Gps recomendations

Questions about equipment and supplies to bring on a trip (including reviews).

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slsail
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by slsail »

Gps on isle royale for what? May be a dumb question but what do you need one for. Arno batteries an issue like after a day
tree rattt
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by tree rattt »

A question for the best detailed map upgrade for the island.... we have a garmin etrex 20 and we want detail .suggestions?

Thanks :)

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fonixmunkee
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by fonixmunkee »

tree rattt wrote:A question for the best detailed map upgrade for the island.... we have a garmin etrex 20 and we want detail .suggestions?
I still have an old GPSMAP 60cs (you'll never take it from me, Garmin!) and I used the National Parks East topo 24k. It's discontinued now: https://buy.garmin.com/en-CA/CA/maps/di ... od999.html

National Park topo 24k IR view: http://www8.garmin.com/cgi-bin/mapgen/w ... 0&k=1&sc=1

Looks like the only solution now is the Topo U.S., 24K great lakes region: https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/prod30149.html

We've been able to us it to find really obscure stuff on IR, like the Senter Point powder house and the Island Mine cemetery.
tree rattt
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by tree rattt »

Thanks for the reply fonixmunkee.Looks like we are on the right road then.I ordered one up from rei ......now I have to wait to play :)
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fonixmunkee
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by fonixmunkee »

If the Topo 24k great lakes is indeed the right version that contains IR, please let us know here on the forums. I'm sure many others may have the same question...
Gimp
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by Gimp »

fonixmunkee wrote:If the Topo 24k great lakes is indeed the right version that contains IR, please let us know here on the forums. I'm sure many others may have the same question...
I have the Great Lakes version loaded on my Garmin Rino 650. I can confirm that it's the correct version for IR. I purchased it for my canoe trip two years ago although I think that I only turned it on a couple of times out of sheer curiosity. I'm used to maps and I found that I was able to pull that out and estimate my position and distances far quicker than it took me to pull the GPS out, turn it on, find an angle where the sun isn't reflecting off of the screen, access the right feature, get oriented, and then pack it away again. I guess that I'm old school and tend to think of the GPS as a backup to the map, while people who are used to a GPS probably consider the map to be the backup. The 650 has a weather radio and a short range 2-way radio feature so I really purchased it for emergencies as I was paddling solo.
tree rattt
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by tree rattt »

We recieved the Garmin great lakes update already. All I can say is wow! Very pleased :) I believe it is all I was looking for, lovin the detail! The etrex 2020 is impressing me as well .It has the full color screen, It can be easily seen in full sun, seems to aquire satelites quickly , my favorite part ....easy to use ;) It should make a very nice toy 8)
slosteppin
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by slosteppin »

I have a DeLorme PN-60 with both satellite and 1:24000 USGS topo maps downloaded for the whole island. One time I went to IR with 2 friends (brothers). We had planned to completely circle the island. The brothers decided to go on down to Washington Creek instead of taking the Siskiwit loop. I gave them the paper map and I used my DeLorme. When I met them at Washington Creek campground they had decided to take the ferry partway around the north side. I used the Delorme for the Minong Ridge trail. It worked very well but I still prefer to carry paper maps and compass. I carry the GPS on almost every hike just to determine the distance.

I have used older models and had several problems. Usually batteries fail.
bakchr
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Re: Gps recomendations

Post by bakchr »

I have a Garmin Oregon 450 that I use primarily for Geocaching. I downloaded the free Michigan Topo map into basecamp from GPSFileDepot and installed on the GPS with no issues. While it is not route-able, it seems to show a high degree of detail for Isle Royale including topography, marsh areas, campsites, trails, etc. It seems like it should work pretty well, but I have no experience with it in the field yet. The Oregon seems to be pretty good on batteries, I would not expect to go through more than 4 AA batteries for the week, at most 6.
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