Turn By Turn from custom GPS file

greensaharatj

New member
First post here (I think) I've read many many trip reports and other posts on this forum and have finally decided to start doing some expedition type trips myself. Starting off small and going to run the TAT however I'm really having trouble deciding the best way to navigate this trail. I've bought the GPS files from Sam and have them loaded into GaiaGPS however Gaia doesn't offer any kind of turn-by-turn directions. Does anyone on here know of an app that will let you import a custom track either a KML file from Gaia or .gdb file from Sam to get turn by turn? I know you can use Basecamp and a Nuvi or something but this adds another device to the mix which I'd like to avoid. Thanks!
 

e60ral

2016 4Runner Trail w/KDSS
MapFactor GPS Navigator allows you to import GPX files and does turn by turn navigation but i don't know how it would handle the roads for the TAT
 

dstock

Explorer
First post here (I think) I've read many many trip reports and other posts on this forum and have finally decided to start doing some expedition type trips myself. Starting off small and going to run the TAT however I'm really having trouble deciding the best way to navigate this trail. I've bought the GPS files from Sam and have them loaded into GaiaGPS however Gaia doesn't offer any kind of turn-by-turn directions. Does anyone on here know of an app that will let you import a custom track either a KML file from Gaia or .gdb file from Sam to get turn by turn? I know you can use Basecamp and a Nuvi or something but this adds another device to the mix which I'd like to avoid. Thanks!

I think that's the biggest issue for me is most of the apps won't do turn by turn directions. I've tried a bunch but keep finding myself going back to my standalone Garmin/Base camp solution.
 

greensaharatj

New member
QUOTE=e60ral;2293316]MapFactor GPS Navigator allows you to import GPX files and does turn by turn navigation but i don't know how it would handle the roads for the TAT[/QUOTE]

Thanks I will download and try that

I think that's the biggest issue for me is most of the apps won't do turn by turn directions. I've tried a bunch but keep finding myself going back to my standalone Garmin/Base camp solution.

For shorter trails I'm fine with just following a line on the map but for something like the TAT that will lots of turns I have a feeling it would get frustrating without something saying "turn here" so I may have to suck it up and take the Garmin on this trip :/
 

Airmapper

Inactive Member
I think if anyone finds a way to do this it will be the holy grail of navigation.

The problem is the road mapping is not perfect, and the real world mapping isn't perfect, and you try to combine the two the software just wouldn't know what to do with it. It might be possible for it to figure out where you wanted to be, but with all the inconsistencies, it may spit out something that doesn't make any sense. I get frustrated enough with auto-routing software and that is without specifying a set of field collected data to follow like a bread crumb trail.

Another thing that makes it even worse it most mapping data is full of tiny flaws that completely screw up turn by turn. Thru roads in reality that in the data are separated in the middle, prompting it to detour you miles around. Even if you ignore it and go through, it insists you've missed something and must go back, and won't correct itself despite you being on the track.

Making the software understand how to convert a track-log over onto road mapping is a very tedious and difficult thing.

Lets say 2 roads are running parallel for a bit, like an old access road and an interstate lane. If one point of the GPX file strays over on the interstate on the map, which is easily done given the variable accuracy of both the GPS collecting the data and the acceptable error in the road map, it could very well try to route you to the nearest exit from one point, down the interstate to hit that stray point, then back off the interstate and back to the access road to continue on. Very frustrating.

To the computer, it's done exactly what you asked, made sure you stay on the track-log via the roads. But to you it's completely went bonkers.

In situations where I am traveling along a planned route that is far too complex for turn by turn to comprehend, I have resorted to running 2 units side by side. On one side a tablet with a colorful line of my intended route for following the yellow brick road as it were. On the other side a Garmin, that I can move to at any time and punch in a request to find a fuel station or place to eat, at which point it calculates a path and directs me where to go.

I suppose the same might be accomplished with 2 apps on a tablet. One app for raw follow the line nav, and one for turn by turn.
 

dstock

Explorer
I think if anyone finds a way to do this it will be the holy grail of navigation.

Agreed!

Agree with everything else in your post as well. As much as I want all of these apps to work, the simplicity and functionality of my Garmin just can't seem to be beat. It's an old Garmin Zumo 550 that I use on my motorcycle as well. Had it for years now and still functions just as well as day 1. I can see it in bright sunlight in the Jeep or on the bike. Base Camp isn't awful to use and I can import .kml's from Google/Google Earth as needed.

The other issue with tablets is that the OS changes so often, that eventually the tablet hardware can't keep up and they get slower and slower. I speak mostly of Android but I notice similar issues on my SO's Ipad which is a few years old.

I've been checking out the new Garmin models and may upgrade at some point in the future as they certainly have gotten even nicer over the last few years. Definitely not cheap but in my opinion still worth it.
 

ohiobenz

Member
MapFactor GPS Navigator allows you to import GPX files and does turn by turn navigation but i don't know how it would handle the roads for the TAT

I've been able to download a GPX on my Android and Mapfactor sees it in the "Record/Replay" section.
I have not however been able to do the same on my Surface Pro 2017 Tablet. The program and US/Canada maps loaded fine, the GPX is on the desktop but I can't figure out how to point to it....
 

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