5-10 yards)