GPS suggestions (hopefully)

Dani

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Good afternoon all-

This weekend Steve and I went turkey hunting (more on that adventure a little later) in a swamp that I am fairly familiar with but it changes some from year to year, especially when it fills up with water and some of my landmarks go underwater. I have a GPS that is about 10 years old and it created an issue this weekend. We did a little more exploring of the property that we hadn't checked out before. I knew roughly where I was but we wanted to head back to the truck and I figured the "quickest" way would be to follow the GPS to some known trails that will get us back pretty quick. Long story short, the GPS doesn't update our progress as quickly as we move through the heavily canopied woods (and we don't move fast at all....I'm a bit of a klutz so try not to move so fast that I'll face plant in the mud). As a result, we ended up meandering through the woods as opposed to actually heading to the trail, me getting frustrated and us taking much longer to get through the woods because I seriously began doubting my ability to read a GPS.

So I am in need of updating to a new GPS. Here is the caveat....it needs to be large screened so that it can be read fairly easily without having to dig out reading glasses or wondering where the heck we are trying to go because the screen is so small you can see where you are but you can't tell where you want to go. Are there tablet sized GPSs out there? I'm not overly worried about it being big. We need something to navigate the woods that we both can read.

Thanks a lot...

Dani
 
perhaps and maybe one can be suggested....but do apps work if your cell service takes a nose dive and you have little to no service? I have very, very, very little experience with apps so I have no clue is why I ask.

Steve has iphone....I have android if anyone has app suggestions
 
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Dani,

Take a look at GAIA as an app for either android or iphone. They have changed their policies a bit recently but I used it out west the past couple of years with great success. In fact my Garmin never comes out of my pack. Once you down load the map of the area you will be in you don't need a cell signal at all for it to follow your progress. Lays down tracks that you can follow back with ease. One caveat is that if you are in battery saving mode on your phone it may not update as fast as you would like - found that out recently. All in all a very good off road app. Not sure what the current cost is but two years ago is was $20 one time for the basic and $20/year for the advanced service. I believe that in the advanced service they also have public/private boundary maps that really come in handy in some parts of the country.

Pete
 
I'll second the recommendation for the GAIA GPS app. Use it on my Iphone. Can instantly download USGS topo maps, NOAA charts, and aerial/satellite photos any place with a cell signal. If you'll be someplace without a cell signal, you can download the data in advance and still have GPS capability in the field.

One problem--it sucks batteries hard. Don't leave it running if you'll be in the field all day, or you will end up with a dead phone AND a dead GPS. But fine if you are in and out of the vehicle and can recharge a few times during the day.

Pete--what is the policy change? I've noticed no difference in my using it, but am worried I may be missing something.

I have found that at slow walking speeds, like still hunting, walking a bird cover, or even snow shoeing, the GPS direction of travel function and compass are pretty useless. I always keep a compass on me as back up. GPS tells me where I am and what direction other things are. Compass updates instantly and keeps me walking in a straight line. I had a hell of time one day sculling on a thick fog with no wind. Got turned around, and couldn't get up enough speed that my GPS would give me a reliable direction of travel indication. Went around in circles until I got smart and dug the compass out of the pack.

An old merchant mariner buddy of mine told me to always have two navigation aids. Not just as back-up, but also because if one of them is wrong you'll never know, but if you have two, you will at least know something is wrong. And if they do, trust the compass. Not much that can go wrong with it--and you can't say that about anything electronic.
 
Not trying to put ya down, but buy a GOOD Compass. Learn to use it and TRUST IT.

Flat ground , swamp ,marsh, etc., "turned around" experiences can really test a person. Especially if medical issues are a concern or may occur.

Hunting partners and myself have been on the GPS merry-go-round since they first came out, and one way or another they just do not cut it.


Seems the more we trust in modern technology, the more we forget how we did get around for so long without it.


A Brunton Eclipse 8097 on a lanyard around my neck, is the first thing I do before reaching for any other hunting or fishing equipment.

Jeff is correct, having another one with you as a back up is smart.

So far, so good in Geezer World.

My flip cell phone stays in my pack, or another pocket, as most times service is not so good.
 
Always hit some waypoints & save them, one at the vehicle and a few points along the way!

I have an older Garmin 76, I like it. Easy to use. The newer color ones are even better.

My advice: A new GPS, install an app on your smart phone as back up and have a compass!
 
Jeff,

I first got Gaia on my MotoX 2nd Gen phone a couple of years ago and it worked great. Last August I traded up to an Samsung S8 and on a trip to Colorado the Gaia app wasn't updating. I contacted Gaia and the result of our conversation was that when I put the phone in battery saving mode it likely throttles Gaia back and doesn't allow it to update at it's normal rate. They put me on an apparently temporary list serve to address software issues. After a month or more I got an email that my subscription had expired and I needed to renew. My original subscription was $20 one time. Since then I haven't gone back to see if I am still subscribed to my original level or not.

Regarding battery usage. If you are in an area with limited cell coverage anyway like most of us are when we are out and about in the woods set your phone to Airplane mode, making sure WiFi, Blue Tooth, etc are turned off also. Gaia works just fine and your batteries will last at least all day and sometimes two days even with tracking turned on. Of course you will have to have the map of your area already downloaded when you do that.

Pete
 
Vince,

I get what you are saying. In 2006 my buddies said I HAD to get a gps for a new area we were hunting in Colorado. Being a die hard compass and map user I felt as you do but capitulated and bought a Garmin. It's been fun to play with and really helps pin down a location. The new Gaia app for my phone is so good that I don't even take the Garmin out of my pack. I still carry two compasses as well and always have one on my belt for those times when it is more handy than either a gps or my Gaia app.

When going to a new area to hunt I download a map to my Gaia app AND go to My Topo and order a hard copy map. The past couple of years the hard copy map is relegated to the same pocket as the Garmin and rarely sees the light of day but I know it's there and how to use it if I need it. Sometimes it's nice to pull out the hard copy while having lunch to get the big picture to plan an afternoon hunt strategy.
 
Uh, bread crumbs. How hard is this?

May not be a solution but I use the Navionics app in instances such as this. It is pretty close to accurate. You don't have to be on a lake for it to work and it has gotten me out of places when I got turned around. Granted I don't go far into unfamiliar places much anymore so may or may not work for your needs.

Mark
 
Pete -

I have been a map and compass guy for so long, that as hard as I try to move forward with a GPS. I feel I'm moving backward, and many times I am. So at my age I'll just stick with what gets me there and back so far... and getting "turned around" allows me to find new places. Lost is an entirely different story.

Not long ago a friend of mine bought a new Garmin (his third) and used it while we were hunting new grouse cover. He spent more time looking at the Garmin than he did at where we were and what nature was showing us. I'd just shake my head at him and laugh. He did not find it funny.

If I became a big game hunter and hunted out west and north. Then I would get a smart phone, a Garmin, and do my best to understand and use them. There is a GPS on my flip phone and I have used it at times where there is service. More out of amusement than purpose.

I have no skill carving decoys with a Foredom, and even less when trying to use a GPS. I do admire those that do, but they are beyond me.

The time may come when I will learn the GPS, but not the Foredom. Gotta draw the line somewhere.
 
My old gps started having limitations, and I was in the position of spending a bunch for a new one or getting a smart phone and app. BackCountryNavigator is great. I down load FREE USGS topo's and Marine Charts, to the phone's chip. The advanced Pro copy of the app cost $10. when I got it. You don't need cell coverage! The app uses the cell phones GPS chip.

It works for me.
 
Check out the Onx Hunt App for woods

Navionics App for water.

Both work with cell phone in airplane mode (which saves battery life)
 
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