[Rade]

I wanted to get some opinions on whether or not a GPS has much practical use here in the PNW. The few times I've taken my (semi-obsolete) Garmin 3 hiking it hasn't really been of much use aside from giving altitude measurements and a rough idea of distance travelled. Plus I seem to loose reception with annoying frequency hiking up to Copper Lake. Anyhow I was thinking about it and I can't for the life of me find a really good argument for carrying one. While it is nice in an academic way to know where you are down to 3 meters accuracy, I've never been on a hike in the Cascades where I couldn't figure out where I was roughly by dead reckoning and a map (Ok we just cross the creek and turned up hill, so it's two more creek crossings and about two miles to the lake). A map and compass is lighter and doesn't reley on batteries, so what am I missing? Thanks for any advice/opinions/insults....

[Dante]

I posted something similar a year or so ago. You might do a search. I bought a magellan Meridian Platinum and the topo software, which I have used on several hikes since then. Honestly, it is a cool toy, but if I had it to do over again I would probably listen to the people who told me not to bother. IMO a good topo, the know-how to use it and an altimeter are much more useful... Just my $0.02

[Tom]

For one, a GPS can let you know how overconfident you may be in your navigation skills. I use my GPS primarily for tracking my path so that when I get home I can review how I got there vs. how I thought I got there. Most times there are no surprises, but occasionally there are. You can't learn from mistakes you never knew you made. Second, a GPS can be invaluable when you (and every member in your hiking party) are exhausted after a long day, not thinking clearly, and want a fifth opinion. Sure, you may eventually be able to sort things out after making that oh so subtle navigation error and start heading down the wrong ridge in the dark with an injured party who doesn't have the luxury of climbing back up. Also, a GPS can be nice for re-calibrating your altimeter watch. When you have a 3D lock the GPS elevation is extremely accurate. When I travel solo off trail in a location I've never been I think the extra 7 ounces are worth the insurance.

[Malachai Constant]

As long as you stay on trails you do not need a GPS in my opinion. They are very handy when you are off trail and in snow particularly. The track provides an invisible "tagline" making it very easy to retrace your route like Tom says. A mapping one allows you to carry an electronic copy of the whole range in your pocket.

[Dante]

Despite what I posted above, I still carry mine whenever I go out...mostly for the reasons tom aludes to. It is fun to figure out where you think you are the old way and then see where the GPS says you are. I think one would be invaluable in poor visibility, but I have not been in that situation with my GPS yet. I restrict my off-trail travel to daylight hours and haven't been in thick clouds with my GPS yet.

[alpineandy]

The previous opinions (cool toy, etc.) are right on, but here's how I justified it to my wife: "Remember that time on the Muir snowfield in fog?" The end. Yes, compass and map will get it done, too, but when you are off trail or on snow it is SO worth it to be able to just glance at a gps rather than fumble w/compass and map (tho I always carry them anyway), IMHO. My Legend bailed me out once on Kaleetan (missed re-entry into the woods on descent) and once on Rainier this year. Plus, they're super cool.

[Brian Curtis]

To make your GPS really useful and easy to use print out your maps using software such as Topo!, and overlay a UTM grid. It instantly transforms the GPS into a very useful tool where you can quickly, easily, and accurately locate yourself on the map.

[Slugman]

I usually hike alone, and so I need a second opinion. Maps are great, but knowing where I am on the map helps me a lot. Snowshoeing and off-trail hiking make the GPS a necessity. It is part tool, part toy, and part survival gear.

[Steve]

When you are hiking through snow it is very handy to have. I've used mine quite a bit even when I really did not need it. It's also handy if your driving in an area you aren't familiar with. When we were in Utah last year we drove right past a turn off and found our mistake with the GPS. If you are good enough with your map and compass and don't feel the need to have a GPS, then don't try to find a reason. Save your money.

[HappyGillmore]

I believe in gathering as much info before a hike as possible. I use my GPSr software to plot a trail. How to get to the trailhead and the trail itself. Since I do a lot of not "official" trail hiking I can see if I have arrived at the right place. I then keep my GPSr on all the time I am hiking to run a breadcrumb trail so I can download it to my computer later for accuracy in case someone else wants to know where the trail is. I use it while hiking to mark waypoints of interests I see as I hike, i.e. waterfalls, good campsites for the next time, rock slides (to report them to the forest service), etc. I also use it to know where I am on the trail, according to the map I have downloaded to the GPSr. It isn't always easy to tell. I like the idea of adding the gridlines to the paper map (which I always take). The combo should work quite nicely. I would use the Log/Lat setting, not UTM. I have the Mapsend Streets Topo, which comes in very handy for hiking. However, I use the Topo! brand software to mark trails and print maps. The combo works well because Mapsend shows streets very clearly for driving and the Topo! software shows the hiking trails. I went on a bike ride across the John Wayne/Iron Horse Trail two years ago. My wife dropped off my son and me on a Monday and I told her I would call her on Friday to pick us up. I had no itinerary other than to have a great time with my son. We stopped when we found good fishing holes. We camped when were tired. We had no schedule. Because I had my GPSr on Friday morning I found exactly where we were. I hadn't looked until then. I called my wife and told her at what exit on HWY 90 to meet us. We reached the exit about 10 minutes before she did. We never had any worries because we could know in any weather condition where we were and we had a cell phone if an emergency came up. Wheither I used it or not I would never go hiking with out it. Unless I am on a ridge I haven't found a map and compass very effective here in the NW. There simply isn't anything to get a baring on. The GPS takes care of that problem. If I were to buy a GPSr today, I would by a color unit. MUCH easier to read.

[Brian Curtis]

[Allison]

[Tom]

Was that the Alta altimeter watch Slugman sold you for $20? According to the manual it comes with a 2 year warranty. If he bought it from REI Outlet it may have a lifetime warranty.

[HappyGillmore]

My GPSr default is Lat/Log, not UTM. I believe most GPSr come with the same default. I maybe missing some reason to change it to UTM. Enlighten me.

[Brian Curtis]

UTM is a logical scale that easily translates from GPS to map, and from map to field. A typical UTM grid is 1000 meter squares. If your GPS has an easting of 647150E you know that you are 150 meters east of the 647000E grid line. You instantly know you are 15% of the way between the lines, but you can also easily and quickly estimate distances, in meters, to objects in the grid. And the grid operates right to left and bottom to top so if you have, like me, spent a lot of time with x-y graphs it feels natural. Lat long gives you what looks like a rectangle. It actually isn't because the longitude lines are converging as they go north, but on the typical 1 minute grid it is close enough. A 1 minute grid box is (very) roughly twice the size of a 1000 meter UTM grid. You must make sure your GPS is reading in decimals, not minutes and seconds. If your GPS is reading 121° 02.750' W you know you are about 75% of the way between the 121°02.000 W line and the 121° 03.000W line. but that tells you nothing instantly intuitive about how far you are from the lines or objects on the map in feet or meters. Plus, the distance in the north south direction per decimal is completely different from the east west distance per decimal. And if you go to somewhere else in the world the distances will be different again. The UTM grid is always 1000 meter squares. You have to figure your position from the relatively non-intuitive right to left and bottom to top directions. I know that Okanogan S&R uses UTM. I'm guessing the other S&Rs do too.