Hello everyone! Not to very long ago someone posted an opinion of their Garmin GPS unit and naturally I've lost that email. I would like to hear your opinions on handheld GPS units for paddling. I'm looking for something to use to locate particular diving/fishing holes. Should be waterproof, store an appropriate amount of data (say 30 dive sites/fishing holes) and be easy to read. It's is to be used in combination with a depth finder. I'm just beginning to learn about these things and expect to purchase one in the next 60 days to prep for summer. Any information you can offer would be terrific. Thanks, Cheryl sometimes coastal paddler *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
The 12 map has a downloadable topo map which has offshore contours...possibly useful for diving. It's as waterproof as any GPS. cya -----Original Message----- From: owner-paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net [mailto:owner-paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net]On Behalf Of cthomp26_at_csc.com Sent: Wednesday, March 01, 2000 1:08 PM To: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subject: [Paddlewise] Best GPS??? Hello everyone! Not to very long ago someone posted an opinion of their Garmin GPS unit and naturally I've lost that email. I would like to hear your opinions on handheld GPS units for paddling. I'm looking for something to use to locate particular diving/fishing holes. Should be waterproof, store an appropriate amount of data (say 30 dive sites/fishing holes) and be easy to read. It's is to be used in combination with a depth finder. I'm just beginning to learn about these things and expect to purchase one in the next 60 days to prep for summer. Any information you can offer would be terrific. Thanks, Cheryl sometimes coastal paddler *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ *************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I use a Garmin 12XL that I bought a few years ago. It has a degree of waterproofness but I keep mine in a clear Seal bag attached to my PFG and spray skirt. I get about 12 hours of operation on 4 AA batteries. The new models are supposed to get 20-24. The 12XL has many different features, many of which I don't even know. But it tracks 12 satelites and locks on quickly which is why I bought it. The features I find most useful are besides tracking the 12 sats, is setting waypoints, current speed, miles traveled, and sunset/rise times. If I'm in an area I have not paddled before or often, I'll set a waypoint at the put in. I have had to use this once or twice to give me warm fuzzy feelin's when it took me longer to get back than I planned and the light had gone. Its pretty hard to tell one rented lighted beach house or canal to same. For a great reasource on GPS's see http://joe.mehaffey.com/ Hope this helps... Dan McCarty *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I have a Garmin 12XL. It is a very fine unit. It stores 500 waypoints and 1024 positions. With an extra cable, you can connect it to your computer for editing waypoints. Most software which are obtaineble from the web, let you edit tracks so you can edit some of the 1024 positions to give you a rough map. You can mark the diving/fishing places with symbols. The display can be scaled so you can easy find and track your way. Set your starting position and you can find your way back, but it may fail, so don't depend on it. A good chart should be there. Battery life is about 20 hours with rechargebel batteries. It is said to be waterproof but I prefer a plastic sealed bag . regards Kor *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
How about the Megellan 315 and 320. I'm also thinking about buying a unit but was leaning towards a Megellan after reading a few comparisons http://joe.mehaffey.com/mag-315.htm they look to be a little better but I'm more interested in real word experiences. has anyone used one of them? JFF >Hello everyone! > >Not to very long ago someone posted an opinion of their Garmin GPS unit and >naturally I've lost that email. I would like to hear your opinions on handheld >GPS units for paddling. I'm looking for something to use to locate particular >diving/fishing holes. Should be waterproof, store an appropriate amount of data >(say 30 dive sites/fishing holes) and be easy to read. It's is to be used in >combination with a depth finder. > >I'm just beginning to learn about these things and expect to purchase one in the >next 60 days to prep for summer. >Any information you can offer would be terrific. >Thanks, >Cheryl >sometimes coastal paddler > > > >*************************************************************************** >PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not >to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission >Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net >Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ >*************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question though....how close to your target do they really put you?? Cheryl *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
cthomp26_at_csc.com wrote: > All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question > though....how close to your target do they really put you?? > > Cheryl > > Officially they are accurate to about 50 feet. In the real world, where they don't always lock on to as many satellites as they want, mine has stated (it will tell you what its estimated accuracy is) an error of as much as 200 feet. When Uncle Sam decides to deliberately degrade the signal they can be off by 100 yards. Mike -- Paddling along through fog so thick that only one's thoughts are visible, your reverie is abruptly shattered by the ancient cry of a great blue heron as she lifts uncertainly from the brilliant blue of a mussel-shell beach witnessed only by the brooding, wet spruce....your passage home seems as much back through time as it does through space. Mark H Hunt *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 01:01 PM 3/2/00 -0500, Michael R Noyes wrote: >cthomp26_at_csc.com wrote: > >> All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question >> though....how close to your target do they really put you?? >> >> Cheryl >> >> > >Officially they are accurate to about 50 feet. In the real world, where they don't >always lock on to as many satellites as they want, mine has stated (it will tell >you what its estimated accuracy is) an error of as much as 200 feet. When Uncle >Sam decides to deliberately degrade the signal they can be off by 100 yards. > >Mike > I used it exclusively to return to my put in on the beach, I landed on my footprints. cya boy Bob you most have awful big footprints, any relation to bigfoot???:) Dana *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
There is an intentional error introduced in civilian GPS units by DOD to confound our enemies but I used my 12 one day when the error was turned off. My altitude varied around 4 feet and when I used it exclusively to return to my put in on the beach, I landed on my footprints. cya *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 12:26 PM 3/2/00 -0500, Bob Denton wrote: >There is an intentional error introduced in civilian GPS units by DOD to >confound our enemies but I used my 12 one day when the error was turned off. >My altitude varied around 4 feet and when I used it exclusively to return to >my put in on the beach, I landed on my footprints. Jeez! Just imagine if you were a cruise missle . . . -- Wes *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>> All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question though....how close to your target do they really put you?? Cheryl >> The GPS specification for SPS (Standard Positioning Service) is to be within 100 meters 95% of the time and within 300 meters 99.99% of the time. You can expect many GPS units to just about cut these figures in half, however, especially if you average your position for about 15 minutes. See http://users.erols.com/dlwilson/gpsavg.htm for more information than you want to know about the subject. In an experiment I conducted a few weekends ago, I left my Garmin 12XL on while skiing cross-country trails on the edge of the Boundary Waters. When I got home, I uploaded the resulting tracks to the TOPO! mapping program. The greatest divergence between tracks (coming and going on the same trail, where they should have coincided) was about 100 meters, and that might have been because the batteries were running low (they were exhausted by the time I got back to the cabin). On another loop, which I skied on two different days, the two sets of tracks were practically superimposed (within about 5 meters of each other). One thing I noticed from this experiment is that the GPS positions seem most accurate where I was moving, probably because the Garmins try to predict your course for a short distance ahead, to allow for momentary gaps in satellite reception. In places where I stopped for several minutes, such as at shelters, there is a small cluster of dots caused by a deliberate degradation of the signal called Selective Availability (SA). I have a JPG file that shows this GPS track on a topo map, and if I had a place to post it on the Web, I would. Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
|All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question |though....how close to your target do they really put you?? As others have said, the accuracy depends on what Uncle Sam decides for a particular area at a given time. When it is accurate it is right on. I was following a map course one day toward a point out in the lake. The point was on a certain even number navigation line and the GPS was updating as I went. As I crossed the imaginary navigation line the GPS matched the map exactly. Pretty amazing. On the other hand I have been paddling on the ocean and the GPS has told me that I'm at -400 feet below sea level! I did not know I had a sub! 8-) I have also noticed that high power transmission lines will really mess up the GPS. Some GPS's are much better than others in the woods. The trees will block/deflect signals. I have tried to use the GPS to match up some topo map features with GPS readings taken in the woods. But this was not very successful. I'm not sure if the map was inaccurate or the GPS was the offender. I suspect a little of both. Hope this helps... Dan *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question >though....how close to your target do they really put you?? >Cheryl > Close enough for you to throw a rock at the true location. Supposedly plus/minus 100 meters nominally, but I usually find an error no worse than +/- 100 ft. FWIW, on a 1:24000 topo map this error maps out smaller than a pencil line. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>All the information re GPS has been helpful, thanks everyone. Another question >though....how close to your target do they really put you?? >Cheryl > Close enough for you to throw a rock at the true location. Supposedly plus/minus 100 meters nominally, but I usually find an error no worse than +/- 100 ft. FWIW, on a 1:24000 topo map this error maps out smaller than a pencil line. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ *************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
The map I mentioned in a previous post can now be seen at http://www.thundercom.net/bearskinmap.jpg. Note that it is about 552KB even at maximum JPEG compression, so it will take a while to download to your screen. The map shows tracks recorded by a Garmin GPS12XL while I was cross-country skiing in northern Minnesota. I uploaded the tracks to the TOPO! mapping program and then exported the map from the program. The loop around Rudy Lake in the upper right was skied twice on two successive days, so it consists of two superimposed sets of track points. Note that the track points are farther apart where I skied a rather fast downhill run. The loop in the lower left was skied once. The trail to the loop was skied coming and going, so the tracks should overlap there. That they don't I attribute mostly to an exhausted set of batteries that were causing the GPS to beep constantly towards the end. The straighter track is the more accurate one. Note that the tracks don't always fit exactly on top of the summer trails. This could be because of inaccuracies in the topo map (remember, the map is not the territory!), but Selective Availability could also play a part. Comparing this map to the map of the ski trails given out by Bearskin Lodge, I think the GPS map is the more accurate one, judging by what I can remember of some of the trails. BTW, Dan Cooke, who has been mentioned a couple of times on PW as a source of tarps (http://www.cookecustomsewing.com/) told me a couple weekends ago that he designed some of these trails, in particular the part of the Rudy Lake loop south of the lake. Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I suspect that the areas that didn't overlap were due to SA (induced error) possibly exacerbated by tree cover or poor geometry caused by mountains, etc. I usually fly somewhere weekly and always take my GPS. I'm often amazed at how close tracks from subsequent trips are, often only a few hundred feet apart. The ETAs shown on my GPS are usually within a minute of those given by the pilot. Having the mapping built-in is neat because one can actually identify all those lakes, rivermouths and cities. A few weeks ago I flew directly over my old neighborhood in Virginia, but I didn't see it because it was solid cloud cover. What else is there to do these days when you can't even open a laptop! cya *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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