Wasted $180 on a GPS route guide that was totally wrong

Bought that Topo-Route digital guide for the Wind River Range last spring, thought it would save me time planning. Turns out the waypoints were off by almost 2 miles in some sections, and the camp spot recommendations were unusable. Ended up redoing everything on CalTopo from scratch anyway. Anyone else get burned by a commercial route guide that was straight up garbage?

2 comments

2 Comments

nora_wells585d ago

Did you check the reviews before buying or just trust the marketing hype? I learned the hard way that most of these digital guides are just ripped from old maps and never actually field tested. The Wind River Range especially needs accurate data because the trails aren't always well marked. I only trust stuff that's been verified by people who actually hiked the route recently. CalTopo saved me too, it's way more reliable than those overpriced downloads.

nancy_owens5d ago

You're right about those digital guides being hit or miss, @nora_wells58. My buddy once bought one for the Winds that claimed to have "expert tested" routes, but when he got to the trailhead half the waypoints were off by a quarter mile. He ended up backtracking for hours because the guide said a creek crossing was at a spot that didn't even exist anymore. CalTopo and recent trip reports from forums are the only things I trust now too.