Questions tagged [maps]

Use this tag both for questions dealing with actual, physical maps and on-line or digital maps.

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5 votes
1 answer
117 views

Finding the nautical 'chart datum'/LAT, and heights above it, visibly in a physical landscape

I live in Totnes, a UK town on the tidal river Dart estuary. There is a perfect height of water for putting my canoe into the water, at a set of steps near a local pub. Being tidal, this perfect water ...
8 votes
7 answers
3k views

Is there an easy way to remember if you add magnetic declination to magnetic bearings or true bearings?

For some reason, once in a while I get confused if you add magnetic declination to magnetic bearings to get true bearings, or if you add magnetic declination to true bearings to get magnetic bearings. ...
32 votes
5 answers
9k views

What advantage does the what3words coordinate system have over other, traditional systems?

I recently came across the what3words coordinate system in an outdoor magazine. The system divides the world into squares of 3 m x 3 m. Each square is then named with a combination of three (as far as ...
4 votes
4 answers
1k views

Austria: 1:25000 paper and other maps

This year I will do some hikes, tours in Austrian mountains. I don't know, what do you think are the best, precise 1:25000 paper maps for Austrian mountains? The difficulty will be light - very ...
7 votes
4 answers
283 views

Italy: recommended paper maps for hiking in Trentino and Alto Adige

For a spring time holiday in Trentino and Alto Adige / Südtirol in Italy, I am planning to do a number of day hikes in the areas around Riva del Garda, Trento, and further up north, Brixen / ...
1 vote
0 answers
127 views

Garmin watch with vs without maps

I'm looking to get a new Garmin wristwatch. Broadly, I'm looking at the Garmin Instinct 2/solar and the fenix 6. Neglecting the price differential, the main difference seems to be that the fenix has 1....
7 votes
2 answers
4k views

E-ink device with GPS for maps?

I've been using various map apps with offline storage on my smartphone(s) for several years now. The main problem with them is the battery drain. I've searched for e-ink devices with GPS but only ...
25 votes
6 answers
6k views

Why would one choose to use a Harvey map rather than an Ordnance Survey map?

My wife is due to under take her Lowland Leader course in then next couple of months and she has been advised to gain experience using Harvey Maps as well as the more familiar Ordnance Survey maps. ...
10 votes
3 answers
316 views

Maps showing forest type

In planning my hikes, I would find it very useful to know where different types of forests are to be found across the map. Even having a basic distinction shown on the map between coniferous/needled ...
7 votes
3 answers
155 views

Collaborative map of dive sites

Where can I find a collaborative wiki-style map of dive sites focused on comprehensiveness, not on "top destinations"? Google searching yielded surprisingly poor results. The best I've found ...
3 votes
1 answer
185 views

What are blue long-dashed lines on a French topo?

On a topographic map of Chamonix I noticed these thick long-dashed (and sometimes dotted) blue lines. They appear to connect huts, settlements, and some arbitrary points. They tend to follow glaciers. ...
4 votes
1 answer
232 views

Is this a valid method from taking a bearing from a map?

I want to check my understanding here. The goal is to determine your direction of travel by taking a bearing from a map using a compass, given that you know where on the map you are and where you want ...
2 votes
1 answer
887 views

Given a GPS coordinate, can you get the elevation?

I was doing some hiking today and climbed into a gully of sorts. It seemed pretty deep and I'm curious how deep relative to the surrounding land. It'd be cool if I could just plug in arbitrary GPS ...
3 votes
3 answers
206 views

Do Garmin satellite map devices allow me to feed them coordinates from a CSV or JSON file or similar?

I may buy a Garmin satellite map thing at some point. But if I do, it's an absolute requirement for me that it will allow me to feed it some sort of list of GPS coordinates with labels, such as ...
3 votes
3 answers
238 views

Are there any affordable, dedicated (one-purpose) handheld GPS receivers with nice satellite maps?

I don't have a smartphone, or any phone, and specifically don't want to have one for many important reasons. However, I do wish that I had some sort of map where I get to see where I am currently, ...
13 votes
9 answers
4k views

How can I know what a road will be like?

The map simply shows it's not paved. But does that mean it's a decent dirt road that an ordinary car can handle, or is high clearance and/or 4x4 need? How would I go about finding out? (Yes, this ...
0 votes
1 answer
125 views

How to find a wall to play squash or racket ball during quarantine?

Is there some kind of wall AI identification system in google maps or some google earth software to find a wall nearest my location to play squash during quarantine? Excluding hitting garage
3 votes
0 answers
55 views

zoomable Köppen climate maps

So I recently hiked Humphrey's Peak in Arizona and was curious if I passed through multiple different Köppen climate types. Quoting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Arizona#Humphreys_Peak , &...
7 votes
6 answers
701 views

Unknown map symbol

Does anyone know what this line of circles on a map represents? (the ones that start to the east of where it says Hangman's Hill) It is near Malvern. We passed some rocks but they were probably 300 ...
41 votes
3 answers
3k views

"Official" providers of topographic maps per country

If I want to go to some contry, with no specific region in mind yet, I often have trouble to get good topographical information for hiking beforehand. I usually find it rather difficult to discover ...
4 votes
3 answers
344 views

How to interpret forest from the map?

I basically like to bomb into forest and set up the tent. While doing this last time I ended in the forest with clay as ground, it had a lot smaller and bigger puddles and I was main meal at mosquito ...
2 votes
3 answers
256 views

Navigation device with offline maps and GPX support

I have a subscription service from komoot for maps. Is there any GPS device that supports offline maps and GPX, preferably with android OS integration. Example scenario would be: Use an android based ...
6 votes
8 answers
410 views

Topo map server out there somewhere?

It's winter. I daydream of trips in various areas. Using Google/Apple/Bing maps is frustrating. Openstreet has trails if you are near civilization, but names are weak. None of them have coordinate ...
7 votes
7 answers
601 views

Would there be any practical uses of a geological map for a hiker/backpacker?

I just found that I can get free geological map overlays for Google Earth for all of the individual states in the United States from here. For instance, this is what a good deal of Yosemite National ...
9 votes
1 answer
15k views

OS Map Symbols - Black Dots

Does anyone know what black dots mean on an OS Explorer map? There are a lot of them on the map of Kinder Scout in the Peak District (UK). I know the black dashed line is a footpath, I am asking ...
16 votes
2 answers
5k views

Difference between a "path" and a "footpath"?

I was chacking a map to see access rights on a particular route I know. I was checking if a path was a bridleway or footpath as I know Mountain Bikes should only use bridleways. Studying the key ...
4 votes
3 answers
153 views

Looking up fish species by body of water and vice versa

U.S. here (and specifically New York state but that's probably irrelevant). Is anyone aware of any websites, apps or DEC resources that allow you to look up what fish species live in any given lake/...
6 votes
1 answer
192 views

Online maps of ski-tour trails of Italy (Aosta Valley, Cogne)?

For Austria but not Italy there is awesome http://bergfex.com, for Italian summer hiking but not winter ski-touring, https://opentopomap.org would do the job, but what about ski-touring in Italy? Any ...
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

What is this purple box symbol on an Ordance Survey map?

This symbol appears on a forest in an OS 1:50,000 Landranger map at SO 24799 27221. It doesn't appear in the map legend. It does not appear at the same point on the equivalent 1:25,000 Explorer map. ...
0 votes
2 answers
313 views

Google Map Hiking Trail

What do the red and blue solid curves in this Google Map indicate? This is around Dachstein, Austria. Link: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Dachstein+Krippenstein+-+Dachstein+Tourismus+AG/Lodge+am+...
1 vote
0 answers
95 views

Additional map source information for Willmore Wilderness Park in Alberta?

I currently have the Canada NTS 1:50,000 maps, and the 1990 revision of the complete park map. They don't agree on details, and so far the NTS maps have higher error rates. I also have a couple of ...
11 votes
1 answer
524 views

Taking and using bearings

How would I go about taking a compass bearing of a distant peak and then relate this to the information on a standard map?
4 votes
2 answers
554 views

Are there US Forest Service maps of historical logging?

Some forests in the Western United States will have been logged at different times and by different methods i.e. clearcut vs selective logging. As time goes by, the trees will grow back but this ...
3 votes
2 answers
199 views

Free online UK maps

Can I view OS maps for the UK online for free? I want to see both the Landranger and Explorer maps if possible.
9 votes
5 answers
784 views

When using a compass, why not follow a degree mark without rotation?

Instead of taking a bearing the "official" way, why not just see what degree mark corresponds to on the direction I want to go (in real life or on a map), and follow that degree mark? That is, why do ...
10 votes
1 answer
205 views

With what unit are river flow speeds indicated on the Genshtab Soviet military maps?

On the Genshtab (Генштаб) Soviet military maps, I can read that this ford through the stream Вертный has a stony bottom, a depth of at most 4 dm, and a width of 29 m (under typical circumstances)¹. ...
9 votes
5 answers
4k views

Measuring actual distance walked on a map (Allowing for changes in height)

Following on from this question: How many calories does hiking burn? So in the same journey my girlfriends tracking app said we'd travelled 20km. Now this was based on us travelling on the flat, but ...
13 votes
3 answers
16k views

How is elevation gain and change measured for hiking trails?

If a trail is listed as 1500m of elevation change, what exactly does that mean? For example, if the trail goes up 500m, then down 200m, then up 100m, then down 300m, then up 400m, is that considered ...
4 votes
2 answers
439 views

How do you access the back of a large paper map?

I have several paper Ordnance Survey maps, but I don’t know how to easily access the back of the sheet without ripping or damaging my map while trying to unfold a very large area of paper. Are there ...
10 votes
1 answer
341 views

Finnish maps: bogs easy vs hard to traverse

Bogs on my Lemmenjoki and Hammastunturi map are marked as either easy or hard to traverse. What conditions should I expect from both terrain types in summer (mid August)? Does easy mean one can walk ...
3 votes
0 answers
217 views

How to find good hiking maps for the Laugavegur trail in Iceland? [duplicate]

I will be hiking the Laugavegur trail alone and have been looking for good hiking maps (1:50 000) online. My google searches yield no good results. Where do you even begin to look?
3 votes
1 answer
73 views

Where can I find free electronic topographic map that cover the entire West Coast Trail in Canada?

Where can I find free electronic topographic map that cover the entire West Coast Trail in Canada? I'm trying to print them and bring them for my thru hike.
4 votes
2 answers
251 views

Printable maps of the Tony Knowles coastal trail

The maps of the trail at http://anchoragecoastaltrail.com/index.php are not well suited for printing. Even the printable map is pretty much illegible. Are there perchance higher quality maps available ...
3 votes
0 answers
67 views

Finding user images based on keywords/tags and precise map location

For my holiday planning, I've been trying to perform what I thought was a simple task, but which turned out to be more complicated than I'd thought. For a given geographical location, defined either ...
3 votes
2 answers
926 views

How can I view a route from a .kml file overlayed on an Ordnance Survey map?

I am taking part in a 100K event later this year, and the organizers have made available a .kml file of the route downloadable from here. This is great, but I want to view this route on a UK 1:25000 ...
14 votes
2 answers
8k views

How would I find a hot spring?

I've been looking at a map of the hot springs in my state, and near my area there are 4 in a 60 mile range. These hot springs all are lined up in a straight line, and so my incredibly wishful thinking ...
11 votes
1 answer
775 views

Can I use satellite images as hiking maps, how?

I tried to find topographic maps of my area in Brazil, but the best I could find is some 1:50000 map from 1983. My biggest need for a map (besides not getting lost) is avoiding private properties and ...
6 votes
2 answers
309 views

How to take a bearing when the geographic coordinate grid is not aligned with true north on a map?

I am confused by my new map of the Westfjords of Iceland. The geographic coordinate grid is rotated slightly, but the map indicates that true north is still the top of the page. What's going on? I ...
10 votes
8 answers
474 views

New Zealand recommended hiking maps, books and other resources

Me and my girlfriend will go there in January and we plan on hiking for a week or so. Unfortunately there are no maps or books available for NZ hiking in my area. Could you recommend some for me? ...
8 votes
2 answers
341 views

Are the orienteering marches popular in Germany?

I'm engaged in orienteering marches, which differ from sport orienteering: there is the time limit, where finishing before time gives no advantage to the participant, and the center is put on the ...