I found this site today, When you create a route in Google Maps a URL is supplied so you can come back and view the route again later. With this site you can copy that Google URL into this tool and it will convert your Google route into a GPS file for use in your GPS or GPS app on your phone.
http://labs.coruscantconsulting.co.uk/garmin/gpxgmap/convert.php
The site description says: This tool accepts a link to a pre-made Google Directions and converts it to a GPX file format that can be uploaded and used in sat-nav and GPS units.
I was thinking you were on to a good thing for a minute there but unfortunately Google maps failed my “litmus test”.
At Christmas time I rode Tram Road from the junction at Ongaroto Road to where it joins State Highway 1. The road is nothing overly special but try getting Google maps to let you mark that route, it won’t, it will take you as far down Tram Road as the bridge which is maybe 1k from the junction but that’s it.
Pretty much every route mapping website I have looked at does the same thing, most likely because they’re using Google maps as the back end.
You could say it’s no big deal but if Google maps based sites won’t let me plot a route down this road what other roads are they “ignoring” when I’m looking to go somewhere new?
The only site I’ve found that lets me plan this route is http://www.tourstart.org. It’s easy to use, a lot easier than trying to map a route on the headstrong Garmin 590lm that’s for sure, and once you get things set up transferring a route to the Garmin takes a split second. You get full access for 14 days (I think it was that long) before it drops you back to the more restricted free version. Still at $15USD per year for the full version it’s not likely to break the bank…
dave
i’ve found on google maps if you change from car or motorbike mode to the walking mode when asking for directions it seems more likely to go the way i want it to.
if you arent already, maybe this’d help?
rich.
Good point, cheers. That works as far as my litmus test I mentioned above is concerned. I haven’t tried to export it but I can’t see why that would be a problem. I’ll probably end up going for the tourstart pro option though because it saves routes etc. which can be edited or exported again etc. which is handy.