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Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: Arrowcraft on January 01, 2016, 03:04:00 PM
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I am looking for some imput on hand held gps.I have gotten turned around a few times , so now at 65 I am a little apprehensive about how far I go into deer woods. I bought a little gps at cabelas but returned it did not work for me . Iam looking for one that is extremely simple and reliable to use, being 65 also makes me not so tech savy .Easy in easy out ! THANKS
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My dad has a Garmin Etrex 30 we got him, He is 64 and caught on to it pretty good. They do all you will ever need. It would be advisable to get with someone tech savy that has one and get tutored. I had to do that with my dad. Once you get the hang of it they can be your most valuable tool besides your bow. Not overly traditional but highly valuable for marking stand spots on scouting forays. Whatever you get make sure it has Topo maps loaded in into or at least available for it.
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Look at a Bushnell BackTrack. Super simple. I have an older model that will always get me back to the truck or camp. No bells or whistles, but it works.
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I'm a tech tard (my boy says) but my Garmin 62S is my way to and from.
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I haven't spent much time in Massachusetts, but my impression is that the woods there are a lot thicker than they are out west. Even here, there have been times I have had to find some place out from under the trees to get a gps signal. Plus, like any toy, a gps can break, so you should still have some alternative means of finding your way back. But they are a great help, and I use one all the time, in or out of the woods.
One of the things you might consider is one of the new gps watches. Mostly they don't have maps built in, but the one I looked at that did have a map, the map was so small I decided it wouldn't be of much use anyway. But what they do have are simple ways to find your way back to the place where you started. One click when you leave the truck and it starts recording where you are. Two clicks when you want to go back and it takes you back where you started.
One advantage of a watch is that if you like it enough, maybe you'll start wearing it all the time. Then whenever you have an odd moment or two, you'll start fiddling with it to figure out all the things it does. The first one I got, several years ago, didn't have much battery life, and so wasn't really that useful for extended trips in the field. But the one I have now keeps a charge for a long time. I recently returned from a two week trip to Peru, where I always used the watch for the normal functions, such as time, compass, and elevation, and occasionally used the gps when I didn't want to get lost wandering around in a strange town. It was still more than 50% charged at the end of the two weeks.
I have a map on the larger Garmin gps I have, but to be honest with you, I don't really need it. I know enough about the area I'm in to know generally where lakes, rivers, and mountains are, and do carry a regular paper map. I use the gps for when the terrain is confusing and there isn't a big old mountain sticking up somewhere that I can use to orient myself. I also use it to mark my kill, so I can find my way back to it. Marking your kill as a waypoint requires a few more clicks than the basic feature to find your way back to your truck, but it's well worth learning how to do it. Heck, I learned how to do it, and I'm 71.
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I have a Garmin Etrex 10 and it seems pretty simple. Most of my hunting is done walking in from a road inside our lease. It's thick, but I use a compass more than anything. If I know the road runs east and west, if I go in on the south side I know I can just check my compass and make sure I'm headed north coming out if I lose my bearings and that will at least get me back to the road, then I can go from there.
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X2 on the back track.
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X3on the back track. I'm 73 and it works for me.
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X2 on the Etrex 10. Turn it on, save the waypoint where your truck is parked, then turn it off. If turned around, turn it on and ask for it to locate your waypoint. I had a Backtrack- seems it did not work and I threw it away. Guess that was why it was for sale on Ebxx.
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I've got an etrex. Took it to colorado last year. Works fine for me. I can make a waypoint in the GPS using coordinates from google earth, and it's pretty stinking accurate.
There's also a lot of youtube videos on how to use it.
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I didn't elaborate in my previous thread on why I think the topo feature is necessary. I can go in to any woods anywhere and know what the terrain looks like without buying maps. I do buy maps for the western states to have a little better detail and as a back up. It can be used to mark turkeys so you can access them from a more approachable area. Set standers for deer drives without ever stepping foot in a woods. Had my 62S for 10 years now and find more uses for it all the time. Yes I always carry and can use a compass and maps by the way, but they aren't real handy in the dark 15 miles from camp in the Rockies. Whether you like Tech or not a GPS can be a life saver.
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Maybe it would be better to mark your way in and out of your stands with flagging tape? You could do the same while tracking an animal.
GPS is a nice technology. I use it all the time for work and recreation but batteries go dead and you should have a non-electronic means of getting out of the woods.
It is also worthwhile to get to really know the woods you hunt in. spend lots of time out there in the off season. Your hunting will benefit and you are less likely to get turned around.
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Back Track all the way
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yep on the back track I have a couple buddies that use them, very simple and no bells and whistles you don't need.. just a simple way to get in and back out and save a couple way points...
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Can't beat the Etrex Line. I would look around for a used Etrex Legend or Vista. I have used mine all over the world. Friends of mine used them in Afghanistan. Compact. light, simple and they work.
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I would advise on a GPS that has the compass working without moving.
Most GPS will give you the compass function if you are going at a brisk walking speed, which is not always possible depending on the terrain.
I have a garmin Oregon and I like it
F-Manny
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I have and use a Garmin 62st - don't trust the compass on it - sure it is true but too funky for me. Rely on regular compass.
I keep a compass, map and map tools as well. Run mine on UTM grid and anytime I take a position I plot that position on the paper map. This just gives me last known reference in case GPS goes kaput. It also keeps my map and compass skills up a bit as I like just map and compass.
Look at the Garmin foretrex series too - don't have the maps and all but it is a cool little GPS that shows your way home. Gives you headings you can then use with compass.
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GPS isnt always the answer. this thread will help you get the basics on land navigation it could save your ass.
http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=086096#000000