Okay, maybe everyone already knew this, but until now the big downside of Garmin GPS units has been the topo maps. Topo CD covers the entire country and is reasonably priced, but the contour intervals are really lacking. The nat'l park CDs are pretty good if they cover where you ski (and fortunately the entire AT corridor counts as a 'nat'l park' for the eastern CD), but if they don't cover where you ski, you've been stuck with the 100k-derived nat'l CD.Garmin has started to cover other states with 24k-derived detail. But available only on micro SD cards, which means you can't combine different states or map types (e.g., city navigator & topo) on one card, you can't view the maps on a computer, and you'd better not lose that super-small card. Plus the price would really add up if you ski in multiple states.I had read awhile back that some Polish software whiz had reverse-engineered the Garmin code, and I saw some downloadable maps, but not much. Various website had instructions for using free gov't data to create your own maps, but looked pretty involved.Yet now pretty much every western state is available, all referenced from one website:And for free too.
(Except for the WA map, which is currently $80.)Checking out the forums briefly, looks like other maps should be coming up soon.I've downloaded several states and viewed them from within Mapsource: pretty much comparable to the areas that Garmin covers with 24k-derived detail. (And when I toggled back-and-forth between Garmin 100k topo and the freebie 24k topo, the differen was striking.)I'm still a big believer in bringing along a printed map (on waterproof paper, from software like National Geographic that scans USGS quads), along with a traditional sighting-mirror magnetic compass, but these third-party hobbyists now seem to be bringing out the full potential in Garmin's GPS units.(And anticipating running out of space on my current 1 gig card, I bought a 2gig for only $8 including shipping from newegg.). Good info, jonathan.i've always been disappointed that the garmin maps were vector-based, although it makes total sense for portable device use vs. The flat graphics that are the nat'l geographc TOPO series of maps.that said. Is there any way to know if we're dealing with derived 24k maps from garmin vs the actual 24k maps?i have the garmin topo dvd, and i also have nat'l geo TOPO maps for the states where my adventures are centered.i was able to load pretty close to the entire set of garmin topo maps for the USA onto my micro-sd card. But i want to ensure i've got the most accurate detail.any way to tell?(i'm not at home, but later this weekend i can download and compare. I'm just a bit curoius in the meantime.)thanks!
The freebie maps are generally the equivalent detail of Garmin's National Park series, so derived from 24k-level USGS data, but the rendering is far different.However, contour lines are usually at 40 feet, which alone is far more helpful than Garmin's U.S. Topo series.The details do vary by state, because as the fine print indicates, many of these are works-in-progress, so definitely check for updates.For example, I compared Garmin U.S.
Freebie for Wasatch: Freebie was superior in every way.At Lassen, Freebie matched Garmin National Park contours, but lacked place/feature names, although contours were comparable (which are poor in U.S. I suppose this is to be expected given the huge job that the Cali map maker faces!Back home in Mass., for Mt Greylock, Freebie has all the place/feature names but for some odd reason has 50-foot contours (instead of 40-foot), whereas for some other odd reason Garmin National Park has 20-foot contours. (And no, Mt Greylock is not the latest addition to the National Park system, but the AT crosses it, hence Garmin's inclusion in its National Park system, given how few national parks we have out here.) And U.S. Topo would have only the usual widely spaced contours (although I can't verify this right now, since Mapsource is no longer recognized my East CD for U.S. Topo).I expect these freebie maps will improve over time (as well as eventually cover all states), but they'll still be vector based.By contrast, this utility allows raster maps to be shown on Garmin units:My wife does GIS work for a living, so I'm going to experiment with some areas to see if she can display them on my GPS. Update - so for Idaho, Oregon, and Washington - install this:I overlooked it initially since the documentation was pretty sparse, but it has 20-foot contour intervals, which is better than the single-state maps others have posted. Better than most of Garmin's own 24k-level maps for national parks too.
Takes a long time to install, but given the 20-foot contours and huge geographical extent, hardly surprising.The one drawback is that it doesn't show trails, but this. Has better trails than any other maps. Within Garmin Mapsource, you can't view both these trails and the top maps, but on your gps unit you can view both layers simultaneously.Note that for Shasta, the NW map also dips down into California a bit, but this map seems to be better:Also, for the Sierra, a true raster-based map is available.
Which would seem to be the first raster-based map available on a Garmin GPS.But based on my frustating experience just now, and then reading this.
MENU.How To Get Free Garmin GPS Maps For Hiking In This Guide. Why These Free Maps Are Better.
Installing the Maps On Your Computer. Instaling the Maps On Your GPS DeviceThe good news is that if you own a Garmin GPS device, there’s a way to get free Garmin GPS maps.
And in most cases, the free maps are much better than the expensive Garmin maps. I’m a big fan of Garmin GPS devices, but I always found it disappointing that they charged extra for maps. Garmin doesn’t publicize it, but most of their GPS units are setup to take any maps in the correct format. Here’s how to get and install these free hiking maps in an easy, step-by-step process.In retrospect, I think the price for Garmin maps is too high. There are some as good, or better, alternatives available at no cost online. This product is overpriced for what it is.
I would recommend other software. – Garmin Map Review on Amazon Why These Free Maps?So let me start by saying there are a lot of ways to get free Garmin GPS maps, and a lot of different methods to install them. You could create whole websites devoted to the subject, and people have (see below). This article focuses on installing my favorite free Garmin GPS maps for hiking in the USA, using OpenStreetMaps.
If these don’t work for you, try exploring the other map services that I have listed below.are the Wikipedia of maps. The public contributes to, confirms, and edits the data on the map. This curation goes for hiking trails too. The maps are regularly updated, and over the last few years have seemed the most accurate in my experience. You can even become a contributor if you like. Here’s a side by side comparison of the Garmin Basecamp with these free topo maps.The free hiking maps that I’m recommending are great because:.
They are good topographic maps with elevation contours. They have a large number of hiking trails on them.
They are “routable,” which means that you can use free tools like Garmin Basecamp to automatically create routes and tracks that you can follow (without having to plot each point of the trail yourself). The colors and detail work well for me. That is, they look good on the device. USA regions are packaged together.This screenshot gives you an idea of the level of the detail in these free maps. You can also search the maps for points of interest. Here I searched for the Great Smoky Mtn NP. Video InstructionsIf you have a newer GPS device like a Garmin Fenix 5x Plus or are on Windows, there are some special instructions below.
New Guide Notifications-Which Garmin GPS devices do the maps work with?First off, the Garmin unit you have might have maps already. You probably know this, but if you’re shopping for a GPS, go to the Garmin website page for the unit. If it maps come with the unit, it will say it has “preloaded topo maps.”If you already have a unit and want to find out if these free maps work, go to the unit’s page on the Garmin website, and then check out the “specs” section. There is a line for “ability to add maps,” if you have a check there, you’re good to go.Downloading the Free Garmin GPS MapsThe first thing you’re going to want to do is visit the. The nice thing about this site is that they’ve bundled the maps up into large regions.Then pick the region you want, and download the appropriate map package (link way at the bottom of the page).
The files are pretty big. The download might take a while. Installing the Free Maps on Your ComputerThe instructions are different for Mac and PC. The map website has.
My instructions cover the installation on a Mac, but I have some general that fill in the gaps for installing on Windows below.For the Mac, you’ll need three (free) programs to install the maps. You can download and install these programs while you wait for your maps to download. First is a 7z extractor. The map downloads are in 7z format, which is a fancy compressed ZIP file. Download and install this program. There are also other free and paid 7z options in the Mac App Store.
Then download the free Garmin MapInstall and MapManager programs. They make installing the maps easy and non-technical. Once you download the map file, open it with your 7z application. It will unzip the files and put them into a folder. After unzipping, you’ll have a few files in the folder. Double-click on the large file with the “gmap” extension on the end. That should launch Garmin MapManager, which will ask you if you want to install the maps.
Hit “yes” and it will copy the maps into your Garmin directory. When you’re finished, delete the map download and the unzipped folder.That’s it. The maps are on your computer.
If you’re not already using the free tool, I highly recommend getting it. It will allow you to browse maps, Pairing Garmin Basecamp with these free maps for Garmin GPS gives you.a powerful planning tool. Here I’m browsing detail around Icehouse Saddle in California. Installing the Free Maps on Your Garmin GPSOnce your map is downloaded and installed, you’re all set to install them on your GPS unit. Connect your Garmin GPS unit to your computer and make sure it’s on. Give it a minute or two to load and register with the computer.
Load the Garmin MapInstall application. It should show your GPS unit in the top box.
Hit continue. MapInstall will show you what maps you have installed already (if any), what’s on your computer, and how much room you have on your device (at the bottom). Click on the maps you want to install while watching the space on your device. My eTrex has 3.7gb of internal memory, no need to add a MicroSD card.
Garmin 100k Topo Map
Click “send maps.” Now you wait. It can take a while for the maps to load onto your device. Don’t do this if you’re in a rush.
Now confirm that the maps are loaded. Go into your settings for maps and poke around. The process is different for different units, but you should be able to see something like this. Enjoy the maps on your Garmin GPS.
And if there is too much detail or the map rendering seems slow, go to settings and try decreasing the detail level.Installing on Newer Garmin Devices From MacSo Garmin changed the way that the GPS devices communicate with computers. If you have Windows, you should be all good (see below). If you have Mac, there’s a wrinkle.Garmin switched to the MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) to transfer files, which makes the Garmin appear as a “media device.” And of course, Apple doesn’t support it. But I’ve found a solution. It’s not the most graceful one in the world, but it works (confirmed on a Fenix 5x Plus). Get your maps from here:.
The site will send you an email with a download link. Download the ZIP file that is described as “Compressed file that contains a single image that can be placed directly onto the SD-card of the GPS.”. Unzip the file.
You should have a file with a “.img” extension. Now we need to connect the Garmin to the computer.
Download the free from Google. Install it on your machine as per the instructions. If you have Garmin Express running, make sure it’s not running and you have disabled any “automatically launch when device is connected” settings. Plug in your Garmin to the computer and launch the Android File Transfer program. You should see a screen like this:. Simply drag the “.img” file that you downloaded into the Garmin folder. You might want to rename the “.img” file to make sure it doesn’t whack any maps already on there.That’s it.
Go to your map settings and turn the OSM map on and off. OSM maps on my Fenix 5x PlusIf you work at Garmin, please update MapInstall to support MTP! They’re too big-time to listen to my feedback, so if you know anyone at Garmin, please bug them. Tips for Windows InstallationThe directions on GMapTool site aren’t very descriptive for Windows. Here are some tips from fellow hiker Dave T. On how to install the free maps on Windows.
Run the “bat” file as described on the GMapTool site. Open to ensure that the maps have been installed. Use the program to send the maps to your device. Or use the maps at, Download your map first. This will create a single “img” file for each map you download.
Then copy that map file to your Garmin (the drive if you have a micro SD card, not the device) in the “Garmin” folder (which you must create first if it doesn’t already exist).If These Free Garmin GPS Maps Don’t Work For YouThere are other free maps for your Garmin GPS, and again, they might have different instructions for installation. Check the website where the maps are offered for directions on how to install them.
100k Topo Map
is a great resource that’s frequently updated. I recommend trying this site before any others. is good if you want to grab.a smaller, more specific map. offers nautical charts.If you’re having trouble finding the GMAP folder, (thanks to Liz S!). Some Final ThoughtsI recommend planning your hike and creating a GPX file beforehand. Most Garmin GPS units are too small for anything more than impromptu navigation planning.And I could use your help. I don’t download these maps every day, so if these directions don’t seem up to date, please contact me and let me know.
I’ll update the directions here accordingly.Lastly, a note if you’re having tech issues. Unfortunately, I can’t help everyone who emails me. I recommend posting your question online in the, the, or in a Garmin group on Facebook. That’s probably you’re quickest path to success.
– – – –Hiking Guides– – – – – – – – – – – – –Read This Before Hiking WIth These GuidesThis information provided by HikingGuy.com is presented as a public service to those wishing to enjoy the outdoors. The recipient may use this information with the understanding that HikingGuy.com makes no warranties, although every attempt will be made to ensure the information is accurate. This website is not intended to replace official sources and information should not be considered error-free or not be used as the exclusive basis for decision-making. The use of the information provided by this website is strictly voluntary and at the user’s sole risk. HikingGuy.com assumes no responsibility or liability whatsoever associated with the use or misuse of this data.Some of the links on this website to REI, Amazon, and GaiaGPS are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive a small affiliate commission.
Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”Copyright © 2014-2019 HikingGuy All Rights Reserved.
Ishq na karna female songs downloads. GPS units can be useful tools for some wilderness trips, and they become more useful when loaded with topo maps. If you own a Garmin GPS unit, high quality free topo maps may be available for the areas you travel. You’ll need a Garmin GPS capable of receiving user uploaded maps, software, and the free maps. Free Garmin GPS MapsI remember my first search for free Garmin GPS maps had me pulling my hair out after spending hours trying to download them and getting them to work on my GPS, which is the one I list below, but the good news is that getting the maps is the easy part. You go over to the, click on the map you want and then download the executable file. Don’t run the executable file until you install the needed software. GPS Software Sample map from the GPSFileDepot.
The map on the left is the free map.Garmin’s Map Source software is required to load maps downloaded from GPSFileDepot onto your GPS. If you don’t have Map Source, you’ll need to download it by following the steps in.Once installed, run the executable map file that you downloaded. This will install the map into Map Source and your computer. You can delete the downloaded file after you finish installing it.To install the maps onto your GPS, follow. NOAA Charts on Your GPSIf you’re feeling like tackling a bigger project, in addition to you can put NOAA charts on your GPS.
You’ll need to purchase and follow the steps written by the Moagu creator in. Boundary Water (BWCA) Portage and Campsites for Garmin GPSIf you like to canoe in the BWCA, don’t forget your.
Useful Tools.: One of the lightest handheld GPS units on the market. It gets over 25 hours of battery life depending on batteries. I get 40 to 50 using Lithium.: 4GB memory card for the above GPS.
It holds a ton of maps, and you can save your daily GPS tracks to the card, which makes uploading to sites like (with a few hacks) and easy.: Excellent book that explains the basics of navigating using a GPS and translating those skills to a map.
. GET THE GEAR ON AMAZON.We dive into the kind of maps you can load onto your Garmin GPS device and Basecamp.There are 2 types of maps: paid vs free.Paid Maps: You can go and buy the various mapping products from Garmin, including the subscription service called Birdseye Imagery where you can choose between satellite or topo images.
Loading these maps onto your device is fairly easy via BasecampWatch this video on BirdseyeHowever for hiking, topo images may be a better option than the satellite simply because they do not provide the detail we'd want. Also depending on your area, you may have low-res satellite images.Birdseye Topo is much more useful for hiking, but the main disadvantage is not knowing how old these maps are based on your area. Luckily, there is an easier & free method to get the same type of map.Free Maps: Making a Garmin Custom Map using Google Earth is a good option which can take a few minutes to build. In our example, we've used the same data source to grab the latest published topo maps, cut a slice and made the KML file to import into BasecampWatch this video on Garmin Custom MapsThe disadvantage is that Custom Maps are picky and you might have to tweak your KML file to get the results that you want.The other free option is to simply search for 'Free Garmin Maps'. A number of sites like and other sites will have repositories with submitted maps. Depending on your area this might be a useful resource.If you are in Canada, there is the Ibycus Topo product , where the same government data source was used to grab the GIS (shapefiles) data instead of the raster images and produced Garmin maps using free tools.
The advantage is that these are vector maps and will behave like the Garmin products like City Navigator or Garmin Topo. Meaning that you can zoom in tight and not have pixel distortion like the Garmin Custom Map or Birdseye Topo.Another Free option which is to use the Garmin Openstreetmap. This is a free service that compiles garmin maps from openstreetmap.org Depending on your area, the detail might be lacking, however being an open source project, anybody including yourself can contribute to the map in a few clicks.Installing maps on our device is straight forward, take the img files and drop them into a folder named 'Garmin' on your SD card. You can drop the file in the Garmin folder on the device, but there are limitation and you'll have to rename your file gmapsupp.img. If you are using windows, you will find a.exe file as part of the download package to install in the right spot so that it appears in basecamp next time you start up the program.By placing your.img files on a SD card, you can rename them making it easier to manage. Also you can swap the card and insert into Garmin models.-Subscribe on YouTube (new video every Sunday!)Google+:Twitter:Check out more videos from the gang atThanks to our supporters-Avoiding Chores is a collection of interests from a group of guys who do everything possible NOT to do chores.
This involves getting into a number of interests such as: hiking, camping, outdoors, bushcraft, running, beer reviews, live hangouts and long term projects like living off the grid or stone carving.-. Download removewat windows 7 terbaru kementerian indonesia. Lost torrent vostfr saison 3 elementary.
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