Which gps mountaineering

Battery life: 48 hours What we like: Great battery life and hands-free convenience. Battery life is impressive at 48 hours in navigation mode, and the is as tough as ever with military-grade construction.

Taken together, the Foretrex is all of the bones of a handheld unit but none of the bulk, and a highly functional tool for the right user. Where does the Foretrex fall short? Instead, you have to use the old-fashioned breadcrumb trail and 3-axis compass for navigation. See the Garmin Foretrex Weight: 5. The eXplorist does everything a basic GPS should: create and follow routes, mark waypoints and show your trip progress with tracks.

Geocache-ready, the eXplorist comes with a decent base map that includes roads and some geographic features. A summary page details your exploits, with key bits like how long it took you to uncover each cache. What pushes the eXplorist towards the bottom of our rankings?

The line is getting long in the tooth, which means the satellite lock can take a while, their software is not as well-established as Garmin, and navigating between menus can be clunky. See the Magellan eXplorist As with smartphones, touchscreens are becoming more prevalent in the handheld GPS market. These devices are intuitive, easy to navigate or type with, and work in both landscape and portrait orientations. Further, using a touchscreen can be a pain with gloves—despite technologies that make some gloves work decently well.

But for all those complaints, there is an equally good argument a touchscreen is the better choice over buttons. Buttons add bulk, and if you need to type, they are cumbersome and slow to navigate an on-screen keyboard. As touchscreen technology continues to improve, including the current option to adjust the sensitivity setting of the screen, its benefit of a sleek and low profile design where more space can be dedicated to a screen will continue to win over more and more users.

One of the main reasons to upgrade to a high-end GPS is a large screen size. For boating, hunting, and motorized activities, a larger screen is helpful when you need to be able to see the information clearly at just a glance.

Hikers, backpackers, and long-distance adventurers such as thru-hikers or bikepackers will still be happiest with a small and light device, such as the eTrex 22x 2. For more advanced functionality, the largest these lightweight enthusiasts probably want is the 3-inch screen and 7-ounce Garmin Oregon For geocaching, a small or midsize screen should do the trick. The brightness of the screen and readability in direct sunlight are important considerations.

Thankfully, this has been an area of emphasis for Garmin lately, and their new models excel with anti-glare screens with good backlighting and contrast that make maps and text easy to decipher. Some of the best models include the Garmin Oregon and Montana, while the cheaper eTrex falls a little short. In the end, other than the Magellan eXplorist, which has a small screen size and doesn't excel in bad lighting conditions, readability is a strength among handheld devices.

If your explorations take you into deep canyons or under heavy cover, or if accuracy is paramount, you might want to consider a device with multi-GNSS support. All handheld devices come with some form of basemap—essentially a blank screen that will include some major local features—while many include additional preloaded maps or the option to upload more later on. For Garmin devices, it will largely depend on the age of the product.

Older devices like the Oregon do not include this feature. Paired with a subscription often billed monthly with a one-time set-up fee , this tech allows you to connect in areas without cell service, including sending and receiving texts, posting to social media, sharing your location, and communicating between GPS devices.

For a full list of options, see our article on the best satellite messengers. They are cheap, have decent lifespans, and can be swapped out when they are drained. On the downside, if you are heading out for an extended stretch, you'll need to bring a number of backup batteries.

So while AA batteries remain an option for many GPS devices, Garmin and others have turned to rechargeable battery packs as a compelling alternative.

The main advantage to rechargeable batteries is the ability to reduce weight and bulk from your pack—and over time the cost-savings can really add up. Standard compasses must be held horizontally to orient properly or be moving if it's GPS-based. Getting a read on barometric pressure is helpful in determining elevation because the higher you go, the lower the pressure.

That said, a barometric altimeter remains the best option for mountainous and backcountry use and can provide a helpful approximation of your current elevation. In most cases, dimensions and weight correspond with screen size. The smallest and lightest handheld options on our list, the Garmin eTrex 22x and Magellan eXplorist , have equally small 2. Those that opt for high-end devices like the Montana are not typically carrying them in their hand or hiking with a pack, instead placing them on a handlebar mount for ATVing or snowmobiling.

The datum in your GPS must be the same datum as was used to develop the coordinates. For instance Geocaching. If you are using a different datum you will never find the cache. Failure to have the correct datum can create errors of hundreds of feet.

Also, Geocaching. The GPS must store at least Waypoints. Some store , but more is not better, because it is best to up-load and record your saved waypoints on your computer in a separate mapping program such as Garmin's Map Source Topo or Maptech's Terrain Navigator , to reduce the clutter and complexity while using your GPS in the field.

They all work very well with heavy gloves. Waypoints must be easily stored from the present position and from coordinates calculated from your map, posted on Geocaching. The unit must allow you to name the waypoint and change it's details so that you can identify it and input it for GO-TO navigation.

The list must be available both alphanumerically and by proximity to your current position - Nearest Waypoints. You need to be able to select and delete groups of waypoints. The information given will include the Bearing and Distance in miles and feet from your position TO the Waypoint.

This is an important function because it allows the GPS to guide you from one Waypoint to the next in order, by Bearing, Distance and Time in its varied scales. I don't use this feature very much. The GPS has limited storage for track points and this feature can be turned off and on. The track will record over itself if it is full. However, individual tracks can be saved under a simple name in the GPS and uploaded to your computer mapping software, saved and printed on letter sized maps for future use in the field.

The popular idea that you can follow the "breadcrumb track back" may be OK for boaters but is not very useful for backcountry navigators. Some GPS units have so many screens with programmable information that they are virtually unusable. The calculated accuracy at the moment may also be shown, say "9 feet". The most important feature of this basic screen is the directional arrow, sometimes confused with a compass arrow.

The arrow in a graphic that looks like a compass but is not always points toward the active GO-TO The skilled GPS user can follow the directional arrow right back to the trail head. This is not like a compass where a different technique must be used. Since the GPS can die, the navigator must have the skill to use the modern adjustable base plate compass, with the map and the GPS.

Or the GPS user may die! I did not think this was a useful function due to the required 1 to , plus detail but I have changed my mind and I use the Legend, primarily.

The Legend can be loaded with up to 8 MB of optional topo maps for say, the climbing areas of Oregon, Washington and Northern California. The eTrex and SporTrak do not do the little maps. That's nice. The SporTrack gives you a fighting chance to read the numbers in the field.

Choose True North and combine it with a hand-held base-plate compass with built in declination that is adjustable to your location 17 degrees for Central Oregon. Read more. What is the best Compass? Your GPS will measure your track, your actual course over the ground. This feature is not very useful for the hiker but it is great for the pilot and boater.

STEERING: Steering functions allow you to follow a Route by seeing on a screen that looks like a highway that you are to the right or left of the direct line to the point, and how far you are off the straight course line Cross Track Error. We turned it off in the SporTrak.

The scale of the screen can be changed and nearby Waypoints can be plotted. Because of the scales required, this function can not be relied upon to get you back to camp or your rig.

Do not waist your money on a GPS with an Altimeter or a digital compass which is only accurate to 5 degrees and can not be used with a map! Select statute miles. The Vista costs a lot more, but hey, it is "Top of the Line". But if you decide not to buy a Vista and buy a Venture instead, please donate half of your savings to TraditionalMountaineering. Use our Pay Pal Donate Button! We'll give you a free class! Thanks for asking TraditionalMountaineering! How do digital mobile phones assist mountaineering and backcountry rescues?

Why is the GSM digital cell phone best for backcountry and mountaineering? Why are "Snow Caves" dangerous? Why are "Space Blankets" dangerous? Why are "Emergency Kits" dangerous? How can you prevent, recognize and treat Hypothermia? Missing climbers on Mount Hood, one dies of exposure, two believed killed in fall Missing California family found, dad dies from exposure and hypothermia Missing man survives two weeks trapped in snow-covered car Missing snowmobile riders found, Roger Rouse dies from hypothermia Olympic Champion Rulon Gardner lost on snowmobile!

Lost Olympic hockey player looses feet to cold injury Expert skier lost five days near resort in North Cascades without map, compass, gps or cell phone Mount Hood - The Episcopal School Tragedy Mount Hood - experienced climbers rescued from snow cave How can you learn the skills of snow camping?

Illuminate and add character to your garden, patio or BBQ area with a range of the best outdoor lights. T3 is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number Select your region. Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter. Specifications Battery: 2xAA batteries. Touchscreen: no. Memory: 16GB. Waterproof rating: IPX7. Reasons to avoid - No rechargeable option.

Garmin eTrex 30x. Memory: 3. Suunto 9 Baro Titanium. Wrist mounted but powerful, this is the best hiking GPS for minimalists. Specifications Battery: rechargeable. Touchscreen: yes. Memory: none. Waterproof rating: water resistant to m. Reasons to avoid - Needs a power source to recharge - Small screen. Garmin eTrex Specifications Battery: 2 x AA. Memory: 8MB. Reasons to avoid - Very basic feature set - No rechargeable option.

Garmin eTrex 32x. Memory: 8GB. Waterproof rating:. Reasons to avoid - Not the best version of this range - No rechargeable option. Garmin Oregon Specifications Battery: 2xAA batteries or rechargeable pack. Touchscreen: Yes. Memory: 1.