No matter what you're doing in the outdoors, you may need help navigating from place to place-and remembering how to get back. A compass and a map are excellent tools, and knowing how to use them will make it even easier to learn how to use your Global Positioning System unit. The author has been involved with teaching people how to use GPS for many years. In this book he shares the answers to all the questions a novice might ask: What is GPS? How does it work? How accurate is it? Does it work anywhere? Is it for traveling on land as well as on the water? and more. Topics include: straight-line navigation, getting around obstacles, uploading maps and databases, entering waypoints, recording a breadcrumb trail, how to choose a GPS model and caring for your GPS. The step-by-step instructions are accompanied by illustrations and photographs. Actual GPS screens are shown as the user sees them on his or her unit while navigating. In addition to a glossary of GPS terms and definitions, this book has a list of popular manufacturers, a list of software sources and an Index.

No matter what you're doing in the outdoors, you may need help navigating from place to place-and remembering how to get back. A compass and a map are excellent tools, and knowing how to use them will make it even easier to learn how to use your Global Positioning System unit. The author has been involved with teaching people how to use GPS for many years. In this book he shares the answers to all the questions a novice might ask: What is GPS? How does it work? How accurate is it? Does it work anywhere? Is it for traveling on land as well as on the water? and more. Topics include: straight-line navigation, getting around obstacles, uploading maps and databases, entering waypoints, recording a breadcrumb trail, how to choose a GPS model and caring for your GPS. The step-by-step instructions are accompanied by illustrations and photographs. Actual GPS screens are shown as the user sees them on his or her unit while navigating. In addition to a glossary of GPS terms and definitions, this book has a list of popular manufacturers, a list of software sources and an Index.

For about $150 anyone can access the United States' multi-billion dollar GPS program. Using GPS Outdoors: A Practical Guide for Hikers, Bikers, Paddlers, and Climbers shows readers how to plug in and enhance most any outdoor experience. Whether a hiker on a weekend trip through the Great Smokies, a backpacker cruising the Continental Divide Trail, a mountain biker kicking up dust in Moab, a paddler running the Lewis and Clark bicentennial route, or a climber pre-scouting the routes up Mount Shasta, a simple handheld GPS unit is fun, useful, and can even be a lifesaver. Described in conjunction with today's most popular GPS software, easy to understand information enables readers to: - Plan a trip - Navigate along a route - Gather data from the outing - Analyze trip data after the trip Information is power, and a GPS unit is today's preferred tool to harness the power of navigational technology for a more enjoyable, more informative, and possibly safer outdoor experience.

CLICK HERE to download the first chapter from Wilderness GPS * Simple, focused, and accessible, Wilderness GPS is for anyone using GPS in an outdoor setting * Trust us: first-timers need help to use their new backcountry GPS devices * From the authors of the bestselling Wilderness Navigation (65,000 copies sold) Thousands have learned compass and map skills with the help of father-and-son team Bob and Mike Burns and their straightforward, simply explained book, Wilderness Navigation. Now they’ve written a book for everyone who has bought a backcountry GPS device and found it inexplicably complicated to use (which includes most of us). Wilderness GPS is an easy-to-use guide to get you navigating the outdoors with your handheld GPS device. Wondering how to choose from the variety of gear and computer programs, or how to use a GPS with your map and compass effectively? Wilderness GPS details this and more including: * How to select your GPS gear * Getting started and practice routines * Different coordinate systems: latitude and longitude vs. Universal transverse Mercator (UTM) * Routefinding in wilderness settings, including common scenarios * GPS vs. map and compass routefinding * Using GPS on water * Using your GPS with a home computer or mobile “smart” device Bob Burns and Mike Burns are the authors of Wilderness Navigation, a nationally bestselling primer that serves as the official textbook for navigation courses taught by The Mountaineers and other outdoor education centers. Together, they have decades of professional experience in teaching map and compass, GPS, and navigation in the outdoors and have hiked, scrambled, climbed, and snowshoed all over the West Coast and beyond. They both live in Seattle.

All the Skills You Need to Navigate Unfamiliar Terrain In this must-have guide, top wilderness trainer and author Craig Caudill partners with fellow wilderness instructor Tracy Trimble to help you find your way in nature—no matter the tools you have on hand. Using real-life stories of wilderness navigation successes—and cautionary tales of wilderness exploration gone awry—Craig and Tracy start with the basics of rudimentary compass and map use before teaching the finer points of these indispensable resources, making Essential Wilderness Navigation the ultimate go-to guide for explorers of all skill levels. You’ll also learn how technological aids like GPS and natural elements like flora, fauna and celestial bodies can help you identify your position. Armed with your new knowledge and skills, you will be well equipped to troubleshoot any problems, explore nature and become a master wilderness navigator.

For outdoor adventurers who hike, fish, kayak, cross-country ski, or mountain bike in the backcountry, a GPS receiver can help them reach their destination and return safely -- but only if they know how to use it! Here is the guide to getting the most out of a GPS receiver, from basic consumer advice to advanced techniques. It even includes fun solo and team games that utilize GPS. Starting with essential definitions and moving on to creating waypoints, and using your GPS with a computer, this succinct book teaches the basics of navigation and outdoor GPS use. Advanced techniques are covered, such as creating custom maps, and new technologies are discussed, including using GPS-enabled mobile phones, and how to use GPS with Google Earth and Google Maps. With years of experience as a GPS instructor, Hinch is well-versed in all aspects of navigation and GPS use, and he covers them in a jargon-free, easy-to-follow style.

Presents a comprehensive guide to land navigation and offers instruction on choosing and using a compass, reading topographic maps, measuring distances, and navigation using the sun and stars as well as providing a fold-out map, drawings, and photographs.