I am planning on going to Morroco this winter for a few weeks, while route planning I figured a GPS would be useful as the maps can be pretty unreliable in the more remote areas. I aim to use it mainly to identify difficult junctions and main habitations. I have 3 maps and not one of them agrees entirely with each other!!!
I haven't bought one yet but am pretty sure what I want, plus I may be able to get some mapping with it too.
Is it possible to plan a route on Google Earth/Maps, making points of interest of villages etc, and then uploading as a GPX file? if so how, as I don't normally use these things.
For info I don't really plan on using it here at home, maybe to get a fix in a white out while ski-touring
The main usage is for foreign trips really.
Thanks in advance

I think* that google and the like use kml files which can then be converted to gpx.

*Hopefully someone who knows more than me (which won't be hard) will be along shortly.

If you use something like bikehike you'll be able to plot your route on google maps and then save it down as a GPX route. Having a quick look at Morocco theres quite a bit of detail.

That will only give you a line on your GPS though. You'll have to source a basemap from somewhere so you can use it on the ground and workout if you are where you think you are.

We're a bit spoiled with OS maps over here, seems like its a bit of a novelty elsewhere

Thanks guys, I am getting a Garmin and have installed Basecamp in anticipation, it has basemap on that, would that surfice?
I plan to use it in conjunction with a paper map, just confirming the junction or whatever, is the one I am looking at as it were.
Bikehike you say? I shall pop over there now.....

I believe basemap is very basic. It will tell you about major roads and towns, but not much else.

You'll need some kind of map tiles/basemap to add onto your devise, or some way of cross referencing your gps output to your map. The gps will output Lon/Lat co-ordinates, but dont think they're too much use on flat paper maps.

There may be some geek somewhere that will have what you're looking for :D

s8tannorm wrote:I think* that google and the like use kml files which can then be converted to gpx.

*Hopefully someone who knows more than me (which won't be hard) will be along shortly.

yup, something like www.gpsies.com will help you with that

Route can be planned in Google earth and saved as KML files, and then converted to GPX (or anything else you like) at http://www.gpsbabel.org/

Don't know how to create a link but check out www.morroco overland.com. Does a map review for you.

Hi Gari.

Try this website http://www.africaexpedition.de/ausrustu ... p-morocco/

They have routable osm maps of Morocco.

It us anything like the talkytoaster uk osm maps it is very easy to stick on a garmin.

I am happy to try to get a morrocan map working on the garmin tonight then let you know how to do it.

Garmin sd card containing TOPO mapping of Morocco - £23.19

http://gb.ioffer.com/i/garmin-topo-moro ... -199775826

Thanks again folks, appreciated. Stuart that is just the kind of thing I was after, thanks.
Fingers crossed it will happen this year, I was going last year too but work got in the way!!!
Gari