GPS setup.

[Bunker22]

I know some people say all the signage makes a GPS unnecessary, but just assuming I like the security of having the route on my Garmin 705, what do I have to do to set up the Garmin.

Will I have to install european maps. (I think I have GMAPSUPP installed at moment). If so can anyone talk me through how to do it?

TIA

[Aunt Maud]

You'll need a map covering that part of France from http://www.openstreetmap.org

You may have to name one file GMAPSUPP_UK and the other GMAPSUPP_FR and switch between them by removing the _GB bit by having your Garmin connected to your computer.

Or you could get a map covering both the UK and France from the same place. Either way you'll have to change the name or remove the original gmapsupp file.

How to do this stuff is here http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2013/05/download-garmin-705800810.html

[Euan Uzami]

Depending how technically minded you are, you can make gmapsupp.img
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=85504.0

[Tewdric]

Last time someone made up a map file just covering the PBP route which worked fine on my Etrex.  All I did was upload the tracks for each section and followed the line - I think I used a different colour for out and back but it was no more sophisticated than that.

[frankly frankie]

It's very easy to do but if relying on OSM maps then it's best to wait until a bit nearer the time, before downloading the latest info.
If you have standard Garmin mapping (Mapsource or City*, but not Topo) it covers France anyway.

[LEE]

I think the very most you need are waypoints of the towns it passes through.  In the unlikely event that you go off route you can just aim for the next waypoint and pick up the signs there.

I used OSM maps on my Etrex and never once switched it on.

[tatanab]

You'll need a map covering that part of France from http://www.openstreetmap.org

You may have to name one file GMAPSUPP_UK and the other GMAPSUPP_FR and switch between them by removing the _GB bit by having your Garmin connected to your computer.

Or you could get a map covering both the UK and France from the same place. Either way you'll have to change the name or remove the original gmapsupp file.

How to do this stuff is here http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2013/05/download-garmin-705800810.html

openfietsmap for western Europe also has UK, France and more in a single file http://www.openfietsmap.nl/downloads/europe  it is based on OSM but I prefer its appearance.

[Joolz]

Hello,

Have  two PBP (2007 and 2011) under my belt.

Have never taken a GPS and only taken a route sheet.  The signage is so good I didn't even look at the route sheet.  If you come off at the incorrect exit to a roundabout, there is even a sign with a 'X' on it saying you are going the wrong way.  I my opinion you don't even need a GPS.  I would imagine you will get more lost trying to find the start of the ride.

Just enjoy the ride, eat lots of French food,  cidre and make friends from all over the World

Joolz

[zigzag]

for me gps on pbp is not about finding the way, but for the stats - how much i spent faffing, sleeping, where i had rough moments etc. pretty interesting to go through it all after the dust settles.

[redfalo]

I know some people say all the signage makes a GPS unnecessary, but just assuming I like the security of having the route on my Garmin 705, what do I have to do to set up the Garmin.

Will I have to install european maps. (I think I have GMAPSUPP installed at moment). If so can anyone talk me through how to do it?

TIA

A very convenient place to get Open Street Maps of your choice for your Garmin is this website: http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/
You can chose and directly download the relevant map segments. Choose the *.img  file, rename it - for instance into GMAPSUPP-FR.img -  and save it on your Garmin in the same folder where  the GMAPSUPP file is located. You then have to activate the map in your device settings.
 

[Ivo]

I think the very most you need are waypoints of the towns it passes through.  In the unlikely event that you go off route you can just aim for the next waypoint and pick up the signs there.

I used OSM maps on my Etrex and never once switched it on.

I'll certainly make my own track with load's of waypoints. Especially supermarkets and other possibly usable points. Last time I for example indicated the Decathlon next to the course leaving Brest. So I knew that I could get a lot of things I might need by the time I know if I would need them. Same for supermarkets just a small detour away from the route. That's the sort of info you might need while you're on your riding it. Most of it you won't need but once or twice a day it can save you some time. Over 4 days that might total up to an hour worth of sleep.

[SR Steve]

I have only just started using GPS at the beginning of the year and have a Garmin Edge 200, which doesn't have any maps, only a bread crumb trail to follow. I plan to use it to record all of my rides in 2015 and for navigation on Audax rides. On the PBP and any rides over 300km  I plan to run it off the usb outlet of my Busch + Müller Lumotec IQ2 LUXOS U LED headlight. I have tried this for commuting and it seems fine. I have only done one DIY 200 so far using a track that I created on http://bikehike.co.uk/index.php and found that the course followed the roads and bridleways (doh!) very accurately. I didn't have my hub dynamo on that trip and most of it was in the dark with the backlight switched off to save the battery. Quite often I just guessed which way to go as my head-torch battery was a bit low and if I got it wrong the unit quickly beeped loudly and I turned round and guessed again. When running on dynamo power I will be able to leave the backlight on the lowest setting all the time which is ample to easily read the display at night.

Previously on the PBP, I haven't even bothered to take the route sheet with me and have purely relied on the arrows. I haven't actually gone off route since the 1991 edition, but there are some long stretches of road without any arrows that make you wonder if you have missed a turn or a crossed out arrow. For that reason I would like the reassurance of being able to easily check that I am still on track by using my Garmin.

[Somnolent]

openfietsmap for western Europe also has UK, France and more in a single file http://www.openfietsmap.nl/downloads/europe  it is based on OSM but I prefer its appearance.

@ 2.5 Gb it's too big a file for some though.

A very convenient place to get Open Street Maps of your choice for your Garmin is this website: http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/
You can chose and directly download the relevant map segments. 

That's the one I use.  Just a 'stripe' across the relevant bits of France is <100Mb.
All of UK, Ireland + all of north-western france (so PBP route and all routes from channel) is about 700Mb.

[adenough]

You don't have to buy mapping do you? I can just use Mapsource and download the tiles for the route on that. You create the route on say, mapmy ride and transfer to the Garmin. Job done.

[redfalo]

You don't have to buy mapping do you? I can just use Mapsource and download the tiles for the route on that. You create the route on say, mapmy ride and transfer to the Garmin. Job done.

Downloading the OSM maps into Mapsource (or, for that matter, Basecamp, which I find much easier to use) does not automatically mean the map tiles are transferred on the GPS as well. As pointed out above, the easiest way to get the OSM maps on the Garmin is downloading the relevant tiles as an *.img file on http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/ and safe it on the devices SD card.

I still bought Garmin's European road map (called the City Navigator NT), because OSM maps seem not to be able of doing address based routing (which I rarely use, but sometimes it can be crucial) and gives you all of Western Europe in a very small file.