Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board gps for off trail hiking

As an avid map & compass user who has been up & down Whitney MR a couple of times (winter & summer), I have avoided use of GPS to date (as technology evolves & gets cheaper). However, I am now thinking of buying either garmin e-trex30, oregon or montana but would really like an impartial view from experienced user/s of these devices? Now, I have already checked REI customer review comments and, not surprisingly, they are all over the map (bad pun!).

So, I am looking for any guidance that fellow Whitney ascendants may have or maybe a good reference/review of the alternative GPS systems.

I started off years ago with an old Garmin GPS II+ (no maps, just bearings to waypoints). When it finally gave up, I bought an Oregon 450 plus the topo maps separately on DVD.

Plusses: Color display, 1:100k topos loadable for the area you plan on visiting, alarm clock function, USB interface (unlike the old GPS II+ that was serial).

Minuses: Battery life (not bad with lithiums but if you run it continuously with the compass function "on," it will eat batteries in less than a day. With the compass "off," and turning it off at stops, a set of lithiums will last a couple of days.) This is a tradeoff for the better display, more memory, etc., not really a criticism. Plus, it only eats two AAs at a time, not four like the old GPS II+.

Fundamentally, would I buy it again? Yup...works extremely well for my purposes and the tradeoffs were things I expected with the added capabilities.

Like you, I've found that the reviews for the eTrex 20 are all over the map...

I like the dual constellation feature of this new line (US/Russian). I find that the device is much more consistent with its measurements of the same route... MR at about 4.5 miles multiple times. (Interesting side note: drift over time seems to be a problem with these devices as the longer it took me to cover the same ground, the longer the distance measurement was/is.)

My Legend HCx was all over the place with its measurements of the same route...

Something to keep in mind is whether you plan to use the GPS in cold weather. You may prefer a GPS with buttons rather than a touch screen if you'll frequently use it in cold weather.

When Garmin announced it was discontinuing the 60CSx line I bought a second one as it does everything I need. The new 62 series is similar to the old 60CSx. It uses buttons rather than a touch screen.

I have a Garmin GPSMAP 60csx. (Used to have an old etrex, really didn't like the screen or interface, but I am sure it has improved.) I used the 60csx on every hike for a few years, but hardly use it any more as I have gotten more comfortable with paper topo. The pros for the 60csx (and presumably superseding lines) include powerful antenna, strong visuals, and decent ease-of-use/interface. The big con is weight.

Now I tend to download GPS-enabled topo to my iPhone, and use that to verify my position on a paper topo if/when I feel the need for it. As you know, running the iPhone in GPS mode constantly would destroy the battery. But using it on an as-needed basis to confirm location does not. All the NatGeo and Tom Harrison maps (including the JMT map pack), among others, are available in gps-enabled format for download as iPhone apps.

I have tested my iPhone's GPS chip and confirmed that I can pointpoint location in the wilderness, even when out of range for data/phone. I've heard that the GPS chips can fail, so probably good to test them from time to time where they have to do all the work without an assist from wifi or data....

I'm very happy with my Garmin 62s. The menu is similar to the Oregon but I prefer buttons over touchscreen and the 62s antenna.

One feature I really like with the higher end Garmins (non-eTrex) is the ability to create and upload custom maps. You can create a google earth overlay using a jpeg image of any map and upload that to the GPS. Creating the overlay is tricky at first but pretty straight forward. There are online librarys of overlayed maps but I usually make my own. A little more work than the phone apps but I like ability to navigate and battery life of my Garmin.

I noticed a couple of comments from smart phone users. One serious limitation to keep in mind is that smart phones use rechargeable (and often non-user-replaceable) batteries.

The dedicated GPS units generally use standard AA or AAA batteries, so it is easy to carry some spares and replace them as needed. (You can use NiMH or other rechargeable AA cells but the lithium primary AAs perform much better in cold conditions.)

Not a problem in your car where the smart phone can be in a charging cradle but a big issue on multi-day trips in the back country.

Just a quick comment... think battery "banks." Many manufacturers these days. I saw one the other day that was 10000 whatever (in terms of battery reserve).

I do get enough daily charge from my Solio (solar charger) to keep my iPhone going indefinitely in the backcountry, based on very limited use when I am out there (music, ebooks, limited gps checkin). There are drawbacks to iPhones but for me, charge has not been one of them.

I choose between 2 GPS devices to take in the field. They each have pros and cons. You have to decide want you want the GPS for.

I love the Foretrex 101 that uses 2 AAA batteries for rescue work where I am not lost but need to often work in Lat/Lon and UTM at the same time. I also have to report our position frequently.

I tend to carry my iPhone most often now. In the Eastern Sierra there is a fair chance of finding a location to make an emergency call. But mostly, the maps that I have with the TopoMap App are amazing. They are higher resolution than any other topo maps I've found. That detail is very important to make route finding decisions. Having the "you are here" blue dot on a topo map is very easy.

There are a few things to do to manage the battery issue.
1) I only turn on the phone when I need it. Don't use it to track your route. Having the phone running the GPS in the background while hiking will eat your battery.
2) Off means off, not sleep.
3) There are external batteries and cases with batteries.
4) The iPhone trying to contact the cell tower in the wilderness uses more power than using just the GPS receiver. There is a sneaky way to turn off the cellular while keeping the GPS on.

Two words. Airplane mode.

(When not using GPS to check location.)

touch screen use with those Sensatec touch-screen compatible gloves help any for your choice of buttons vs screen?