wiltonh
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Posts: 306
Registered: 2-2-2007
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GPS Questions
I currently have two GPS units. One is a Garmin Legend Cx and the other is a Nuvi 255W. I use the Cx for hiking and motorcycle riding and the Nuvi
255W in my motor home. Last fall I wanted a topo map of Baja that could be used by either unit. I purchased the map on a mini SD card so it could be
moved between units.
There was a little issue in getting the Cx to see the card the first time but other than that it seems to work just fine.
When I put the card into the Nuvi it also seemed to show the map correctly but sometimes the elevation was way off. At first I thought it might be a
meter to feet issue but it clearly stated the elevation to be in feet. Any ideas?
The second issue is that we have become very addicted to using the (PIO) Points of Interest in the USA. As we are traveling and need a place to eat,
we just click on the POI button. We then choose restaurants and it gives you a list of the different types of food available. You can then choose
something like Asian and it will list the ones closest to you. You then just choose the one you want and say GO and it takes you there.
The Baja Topo map does not support this feature. If I had purchased a street map, would it have had this feature?
The second issue is finding an address. In the USA I just put in an address and it takes me there. The topo map does not support this feature
either. If I had purchased a street map would it have supported this feature?
As a side note, the POI data base has been hit hard by the economic down turn. We wanted to eat in a small town in the South West and clicked on
Asian. It listed 7 restaurants. The first 6 were closed and most of them appeared to be out of business. I plan to purchase an update to the POI
database before I do much traveling again.
Wilton
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mtgoat666
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 20363
Registered: 9-16-2006
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Hot n spicy
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| Quote: | Originally posted by wiltonh
The second issue is that we have become very addicted to using the (PIO) Points of Interest in the USA.
As a side note, the POI data base has been hit hard by the economic down turn. |
I like GPS for work travel, where time is of the essence, and rat race requires quick driving and quick eating.
But I think using GPS and "POI" data for vacation travel takes the adventure out of travel. I like using my paper map to drive highways on vacation,
and I like selecting restaurants based on windshield survey of town.
anywho, you will ignore my sermon,.... and the answer you seek is: i don't think you will find a gps package for baja that lists points of
interest,... you are lucky if GPS package even shows the roads 
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Taco de Baja
Super Nomad
Posts: 1913
Registered: 4-14-2004
Location: Behind the Orange Curtain, CA
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Mood: Dreamin' of Baja
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In my experience, hand held GPS units are fairly accurate in the horizontal direction, usually less than 10 feet (~ 3 meters) or so, but really suck
at the elevation portion. They will be off by 30 to 60 feet (~10 - 20 meters). If you know your elevation you can calibrate most units by inputting
the correct data, but within a few hours it will usually be off again. Not sure why this error is there (probably national security…  ), but it is something to keep in mind. If you absolutely need to know
your elevation, get a dedicated altimeter, or plot your location on a good quality paper topo map.
I have checked my Garmin csx against a $6,000 sub-meter accurate Trimble unit and it is usually spot on (+/- 1 meter) in the horizontal, but again the
elevation varies widely. I know the Garmin Visa, and Legend also have the same elevation issue.
Truth generally lies in the coordination of antagonistic opinions
-Herbert Spencer
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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These guys update their database & POI regularly. Supports Nuvi, Garmin ...
http://www.gpsinformation.org/jack/cruise/cruise-a.html
http://www.bicimapas.com.mx/MexicGPSAtlasEn.htm
Taco is correto about the huge EL. errors. In my PowerWagon I have a WW2 B-52 Bomber altimeter which is highly accurate as long as you have barometric
pressure info.
[Edited on 4-19-2010 by Sharksbaja]
DON\'T SQUINT! Give yer eyes a break!
Try holding down [control] key and toggle the [+ and -] keys
Viva Mulege!
Nomads\' Sunsets
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tripledigitken
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4848
Registered: 9-27-2006
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I have had elevation problems with the LB map contours, not the gps. Around LA Bay, for instance it had contours for the Mtn between the east part
of the bay and Las Animas Bay at over 8,000'. These were isolated but they do exist. Some areas along Mex 1 were off as well. I too thought it was
a feet/meter issue initially, but that was not the case.
Ken
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absinvestor
Senior Nomad
Posts: 725
Registered: 11-28-2009
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We recently returned from a motorhome trip the full length of Baja. We have a garmin nuvi. We purchased a Mexico card from Mark Walker.
Mwalker@mexicomaps.com. pho 805-687-1011. cell 805-448-7273. We live in Denver and Mark mailed the card that we insert into the side of the nuvi. The
card works exactly like the US addition ie poi, voice directions etc. We found the gps coordinates to be accurate and many of the main Mexico
campgrounds were in it under lodging. Whenever we used it to get to a campground it was incredibly accurate. Like the US many of the restaurants were
no longer in service but the gas stations etc were for the most part totally accurate. Prior to leaving for Baja I emailed Mark to see if there were
any additions to the card I purchased. He immediately sent me an email update to a website where I downloaded updates. Mark is extremely helpful and I
would highly recommend. (The Mexico card covers all of Mexico not just Baja.) Ron
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wiltonh
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Registered: 2-2-2007
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The map I purchased came from this web site.
http://www.meximaps.com/
Note this is a different URL than the one listed in the post above.
I have seen the GPS be off by a few feet in elevation but that is not what I am talking about. What I saw was elevations written on the topo map
display that were thousands of feet off.
In one case near Catavina, I talked with a guy who had a good altimeter and we compared elevations. The display on the map showed it to be several
thousand feet higher than the altimeter.
Now for the other issues. We have done Mex 1 to the Cabo area for the last 9 years so we do know the road and many of the places to eat. Where I run
in to trouble is in Lapaz. I need to be able to put in an address and get there.
We stay in a camp that is between Lapaz and Cabo and we often make a trip to town to get supplies. Friends often ask us to pick up something for them
so we end up gong to stores or places that we have never been to before. This last year I drove around a 3 or 4 block section several times before
stopping and asking a guy on the street. Once he showed us the place, I realized that I had driven right by it once or twice and did not know exactly
what we were looking for.
In general I am happy with the topo map that I have. While down there this year, I did a lot of back road motorcycle riding and got good and lost.
Finally I stopped and looked at the topo map on the GPS and it was obvious where I had made my mistake. Some of the roads were not much more the
trails but they were listed on the map.
Ron
Have you used the find address for the maps from Mexicomaps.com? If so how did it work?
Wilton
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absinvestor
Senior Nomad
Posts: 725
Registered: 11-28-2009
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The address function didn't work that well for us. The problem was some streets seemed to have different names. For example in Loreto a street was
called Constitution but showed as something different on the GPS screen. (So sometimes the GPS would tell me to take the next right which would have a
different name on the street sign than what showed on the GPS screen??) Also, the gps would not recognize a street that a poi was on but if that
street was for a listed poi destination the gps would take me there. In short I couldn't use the gps exactly like in the US but it was extremely
helpful. If I had gps coordinates or my destination was listed as a POI it worked perfectly. Also, we used it to find a friend who gave us
directions from a POI. The friend said "when you get to Pemex#1849 turn right." Virtually all the Pemex's are in the POI's so we used the GPS to get
us to the Pemex station#1849. Good luck and, if you get the Mexico card, experiment with it ahead of time ie it is really helpful if you use the
"near" feature when searching by name. Good luck. Ron
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wiltonh
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Posts: 306
Registered: 2-2-2007
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I noticed that some of the streets had two names when I was down there last year. You drive down a street and look at the sign on the corner and then
look at the GPS. They were different or at least partially different.
I have also noticed that some places are stated to not have house numbers. I wondered how they delivered mail until I heard that everyone goes to the
post office and collects it there.
Thanks for the good information.
Wilton
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