GPS and Waypoints - match the Thru-Hikers Guide

[SGT Rock]

Something I've been working on for a while is a new track of the BMT including all the re-routes and a little better on the accuracy compared to older tracks. During my hikes I got use to carrying a GPS, something I thought I would never need to hike with. On hikes where I didn't carry a GPS I missed having the convenience of a GPS for looking at surrounding terrain and having various levels of detail for the trail I was on all in one place. Not to mention being able to see how far I was from an upcoming point. I thought that there may be some future BMT hikers that plan to carry a GPS, not necessarily because you need one to navigate the BMT (maps do fine) but for convenience.

So, to meet that need I've been working on making a BMT track from the one used for my guide. I have divided it into the three basic sections of the BMT. Then I have created waypoint files to work with that which match the data points used in my guidebook. That way if you are following my track and it lists a campsite, ford, water point, road crossing, intersection, etc; there will be a gps waypoint on the track to show you where that is so you don't have to guess. It is still a work in progress, but I figure I would throw it out there for folks to use. Here is a link to the downloads:

http://hikinghq.net/bmtguide.com/gps.html

[allen3150]

Thanks - this will be very useful

[nitewalker]

thanks rock. i just purchased one of your BMT guides. now the waiting game......

[SGT Rock]

Ahh, that must be your order I got today.

[JAK]

I think the BMT and that part of the AT that parrallels it might have to go on my life's bucket list.
Might start in Damascus though, and scoot down, do the loop, and double back. Before I'm 60.
That was Lone Wolf can get the before and after, and still call me a wanker.

[Rain Man]

I think that's a great idea. I got a Garmin GPSMap 62s for Christmas. An unexpected gift, which I did not ask for, nor had I felt I had much use for a GPS on a trail. But I took it on an over-nighter to Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park here in Tennessee a couple of weekends ago, for practice. I was very pleasantly surprised at how handy it came in, but also how much more handy it might have been if I had had a track of waypoints to follow. We did a night hike and the trail is blazed with hard-to-see blue and not well blazed at that. So, we took a couple of wrong turns and had to search for the trail a time or two. Nothing major, but most would have been avoided with a "track" downloaded into my GPS.

I hope to start creating "tracks" as I hike various Tennessee State Park trails and upload them somewhere (once I know more about what I'm doing). I am finding the learning curve to be extremely steep, unnecessarily so in fact, as the vendors do very little in that regard, ESPECIALLY with regard to the various pieces of software needed to actually make a GPS useful in any hiking sense.

So, am glad to see you're blazing a trail for the rest of us!

RainMan

.

[nitewalker]

Ahh, that must be your order I got today.

that would be me. i see u already put it in the mail. thanks for a speedy response......

[ednotmilkman]

do you know how accurate, or precise, Mr. Parkay's gps track is of the BMK? As I have his track converted to go on my DeLorme whenever I get a chance to do a section of the trail. I assume he walked the whole thing with good precision and plenty of batteries but not sure about reroutes since I don't know when he recorded it.
Edwin

[solobip]

I am still using a Magellan Sport-Trac GPS is there a way to convert these tracks and way points files to the Magellan system. I tried just changing the extention to .trk and .wpt like my other Magellan files but that did not seem to work, any suggestions would be appreciated.

[SGT Rock]

do you know how accurate, or precise, Mr. Parkay's gps track is of the BMK? As I have his track converted to go on my DeLorme whenever I get a chance to do a section of the trail. I assume he walked the whole thing with good precision and plenty of batteries but not sure about reroutes since I don't know when he recorded it.
Edwin

Mr Parkay's track of the BMT is prior to a couple of relocationa and also has a place in the Smokies where he was on the wrong trail. My track I uploaded was all gathered in the last 18 months or so.

I am still using a Magellan Sport-Trac GPS is there a way to convert these tracks and way points files to the Magellan system. I tried just changing the extention to .trk and .wpt like my other Magellan files but that did not seem to work, any suggestions would be appreciated.

You can go here are convert just about any GPS file to any other sort of GPS file. http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/gpsbabel/

I made these files in gpx format because that is about the most universal format available and all the software I've used (except Google Earth) recognizes it along with their proprietary formats.. My GPS doesn't read them either, but the software on my computer that came with the GPS can import GPX and transfer it to my GPS.

[solobip]

Thanks Rock, that is a fantastic link, I knew you would know what to do. You have got me burning to do the BMT, the sections I have done have been a blast. Thanks for your keen advice, interest and sharing your experience and knowledge.

[SGT Rock]

I'll keep working to update these. I've got a big section of GA to do. But this weekend I did a section of TN again and fixed up some points. I've got to get the file updated and uploaded, so check the page above before you go out to get the latest updates.

[Wise Old Owl]

Honest I think accuracy has little to do with hiking a trail - this means that regardless of canopy... Most GPS show amount of error most of the time as 15-30 feet from where you are... when it is in doubt - it can be as much as 60 feet.... who really cares?

Waas has more to do with Canada, Mexico, and off shore - turn off the feature.. Untill they lauch another sat over wichita - don't go there.

[SGT Rock]

I'm not talking about that kind of accuracy. I'm talking about data points.