Route planners you deserve some more recognition

Having spent the better part of 10 hours working on the route for the WI run next month and still not being even close to finished I think that we need to thank everyone that has done this task before for the work they have put in. Before the run this is a thankless and demoralizing task as you have no idea if everyone who has signed up to take your trip will enjoy what you are planning.

I have learnt several things:

* US Forest Service MVUM maps suck (B&W with huge tables of date restrictions plastered over the top)
* Google Earth imagery is great but not perfect
* Paper copies of maps are much easier to use to get a big picture of an area than google maps and viewing large maps on the computer (Luckily I have access to a 32" large format printer to print maps on)
* Adding color to the paper copies will help you see patterns in the roads that allow you to plot a path a little easier.
* Trying to plot paths in directly into Back Country Navigator on the tablet is a really bad idea.

Tools that are a must:

* Google earth (path plotting)
* Paper copies of maps for the area you are planning to travel through (you should pack these and take them with you incase something bad happens)
* Google maps
* A large work surface
* A large collection of different colored ultra fine tip sharpies
* Patience

So to all of you that have done this before thanks for your hard work, and please share some of your tips and tricks in this thread so other people can learn from your past experiences.

Tom,

Not that the task gets easier but I now can do a route pretty quick. I usually do it at work while "monitoring" a test.

Jason

As being someone who has participated in this activity. I second your recommendation.

A big thanks to those part of GLRE and Knight Raptor Runs who I have had the experience to follow there routes.

Especially @RaptorWifey

We planned a run in the Smokeys thankfully we were able to pick the brains of some experts! Big thanks to GLRE and Night Raptor. Both for giving me a piece of your mind, so to speak lol, and for the awesome runs you put on. With out experiencing first class runs we wouldn't have known how to start!

Kanakry said:

Tom,

Not that the task gets easier but I now can do a route pretty quick. I usually do it at work while "monitoring" a test.

Jason

Click to expand...

Ditto

Two monitors minimum is key and a space mouse

An open mind and no babies, I thank all. Every run I've been on has been awesome OK only two but they where both a fun time.

I did find a way to quick map in Back Country navigator. You have to trust that their maps are right though and it of course can't account for gated roads. I'll put up more info on it later as I have friends in town visiting right now. You are absolutely correct that the Forest Service maps are usually terrible. I hate having all kinds of roads mapped and getting there all "where the heck is the road"

Here is the info on the back country. Navigation, Waypoints and Tracks : CritterMap Software HelpDesk Scroll down to where it says measure and create routes.... I do this, then I download the route from my tablet to my computer and compare and edit what I've got in Google Earth. I also use Google Earth to zoom in on any intersection I can to check for gates and such.

Working on the 2015 Snoball route while typing this.

I agree. The route planners spend a lot of time doing what they do. @RaptorWifey and @Huck typically do the route mapping for our runs. I help a little bit. But they put in the hours.

The backcountry navigator trail making is really cool and easy. Just need to do it a few times. It beats clicking all those way points in Google earth. It actually follows the trail add if you prerun it with a bread crumb program.

Yukon Joe
www.RUNRAPTORRUN.com

RaptorWifey said:

I did find a way to quick map in Back Country navigator. You have to trust that their maps are right though and it of course can't account for gated roads. I'll put up more info on it later as I have friends in town visiting right now. You are absolutely correct that the Forest Service maps are usually terrible. I hate having all kinds of roads mapped and getting there all "where the heck is the road"

Click to expand...

Yeah I am dreading ending up halfway down a mapped road/trail and it just stopping or there being a gate. All the route I am working on at the moment is on public roads on FS land so hopefully we don't find any gates.

RaptorWifey said:

Here is the info on the back country. Navigation, Waypoints and Tracks : CritterMap Software HelpDesk Scroll down to where it says measure and create routes.... I do this, then I download the route from my tablet to my computer and compare and edit what I've got in Google Earth. I also use Google Earth to zoom in on any intersection I can to check for gates and such.

Click to expand...

This is interesting, if I had a windows machine I would consider getting their desktop version for using this feature, I find the tablet screen a little small for plotting useful routes, guess I'm spoilt by my quad display machine in my office.