Travel to Muscat

[+Sprogkeepers]

Hi, I am travelling to Muscat for my sons wedding in December and obviously I would like to pick up a couple of caches in the area There are even 2 caches in the grounds of the hotel (Al Bustan Palace) where the wedding is being held. My question is simply this, will I need to change the settings of my 450 which will be pre loaded with the caches I hope to pick up or will I be able to just start up and go. Thanks for any suggestions in advance!!

[+kunarion]

It may take a few more minutes that usual for the GPSr to lock onto the satellites, when you first start it up in a new place. If you rely on specialized maps (street maps, for example), they would need to be loaded in advance.

[+Die Nemos]

You can get free maps here:

http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/

Just choose Oman out of the country list in Asia and the correct map tiles are selected.

Then, click on "Download map now!" to get the map and store it on your 450.

[+Path Pacer]

You can get free maps here:

http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/

Just choose Oman out of the country list in Asia and the correct map tiles are selected.

Then, click on "Download map now!" to get the map and store it on your 450.

Thanks for the link! I've been wondering how to get these on my gps.

[+Viajero Perdido]

Once you arrive over there, look for a menu option in your GPS, something like New Location -> Select on Map. (That's what it's called on my older Garmin model.) Choose your approximate location on the planet; it'll speed up the slooooow process of getting your first satellite lock over there. Something to do while waiting for your ride at the airport.

 

And for completeness' sake, I'll mention that caches worldwide use the same WGS84 datum, which is only ever an issue if you're hand-entering coords. Or would be an issue. So don't worry about that.

Edited October 14, 2015 by Viajero Perdido

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Once you arrive over there, look for a menu option in your GPS, something like New Location -> Select on Map. (That's what it's called on my older Garmin model.) Choose your approximate location on the planet; it'll speed up the slooooow process of getting your first satellite lock over there. Something to do while waiting for your ride at the airport.

 

I keep my GPSr in my laptop bag and usually take it out and turn it on as soon as I get into a taxi or on a train when leaving the airport.

 

I wish that setting an approximate location was more standard on GPS devices. I was just looking at the map for my Garmin 450 and didn't see a menu item for doing so. I've seen some pages which allege that one can bring up the maps screen and mark a location and it will use that as an approximate location for ephemeris data.

 

One of the advantages of using a smart phone with a GPS as it can use cellular towers to triangulate a location as an approximate location (it doesn't need to be real accurate) to speed up the initial satellite lock.

 

 

[+Viajero Perdido]

Simplest of course is just patience. 20 minutes should be enough to get satellites, often much less. Try to avoid subway tunnels.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Simplest of course is just patience. 20 minutes should be enough to get satellites, often much less. Try to avoid subway tunnels.

 

I was going to mention that when I mentioned taking the train from an airport. It probably doesn't help that you're trying to get a satellite lock while moving at 60kmh. Fortunately most airports are away from city centers and there is some clear sky between the airport and city center. Trying to obtain an initial satellite lock once *in* the city, where much of the horizon is blocked by buildings can take awhile.

 

 

[+Sprogkeepers]

You can get free maps here:

http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/

Just choose Oman out of the country list in Asia and the correct map tiles are selected.

Then, click on "Download map now!" to get the map and store it on your 450.

Thank you, have had a go at downloading the map and think it will work

[+Sprogkeepers]

Once you arrive over there, look for a menu option in your GPS, something like New Location -> Select on Map. (That's what it's called on my older Garmin model.) Choose your approximate location on the planet; it'll speed up the slooooow process of getting your first satellite lock over there. Something to do while waiting for your ride at the airport.

 

And for completeness' sake, I'll mention that caches worldwide use the same WGS84 datum, which is only ever an issue if you're hand-entering coords. Or would be an issue. So don't worry about that.

Thank you, that was the main piece of information about WGS84 that I was looking for.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

You can get free maps here:

http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/

Just choose Oman out of the country list in Asia and the correct map tiles are selected..

Then, click on "Download map now!" to get the map and store it on your 450.

Thank you, have had a go at downloading the map and think it will work

 

I am also a big proponent of the open street maps for Garmin and have used them in lots of different countries all over the world. Be aware that you can not only select maps for a specific country but if you check the box next to "Enable manual tile selection:" you can select specific map tiles from anywhere on the global map to create a map set and they don't have to be contiguous. For example, if you had a long layover in Istanbul on the way to/from Oman you could select all the map tiles in Oman and a few around Istanbul to create a single mapset to be downloaded to your GPS.

 

If you travel a fair amount I'd recommend getting a second microSD card for the 450 (I also have the same GPSr). You can keep one card for your local maps and caches and swap it with a "travel" microSD card with whatever maps you'll need while traveling.

 

 

[+terratin]

Might be a good idea to name the Oman map Oman or something similar for data management reasons. Once you get more maps it gets confusing.

 

Personally I would disable maps you're not using in your gps. I have the feeling (no proof) that the osm mapsdrain the batteries faster, and especially when more are active.

 

You might want to adjust the detail if the new map as well. Some of them have masses of detail. Nit sure about Muskat but I know that the Doha map works best on muddle detail instead of for example more detail as there are too many tiny roads.

[+Sprogkeepers]

Thank you everybody for your help. Think I am all sorted now and eagerly await gathering my first cahe in Oman!!