GPS versus Maps
 

I used topo maps to find my way around wilderness areas for 20 years. there were several times in a forest, desert, or canyon lands where I wish I had some type of satellite navigation. But I still use and like maps, not GPS.

Is GPS like Mapquest? I drove up to Mount Evans on Monday. Mount Evans is the highest paved road in North America, but the roads leading up to the entrance (Echo Lake Campground) are more fun than the actual road up to the peak. I came up from Morrison, just southwest of Denver, through the back way with tons of curves: http://www.mapquest.com/mq/7-Sn1Z.

But if you type Echo Lake Campground into Mapquest, it sends you up I-70 so you only get twisty roads near the end: http://www.mapquest.com/mq/1-IstKbZU1jtTafaHy8nIk. Mapquest picked the easiest and fastest way, but not the best way. Does GPS give you a choice?

You can set different map programs (google maps, MS streets and trips) to take a more scenic route- even to avoid interstates and main roads. I usually tug the lines onto whatever looks interesting after I get a general idea where I'm going. Hate Interstates!

I think Google is the best way if you want to customize your route as far as online maps with turn by turn directions.

GPS is a different animal all together. I got my wife a Garmin for x-mas and its great. But don't try to outsmart it. There is an option to do anything. You can avoid toll roads, highways, dirt roads, ect...

For example, going to my father in laws earlier this year. I know how to get there... and it requires dirt roads..PERIOD... but I didn't know the garmin had selected to avoid them. So it took us 10 miles out of the way so that we had 1 mile of dirt instead of 3 miles. But when you're following those damn things... you just have a habbit of going on auto pilot... follow the purple line! It was night and we blew right past the damn dirt road we usually take. OH WELL.

John,

Used topos for years when hiking/climbing Colorado. Added a handheld GPS to the backpack later on. When parking the car at the trailhead I'd have the GPS store the car's location. Sometimes I'd plot in the lat/long of the summit. In either case I'd have the GPS keep me updated on time-to-destination, direction (especially if I was off the trail), etc.

For two wheeled riding I prefer maps, online and paper, but a GPS supplements both well. Several examples:

- On the group ride to the WSBK's in Utah our seven rider pack descended the north side of the Grand Mesa. Had never been on this sweet road. I was leading and from the GPS scrolling map could tell the layout and tightness of the upcoming curve before I entered it.

- We had hotel reservations along the way, and about an hour from our destination I'd ask the GPS to take us to the "Best Western North Salt Lake".

- If the gang was up for a BBQ dinner, could have the GPS tells us which BBQ restaurants were in the vicinity, with address and phone #'s, and have it take us there.

See maps and GPS as complementary, and not either/or.

I always carry paper maps- whether it's an old school fold-up or a printout I don't want some bossy little electronic bitch telling me where to go. Just feels too much like cell phones and PDAs and bluetooth and whatever- people are addicted, and lose the ability to think or problem solve or remember. Getting lost and finding your own way back is fun.

sfarson has it exactly right... they're complementry... not either or... my GPS I use to track my speed, time to destination, time to next stop (usually put that as a gas station) trip od, total od, and current time...

I use the map to actually find my way... durring the day... that is.

at night... I flip my GPS back to map mode... cause I can just glance and see what I need... instead of turning on a map light... or on my bike... stopping and finding a flash light :lol:

Hmm, I made a wrong turn on the way to the Indy speedway and stopped to pull out the map. The map said to go a certain way. I started going that way and Drewpy's VZNavigator said to do a u-turn. We did said u-turn and the damn thing said to do another u-turn. We finally said fuck it, and just went the way the map said to go. Once we got moving, his navigator caught up and said we were going the right way. :lol:

I tried to lead on the way up using maps, but fatburg's GPS was so much more effective. I vote GPS

but let me add, that you need to look at the route still, as it might take you straight through the heart of indianapolis through 58 stoplights instead of zipping you around via highways.

true, plus you can't find pancakes on the gps as easy

so a mix of both is best