Base camp !!!! How frustrating.

[Wapping]

Hi Richard - I am using a Mac to to do this
I find the search result I want and drag it across into the folder I've created for that particular route (or set of routes). It then seems to be stored as a place with a flag next to it in the file. I can then use that point as many times as I like in the "create route" function as a start, finish or intermediate place - you just simply drag it from the folder into the route box. This stops the need to do the same search again to find your start point from the place you finished the night before

That's the only way I know how to do it, but if there is another then would be good to know!

OK, I now see what you mean.

I do it that way and slightly differently, too.

I have all my Favourites in one file, or whatever it is a Mac calls it. It's quite handy and they all show up on one map. If I intend to use a new hotel, I add it first to my Favourites. Then, let's say I wanted to go from Chunnel Exit France (another Favoutite) to the hotel, I would simply highlight the two Favoutites (not bother dragging them into any boxes) and select 'Plot route' between the two points. Sometimes it gets it backwards, giving me hotel to Chunnel Exit France; if so I just invert the route. Then, I drag the default route about to suit where I (and not Garmin) want to go.

I have all the options turned off, so my computer will only ever give me the fastest route from A to B. This doesn't bother me as I always manually pull the route about anyway and / or review it to make dure it hasn't suddenly decided to cut a corner down a dirt track, in what I call a 'Garmin feature'. I sometimes miss one or two in a 350 mile day down country roads but hey-ho.

I find this method of plotting routes very easy. Much easier than the laborious, point-by-point-by-point method I used to use in Mapsource.

The last thing I do is highlight all the points inbetween the Start and End points. On a long route there may be 10 or more. I then turn them all into unannounced shaping points. This avoids my GPS device reading them as Waypoints. Last but not least, I have my GPS device set-up with all the options turned off, including recalculate. This turns the device as close as I can get it to a paper map in an electronic form. All I want it do is show me MY magenta line, MY Favourites, tell me MY arrival distance remaining (in miles) and the estimated arrival time at MY final destination. I have the sound turned off and do not play music or make phone calls. In short, I keep it all as simple and basic as possible.

 

[chrisjk]

Nothing on mine so you may be right, works on a Mac.

John

I use a Mac but also have Basecamp for Windows running in a VM under Parallels. I can adjust detail level as follows:-

View>Toolbars>Detail Level - check tickbox

Then in the drop down menu that now appears (at top LHS in my Toolbar), select required detail level.

Elsewhere, you can choose what kind of data appears Edit>Options>Activity Profile>General>Map Display Features>Select>Points

It is a lot slicker on the Mac but the stone - age Windows interface is still rather like Mapsource so should appeal to the dinosaurs…

 

[The Grey One]

OK, I now see what you mean.

I do it that way and slightly differently, too.

I have all my Favourites in one file, or whatever it is a Mac calls it. It's quite handy and they all show up on one map. If I intend to use a new hotel, I add it first to my Favourites. Then, let's say I wanted to go from Chunnel Exit France (another Favoutite) to the hotel, I would simply highlight the two Favoutites (not bother dragging them into any boxes) and select 'Plot route' between the two points. Sometimes it gets it backwards, giving me hotel to Chunnel Exit France; if so I just invert the route. Then, I drag the default route about to suit where I (and not Garmin) want to go.

I have all the options turned off, so my computer will only ever give me the fastest route from A to B. This doesn't bother me as I always manually pull the route about anyway and / or review it to make dure it hasn't suddenly decided to cut a corner down a dirt track, in what I call a 'Garmin feature'. I sometimes miss one or two in a 350 mile day down country roads but hey-ho.

I find this method of plotting routes very easy. Much easier than the laborious, point-by-point-by-point method I used to use in Mapsource.

The last thing I do is highlight all the points inbetween the Start and End points. On a long route there may be 10 or more. I then turn them all into unannounced shaping points. This avoids my GPS device reading them as Waypoints. Last but not least, I have my GPS device set-up with all the options turned off, including recalculate. This turns the device as close as I can get it to a paper map in an electronic form. All I want it do is show me MY magenta line, MY Favourites, tell me MY arrival distance remaining (in miles) and the estimated arrival time at MY final destination. I have the sound turned off and do not play music or make phone calls. In short, I keep it all as simple and basic as possible.

You can do exactly the same thing in Mapsource. Highlight two waypoints, right click and select the make route option. The route can then be pulled around in the same way as you describe to make it go where you want. Mapsource makes all the points along the route as Via Points rather than waypoints.



John

 

[paul08]

Latest Mac version is 4.3.4

I was one of those people who had problems with the initial 4.3.1 update: it cocked my BC up mightily. So I used my Apple Time Machine to revert back to the previous version that worked 4.2.4

Now, I can run the "Check for updates" in BC and it tells me that I am up to date.

 

[Wapping]

You can do exactly the same thing in Mapsource. Highlight two waypoints, right click and select the make route option. The route can then be pulled around in the same way as you describe to make it go where you want. Mapsource makes all the points along the route as Via Points rather than waypoints.
John

I know. I just used to plot routes point-by-point-by-point. The reason being that I did it on a laptop with a quite small screen; I just found it easier that way. Now I have an uber-sized Mac and a huuuuuge screen, the A to B and then 'tug it around' method works well.

 

[iand46]

I was one of those people who had problems with the initial 4.3.1 update: it cocked my BC up mightily. So I used my Apple Time Machine to revert back to the previous version that worked 4.2.4

Now, I can run the "Check for updates" in BC and it tells me that I am up to date.

If you haven't got 4.3.4 just reinstall the program

 

[paul08]

If you haven't got 4.3.4 just reinstall the program

Just done that and, at the moment, all seems to be okay

 

[Mr Anderson]

What route preferences/avoidances do you set when using a motorcycle profile?

Some routes that should be straight forward will often send me up some stupid road only having to make a u turn :/

 

[Wapping]

BaseCamp comes pre-loaded with a whole bunch of pre-set 'driving modes': Car, motorbike, 'Twisty roads'.

If you look at say the car mode over the motorbike mode, you'll see that there are several pre-ticked and un-ticked boxes and that they differ between the modes. My tip is to un-tick the lot AND do the same on your GPS device. YOU chose what roads you YOU want to ride, by pulling the route around.

Where pre-selecting ticks or preferences ON THE DEVICE might be useful, is when you ask the device to suggest a route from A to B. Of course it's possible to set a route using the map on the screen but it's not particularly easy due to the scale. Then having the device favour excluding motorways (or favouring them) might be a good idea. Bods often forget what their GPS preferences are set at, howling in frustration when they keep getting forced off a motorway, when they really want to get home in a hurry.... Forgetting that they pre-set their preferences months ago to favour wiggly roads and avoid motorways.... All with inevitable results.

 

[Toddmeister]

where was you with your sensible ideas the other day eh!! good tip though and that would have saved me a lot of grief and expletives

I was out using my bike drier to shoot gerbils across the garden

 

[blues n twos]

I was out using my bike drier to shoot gerbils across the garden

I knew it but equally as rewarding

 

[blues n twos]

I had quite a bit of trouble initially getting the route to include the Stelvio pass. Every time I dragged the route to a point on the Stelvio it jumped back and tried to avoid it maybe it's a sign

I ended up with my route doing loop the loops and back doubles, in fact just about everything apart from the frikin road I wanted to ride

Sorted it in the end by dragging part of the route to the end of the pass, part of it to the middle and then the beginning. Then basecamp actually realised I wanted to ride that road it probably knows I only go to ( blue bike) so thought no way amigo

 

[The Grey One]

I had quite a bit of trouble initially getting the route to include the Stelvio pass. Every time I dragged the route to a point on the Stelvio it jumped back and tried to avoid it maybe it's a sign

I ended up with my route doing loop the loops and back doubles, in fact just about everything apart from the frikin road I wanted to ride

Sorted it in the end by dragging part of the route to the end of the pass, part of it to the middle and then the beginning. Then basecamp actually realised I wanted to ride that road it probably knows I only go to ( blue bike) so thought no way amigo

Maybe it is a sign, even Basecamp knows there are dozens of better roads than the Stelvio! More likely though that in your "activity profile" you have the "date and time closures" ticked. The Stevio being only open in the summer will be avoided by Basecamp. If you have a 660 there is also a "avoid seasonal closures" tick box in the preferences. The Garmin default is for this box to be ticked. Untick it before downloading routes to a 660.

John

 

[JoeBiff]

I had quite a bit of trouble initially getting the route to include the Stelvio pass. Every time I dragged the route to a point on the Stelvio it jumped back and tried to avoid it maybe it's a sign

I ended up with my route doing loop the loops and back doubles, in fact just about everything apart from the frikin road I wanted to ride

Have you got the correct setting in the BaseCamp > Profiles dialogue box?
This will affect routing, and cause the "looping" you've just described.

 

[Dellis]

OK, I now see what you mean.

I do it that way and slightly differently, too.

I have all my Favourites in one file, or whatever it is a Mac calls it. It's quite handy and they all show up on one map. If I intend to use a new hotel, I add it first to my Favourites. Then, let's say I wanted to go from Chunnel Exit France (another Favoutite) to the hotel, I would simply highlight the two Favoutites (not bother dragging them into any boxes) and select 'Plot route' between the two points. Sometimes it gets it backwards, giving me hotel to Chunnel Exit France; if so I just invert the route. Then, I drag the default route about to suit where I (and not Garmin) want to go.

I have all the options turned off, so my computer will only ever give me the fastest route from A to B. This doesn't bother me as I always manually pull the route about anyway and / or review it to make dure it hasn't suddenly decided to cut a corner down a dirt track, in what I call a 'Garmin feature'. I sometimes miss one or two in a 350 mile day down country roads but hey-ho.

I find this method of plotting routes very easy. Much easier than the laborious, point-by-point-by-point method I used to use in Mapsource.

The last thing I do is highlight all the points inbetween the Start and End points. On a long route there may be 10 or more. I then turn them all into unannounced shaping points. This avoids my GPS device reading them as Waypoints. Last but not least, I have my GPS device set-up with all the options turned off, including recalculate. This turns the device as close as I can get it to a paper map in an electronic form. All I want it do is show me MY magenta line, MY Favourites, tell me MY arrival distance remaining (in miles) and the estimated arrival time at MY final destination. I have the sound turned off and do not play music or make phone calls. In short, I keep it all as simple and basic as possible.

+1 that is the best way to use a GPS by far and the method I've used for years. I didn't know about the "unannounced shaping points" I'll try that although it's never caused me an issue leaving the via points as waypoints, they are announced on the device but I don't ever use voice prompts it's not an issue.

Dave

Edit: Just had a look and converting waypoints to "unannounced shaping points" is staring you in the face, no idea how I've managed to miss that - thanks for the tip

 

[Toddmeister]

OK, I now see what you mean.

I do it that way and slightly differently, too.

I have all my Favourites in one file, or whatever it is a Mac calls it. It's quite handy and they all show up on one map. If I intend to use a new hotel, I add it first to my Favourites. Then, let's say I wanted to go from Chunnel Exit France (another Favoutite) to the hotel, I would simply highlight the two Favoutites (not bother dragging them into any boxes) and select 'Plot route' between the two points. Sometimes it gets it backwards, giving me hotel to Chunnel Exit France; if so I just invert the route. Then, I drag the default route about to suit where I (and not Garmin) want to go.

I have all the options turned off, so my computer will only ever give me the fastest route from A to B. This doesn't bother me as I always manually pull the route about anyway and / or review it to make dure it hasn't suddenly decided to cut a corner down a dirt track, in what I call a 'Garmin feature'. I sometimes miss one or two in a 350 mile day down country roads but hey-ho.

I find this method of plotting routes very easy. Much easier than the laborious, point-by-point-by-point method I used to use in Mapsource.

The last thing I do is highlight all the points inbetween the Start and End points. On a long route there may be 10 or more. I then turn them all into unannounced shaping points. This avoids my GPS device reading them as Waypoints. Last but not least, I have my GPS device set-up with all the options turned off, including recalculate. This turns the device as close as I can get it to a paper map in an electronic form. All I want it do is show me MY magenta line, MY Favourites, tell me MY arrival distance remaining (in miles) and the estimated arrival time at MY final destination. I have the sound turned off and do not play music or make phone calls. In short, I keep it all as simple and basic as possible.

Very useful, thank you. I was getting a bit confused by the avoidances options as they are set up for the U.S.A. (E.g. Interstates) and I was trying to work out how these equated to the road options in the UK and Europe. All I wanted was a decent 200-250 mile daily route down and around Switzerland with no toll roads or motorways and a mix of fast sweeping and tight nadgery stuff. I pretty much got there in the end, but it would have been a bit easier using the method you suggested.
I did get caught out a couple of times by the recalculate option on the device. A couple of roads I had planned were closed and in typical French style there were no diversion signs. I just kept going, ignoring the U-turn advice from the device, until it eventually recalculated a route round. Trouble was it also recalculated the rest of my original route too! I also got caught once by a way point which I'd inadvertently placed in a large lay by and therefore missed going through it - shaping points for me from now on

I'll use your way next time to get round closures, or I might try the detour option as I've not yet used this.
All good learning experiences and there is no substitute for just getting out there and using BC and the Nav V for real. I did 3000 miles on my recent trip on lots of great roads. Doing this just using a map and paper would have been a lot harder!

 

[Toddmeister]

Maybe it is a sign, even Basecamp knows there are dozens of better roads than the Stelvio!
John

+1 for that! It was on my bucket list, but having just been there on a cold wet weekend I was a little bit disappointed! Unexpected highlight for me was the San Bernadino Pass which I hadn't planned on doing but stumbled across and was absolutely fantastic!

 

[The Grey One]

+1 that is the best way to use a GPS by far and the method I've used for years. I didn't know about the "unannounced shaping points" I'll try that although it's never caused me an issue leaving the via points as waypoints, they are announced on the device but I don't ever use voice prompts it's not an issue.

Dave

Edit: Just had a look and converting waypoints to "unannounced shaping points" is staring you in the face, no idea how I've managed to miss that - thanks for the tip

I expect turning off all avoidances works for some, especially if you know the roads and are familiar with just how your device works. I have to tell you that my experience is that a lot of people don't even know they have avoidances to turn off! It is all too easy to fail to understand that these people know almost nothing about using a sat nav as anything other than a very basic navigational device.

We provide routes for our guests if required, some of these routes go places others are just for the joy of riding great roads. Obviously roads and conditions are different here in the Alps than in the UK. In most cases the "main" road is the best option, often the only one in fact other than cart tracks. I find that setting the devices to "faster time" and then avoiding motorways (but not toll roads) and avoiding unmade roads is the best option. Any option of twisty or curvy roads option is a waste of time here, the main routes are curvy enough and all such options do is take people off a great winding road up a narrow and even more twisty one ( often with very poor surfaces) only to rejoin the intended route less than a kilometre further down.

For those venturing to the Grossglockner I always recommend ticking the "avoid ferries" box. This is because people often wader off the route ( or press random buttons until the route disappears!) When they ask the device to take them back here from the far side of the 'Glockner it will try to route them through Gastein and Malnitz which involves putting the bike on a train through the tunnel. Ticking the "avoid ferries" box prevents this. Of course some people like the experience of the train, some plan it as part of the day.

Unmade roads in our region are probable best avoided by most of our guests although some enjoy the challenge and we have suitable route for them anyway. Most people don't want to us the autobahn once they get here so adding an avoidance does help prevent this. There are several places where unless you are familiar with the road signs you can end up committed to joining the autobahn. Not the end of the world but often it does mean you miss some wonderful sections of road.

As I said things are different in the Alps. I have not ridden elsewhere since 2007 apart for an annual trip down to Croatia. And what suits one person may not suit another. My observations are based on dealing with hundreds of devices and users throughout the season. Many people have never used the device for anything other than finding the next hotel and asking to be taken there, in fact many don't even find the hotel they just pick the town and sort it out when they get there. Sadly these people miss out on one of the joys of a sat nav, it's ability to take you straight to your actual destination.

In case you were wondering there is no element of value judgement in this. People are as people are and few can claim to be good at everything. We just try to help in any way we can in order that our guests get the best out their stay here.

John

 

[blues n twos]

Maybe it is a sign, even Basecamp knows there are dozens of better roads than the Stelvio! More likely though that in your "activity profile" you have the "date and time closures" ticked. The Stevio being only open in the summer will be avoided by Basecamp. If you have a 660 there is also a "avoid seasonal closures" tick box in the preferences. The Garmin default is for this box to be ticked. Untick it before downloading routes to a 660.

John

Have you got the correct setting in the BaseCamp > Profiles dialogue box?
This will affect routing, and cause the "looping" you've just described.

Guys , I haven't even looked at that but it makes perfect sense. . I have plotted my routes as highway and toll road avoidance on motorcycle setting. I have not played to much with base camp settings yet. But as I was looking more closely at the routes offerd I would zoom in and where it was bypassing say a National park, I would drag the route through the centre of it to enjoy the scenery

Both times I have ridden the Stelvio it has been hot and sunny and I enjoyed it. I like the fluella pass from Davos to Livigno. Beautiful ride

I now have a mate joining me so John there will be an email coming to you shortly as I'm not sharing a bed with a. 6' 4" 19 stone fart machine

Jon

ps..... Good thread this as it seems a lot of people are getting a lot of really useful tips and hints. Biking is all about the journey and this will help people get more out of their trips

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this one.

 

[Nutty]

I really can't be arsed to plan. For me, bikes = freedom. Get up in the morning, have a look at the weather and a map, and punch a destination into the Nav. Too much stress and planning in everyday life to worry about planning routes. Bring on the freedom.

Btw, I'm in IT programming and really cannot be arsed with basecamp. It's shite.