BikeHike and eTrex HCx

[Bianchi Boy]

I have just invested in an eTrex Vista HCx and am really please with it. I have got the proximity alarms to work, but I have to go and set these all up as waypoints with proximity settings in MapSource.

On BikeHike it says that you can have notification when a waypoint is reached. I have downloaded the gpx directly to the eTrex and I get no alarms at the way points?

I am not routing - only using tracklogs. Am I doing something wrong? I have checked all the menus for proximity alerts and they are all turned on.

[frankly frankie]

You shouldn't need proximity alerts at all unless you have something specific in mind - eg, advance warning of an Info control on an audax, is one possible use.

Even without proximity enabled - you should get audible (and visual) alerts:
* approaching each waypoint (if you are following a Route)
or:
* at significant changes of direction (if following a Track using Trackback)
but not:
just following a Track as a highlighted line on the map - this is a perfectly reasonable way to use the GPS but you won't get alerts doing this.

Obviously you need to check in the Tones menu that the right things are enabled and that Mute is switched off. 

[Bianchi Boy]

* at significant changes of direction (if following a Track using Trackback)

How do I turn on Trackback?

[frankly frankie]

In Menu > Tracks - there's a TracBack button for the 'Active' track (ie to help you retrace the way you came)
or if you then scroll down your Saved Tracks and front-click on any one, again there is a TracBack button on that page, for the Saved Track.
The final step seems a bit unintelligent - your are asked to click on the location you want to go back to - but I don't think you need to be particularly accurate about this, its just a question of which way the track should run, forwards or backwards as it were.

Activating this should give some audio prompts, and also fields like 'distance to next' now work.  Its a halfway house to having a real Route to follow.

---------
Talking of audible prompts - here's something that was news to me - apparently the GPSMap60 handheld models are capable of generating voice prompts.  However they don't have a proper speaker - to hear the voice you have to attach an external speaker via one of the connection sockets.  The similar Rhino models (sold as 2-way radio pairs) do have a speaker built-in.

[Bianchi Boy]

In Menu > Tracks - there's a TracBack button for the 'Active' track (ie to help you retrace the way you came)
or if you then scroll down your Saved Tracks and front-click on any one, again there is a TracBack button on that page, for the Saved Track.
The final step seems a bit unintelligent - your are asked to click on the location you want to go back to - but I don't think you need to be particularly accurate about this, its just a question of which way the track should run, forwards or backwards as it were.

Activating this should give some audio prompts, and also fields like 'distance to next' now work.  Its a halfway house to having a real Route to follow.

Think I am been a bit dim here. I have been trying to use the Tracback function. I have a track that I have downloaded. I go to that saved tracks screen select the track and choose 'Tracback' for that track. I choose a point on the track - normally the end. My eTrex then asks me if I want top do fastest or shortest. I select one and I am then navigated back to point I selected. The key point here is that it does not follow the track. Just the calculated 'track', that can be quite different.

What I would like it to do is give some sort of help to follow the track that I have set up.

I am using the free OSM that support routing.

I have followed the manual on this point and it says there that I will get the option to follow the track. I do not get this question. Just one asking me if I want the shortest or quickest route.

[frankly frankie]

Think I am been a bit dim here.

No - what you describe is a bit puzzling.
I've tried to replicate it (I don't use Tracks much) on my Legend HCx and did get something similar though not exactly the same.

In my case, it was a matter of selecting the Track more precisely (so, contrary to the advice I offered in a previous message) - ie by zooming in on the map until I was definitely clicking on the Track and not on some nearby map feature.  I was then prompted 'Track or Route' and I selected Track. 
It also helps if you are located on the Track when you do this - if you are some distance off it (as I was when I tried it just now), the GPS will then insert a 'Go To' to get to the nearest point on the Track - which kinda confuses the issue.

The prompt for 'fastest or shortest' is one I've never seen, but it can only be a Routing prompt so is not what you want to see.  Maybe it was the 'Go To' kicking in.

Maybe suggesting TracBack wasn't such a good idea in the 1st place ... 

[Bianchi Boy]

I will try using the alternate method for setting the track. Riding home in 5 minutes so will report results later tonight.

[Bianchi Boy]

Tried again and I got the same Shortest or Fastest option. I am a bit perplexed by this since all the info I can see suggests that I should get the 'Follow Road' or 'Follow Track' option.

Confused I am. I have now tried this on short walks, bike rides and car trips and it always does the same.

Help me please I want to follow tracks!

[Bianchi Boy]

I have now started a thread on follow tracks on HCx