GPS Maps

[Whip]

Yeah, when I finally read the instructions it does say that it wipes out all current maps each time you load a new one.  This is going to be a pain in the backside.  I can't just load the maps I need this year.  I am going to have to download each state that I think I might ever hunt with this unit, one at a time, and then install them all at once on the GPS.  
My network connection is fairly slow, so it is a very time intensive process.  But I do have it figured out I think.

[Huh]

You can load multiple maps, but it should be done at the same time.  If you want to load them all and not have them all available at the same time then you can trick the unit by renaming files.  It is described at this site:   http://asiteaboutnothing.net/g_60csx.html

Basically the older Garmins only look for a file called "gmapsupp.img" on the memory card.  So, load a bunch of properly formatted files onto the memory card and then rename them to make the gps find the one you want it to find.  If you have a brand new

Utah has quite a bit of GIS data available online and free including property boundaries at their cadastral mapping site.  

If you have a smart phone you can do way more with maps than you can with a Garmin.  There are free apps and data everywhere.

[Whip]

That's a cool trick Huh.  Thanks.
I prefer the GPS over the phone for a couple of reasons - first being that cell signal coverage is spotty at best in many of the mountain areas.  Secondly, battery life on my phone is bad, especially when in roaming mode and with GPS turned on.  No way would it last through a day without a charge.

[John Scifres]

Yea, that's the learning curve part. Sorry.  Once you get it figured out, it works really well.

[Whip]

Well, it did take some time, but after hours of downloads I finally have topo maps from gpsfiledepot loaded on my unit.  I was able to cover 12 states which brought me up close to the 2GB limit of the unit.  I also added a transparent trails overlay that covers more than 30 states and the western land ownership overlay.  The quality of the maps seem excellent and should be a big help next month.

It did take some messing around, but I now have what I needed and more.  I'm sure the huntinggpsmaps are great also, and probably a lot easier to load, but I wanted to cover a lot of states, and these free ones will work just fine.