GPS map making

im a dedicated RUV/ATV/jeeper trail rider, and montana has hundreds of miles of amazing trails. the only problem with them is that the trails arent mapped, and youre lucky if you can find a BLM official who can tell you where to find the trailheads. ive decided that i want to ride and map every trail i can find in montana, to publish online.

i want a setup that i can turn on, drive all the trails to make the maps, and save the maps to my computer. id like to also have the ability to mark and note certain spots, such as a dangerous hill or camping spot. i dont know what i need to do this or how to go about it, but i currently have a gps laptop setup

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as well as a handheld gramin e-map (basic, not very impressive by todays standards). what would be the best way to accomplish this? thanks!

Reply to
Nathan W. Collier
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I use my Garmin E-Map to record the trails I use. I then download the GPS to either the desktop or laptop through my Maptech topographical map program. I've been pretty successful doing it this way. Even the rookies don't have much trouble figuring out the trails. I've taken the laptop with me a few times just so the newbies can see where we are.

The next time I go to either Grey Rock or Summertown I am going to map all I can for our group. Sure beats the maps I got from them last time.

Also an external antenna helps to keep from losing signal in tree covered areas.

Reply to
jduchock

Well, up here in Canada some bozo did that and then it became almost 'open season' on Jeepers. The folks in the armed hunt camps became extremely aggressive to the point on one of our RAMJ+W summer runs I thought we were going to have to go for the RCMP or OPP (cops).

Now the trails are on some ATV group's site and it has almost totally ruined the one last area of crown land open here. The hunt camps are getting vandalized, there is garbage everywhere, drunk fools are driving around shooting guns all over the place, etc....

So if you really want to wreck your wilderness, posting the trails is a great way to do it.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail >
Reply to
Mike Romain

Well, true. Make it easy and convenient for the trash folks to get in and, gee, what do you know, trash.

On the other hand, we (in the U.S.) have specific "wilderness" areas set aside where no motor driven vehicles are allowed. Those who want the more isolated experience can drive to a trailhead and hike on in. I thought such places existed in Canada too.

Reply to
Pumper Hinkle

I like your tag line. When Mike Farrell throws paint on Sonny Barger for wearing leather I'll start having respect for them, until them I see them as whiny yuppettes.

Reply to
billy ray

This is deja vu all over again! Like the Robert Ormes "Guide to the Colorado Mountains", the Fourteeners book, or the Harvey Manning hiking books, to name a few. There were people pissed, but more people got to enjoy the wilderness, and the ones that went, tended to stick to the published trails. Mike, it's not the map-maker's or the book-writer's fault. The problem is population pressure. People are going to overrun your wilderness, no matter what you do, unless you can find a cure for sexual desire. The question is whether they will do it in an organized manner or not.

One problem we have in Colorado, where nearly all legitimate trails are mapped or documented, is the proliferation of new trails and roads, cut by well-meaning outdoors enthusiasts, who do not understand local customs and legal rights. Our county, landowners, and the BLM are trying to sort out, what is a road or trail, and what is not. It is not so obvious as it might seem. Nate, documenting the existence of a road or trail, is a good way to ensure that it stays open for future generations. Our county is now calling for people to bring them old photographs, written accounts, maps, anything that they can use to prove that roads are roads, and not something cut by some guy in a Blazer last summer.

Earle

Reply to
Earle Horton

I seem to recall just such an incident occurring....

Reply to
billy ray

hes a "bozo" for trying to help other off-roaders find trails?

i can sympathize with your situation, but overall your statements sound elitist. trail access is for EVERYONE.....jeepers, ATVers, MXers, horseback riders, hikers, etc. there will ALWAYS be bad people in every group that seem like they want to ruin it for everyone but i disagree with trying to keep trail access/locations "secret" because you end up keeping the responsible off roaders out too.

Reply to
Nathan W. Collier

It MIGHT be time consuming Nate, but here's a thought.

Our GPS, a Magellan eXplorest 500cs, has what they call "tracking" with this feature, it can show exactly where you have been. You can also add your own POIs (Point Of Interest) with just the push of a button, and even make notes on it, though cumbersome it can be done. A notepad and pencil that would refer to the POI would be much faster. I havew never tried to save a track to a map because I usually turn tracking OFF. Now, when I get out in the boonies, I am likely to change that.

I can check to see if I can save the tracks, I believe that I can.

I know that the Garmin is the "Big Dog" in GPS, and for good reason. I do NOT know if it has these features.

Reply to
Kate

thanks kate. im not real concerned with cost if i can just find something that will do what i want it to do. "once upon a time" somebody when out and made this

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which has benefitted countless offroaders. i just hope to do the same thing.

Reply to
Nathan W. Collier

That map wasn't made entirely by machine. You have the map-making skills of the Custers to thank for it, and their familiarity with the local area, more than whatever mechanical assistance they used. My advice is to pick a respectably-sized area near where you are, bring whatever equipment you now have, and see what you can produce for a trail map. You will probably find, that it is harder than it looks, and that the GPS doesn't do all the work.

Earle

Reply to
Earle Horton

thanks to the custers. any idea how to contact them?

i agree completely. this is exactly why im asking for help. there is a wealth of trails up here and i find it hard to believe that nobody has take the initiative to map them. one of my favorite trails is just outside the blackfeet reservation. ive only been about 40 miles down it, but im told that it goes on for well over a hundred miles and its right through the middle of prime grizzly bear country. its all either federal land or reservation land, yet nobody has mapped it (ive spoken with the tribal authorities as well as BLM). i feel that mapping this system would benefit off roaders everywhere so its important to me to do a good job.

Reply to
Nathan W. Collier

The early explorers relied on their native talents, sometimes with what seem to us now as amusing results, some with amazing accuracy. This is a discipline that has been taught in universities, for as long as there have been universities. The following appears to be the main program in Montana.

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You probably do not want to invest that much time, but this site might be something worth at least playing with.

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Earle

Reply to
Earle Horton

The only ones I've found are the professional grade mapping stuff that allow you to use a GPS and/or hand computed coordinates to overlay onto existing maps. Professional as in Expensive professional. Wonder if you could get assistance from some of the gps/map makers willing to buy updated and more detailed trail maps?

Earle Horton proclaimed:

Reply to
Lon

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