Gotta buy map$?

[FPOASec]

Hi folks. I got my Venture cx yesterday, bought a 1gb card for it, and downloaded some local caches today from the Garmin site. I need some local street level maps now, don’t I? Is my only option to buy a $139 MapSource CD?

I’m looking forward to meeting up with some of you and picking up some tips from the experts.

-Bob

[BSA534]

Welcome to the addiction... er I mean hobby/game/sport. Personally I found my gps useless until I bought the maps from Garmin, but I know a lot of cachers that have 100s of finds without any maps at all. I've had maps be really helpful while looking for caches, but I've also had them send me to the wrong place to get to the cache.

The maps from Garmin are really nice and detailed. I use the find feature on my 60csx to find other things besides caches, like gas stations, exits, food, etc. We were in Dallas last week and used it several times to get from one place to another (and of course to find some caches along the way).

There may be other options I don't know about. Hopefully someone else will respond with some more ideas.

Tim
BSA534

[SJClimber]

Google the Mapsource CD you want. "TheNerds.com" had some for $70 something. Also, go to Garmin's website and check for rebates. You might get another break there. These maps are improving. Garmin's new Topo 2008 is a great step up from their last release and is a great product for the out of doors. Has good road data for urban areas.

[FPOASec]

Thanks for your replies! Now a couple more questions...

Which is better - the CD or a micro SD card of the same thing? Does it make a difference? What are the pro/con's of each?

City or topo map? I'll probably use my GPS for exploring new roads (actually, for finding my way back home) on my bike. Are most chaches way off in national forests under hollow logs, or are there enough caches near the road to make a city map worthwhile?

Thanks.

[SJClimber]

For the C/Sx, memory, including the removable card with initial purchase, is shared with other functions, especially tracking (which can suck up lots of memory). If you limit yourself to portions of regions, and can update as you travel, DVD would be the best buy. If you have lots of $$$ and move about different regions, buy the cards. I travel to Colorado frequently and sometimes on to the coast, will load near capacity caches and map quadrants from the DVD for the entire trip and still have leftover memory. Granted this machine is different from yours, but you have a GB of memory. That's plenty.
TOPO or City. Your call. Both have good road data, the topo has topoographic and shading data. Since I do hiking and backpacking in the intermountain region, I have the TOPO. Rhone, with whom I cache occasionally, has the City Nav. For 99% of the caches, we do fine with either. Sometimes in the rural areas, we can see the topography and adjust our approach to a cache. Road data on Garmin and Magellan products is always catching up to reality. Your new road may not show up on your software.

[idratherbehiking]

Just give me that little arrow that points the way and I am happy. :lol: :lol: :lol: