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Garmin Basecamp help thread

114K views 491 replies 109 participants last post by  amorley 
#1 ·
Administrator if this needs to be moved to a different forum please do.

I thought I would start a thread where folks can ask questions about using Garmin's Basecamp to make routes for their Nav IV and V.

I know I've spent a lot of time working with it making simple routes for my trips and have come across several stumbling blocks and I suppose there are those of you who are scratching your heads from time to time.

Anyway let's see if there is any interest sharing thoughts and experience on this subject.

Please don't chime in and say things like "I use..........instead of Basecamp" This is all well and good but for now please keep this thread just for Garmin's Basecamp.
:lurk2:
 
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#2 ·
I'm using Basecamp as well, and find it pretty good actually. Good thread, I was thinking about starting one myself.

One thing that irks me though, is when I'm creating a route by clicking on map points, I have to switch controls to the hand (move) so that I can move the map to see the rest of the area I'm trying to route. When creating routes, I have the map zoomed in so that I can accurately place my waypoints (ie - make sure I click the correct side of the road for example). Is there a way to move the map while in route creation mode? This would speed things up considerably for me.
 
#3 · (Edited)
I'm using Basecamp as well, and find it pretty good actually. Good thread, I was thinking about starting one myself.

One thing that irks me though, is when I'm creating a route by clicking on map points, I have to switch controls to the hand (move) so that I can move the map to see the rest of the area I'm trying to route. When creating routes, I have the map zoomed in so that I can accurately place my waypoints (ie - make sure I click the correct side of the road for example). Is there a way to move the map while in route creation mode? This would speed things up considerably for me.
If your mouse has a scroll wheel you can scroll to zoom in our out and depending on where your cursor is the map will also move sideways or up and down as you scroll. Its a little tricky but after a little while you get the hang of moving the map all around while having the pencil cursor on the screen. If you don't have a scroll wheel on your mouse it would be a nice investment $20 for a wireless mouse most places.
 
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#5 ·
Glad you've started this thread. I'm attempting to use Basecamp right now , planning a two week Europe trip leaving mid June this year. I've managed through trial and error to get basic routes in which is good but the thing I'm finding hardest is using the search boxes and finding exact GPS co-ordinates for a hotel etc as they are often not listed on websites.
Will watch this thread unravel and hopefully pick up some useful tips
 
#6 ·
If I can't find an exact location in Basecamp, I go to Google Maps, find the location ( sometimes a hotel not listed in Basecamp or maybe a turnout on the side of the road as a meeting place), I'll then copy the gps coordinates from Google Maps and past them into Basecamp. It works perfectly, just takes a little practice to get the hang of it.


Sent from Motorcycle.com Free App
 
#7 ·
Related to Basecamp and updates - has anyone had any problems using a microSD card in their NavIV that's bigger than 8GB. The Garmin folks recommend a card between 4 - 8GB and when I looked around today I'm not finding anything smaller than 16GB.

Thanks!
 
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#442 ·
Related to Basecamp and updates - has anyone had any problems using a microSD card in their NavIV that's bigger than 8GB. The Garmin folks recommend a card between 4 - 8GB and when I looked around today I'm not finding anything smaller than 16GB.

Thanks!
Try here
 
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#8 ·
Question is, Town is not clickable?

When creating a route I like to have a recognizable name of a town that will show on the GPS for the next point to go to or next turn in the route. The map brings up points of interest but not clickable towns.

When I zoom in on the map and choose/click a town name, like Circleville Utah, there is a small black dot next to name in the list of choices. Now I want to create a way-point or use the insert tab to put the name into the route but the name is not clickable?
 
#11 · (Edited)
I experimented using versions 2012, 2013 and 2014 I know I've had the same problem in the past but today it worked.
In the upper right corner of the page is a search window, that is where I typed in Circleville, UT and hit enter. Number 1 under points of interest was the town in Utah and number 4 was in Kansas? I then did a search for another obscure town (Twodot, MT) and it also came up as #1 in the points of interest box. I clicked on the number 1 Cirlcleville and a pop up window appeared at the towns location on the map with several icons one of which was the waypoint flag. I clicked on the flag and it dropped a waypoint.

As long as we're on this after dropping the flag, making it a waypoint, I went to the left side of the computer screen. At the bottom of the box is a line up of icons. Highlight the flag and all your waypoints will be listed one of which should be the new town you flagged. Double click on it and large pop up window appears with information on that town one of which is the GPS location points. You can change the icon symbol to say a motel or something, you can rename it at this time etc.

Back in that lower left line up of icons you can click on the route symbol and your routes (in whatever folder you have highlighted up above) will come up. By double clicking on one of those routes a pop up statistic window will come up and you can see all kinds of things like distance, time etc. You change the name, color of that route line etc. if so desired.
 
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#10 ·
"When I zoom in on the map and choose/click a town name, like Circleville Utah, there is a small black dot next to name in the list of choices. Now I want to create a way-point or use the insert tab to put the name into the route but the name is not clickable?"

I'm not near my computer with Basecamp, this should be close. When you hover over the dot, or right click on the dot (not sure which), a pop up will appear and you can select to add the dot (Town or city in this case) to you active list. You may be able to add it directly to your route, but it might not add in the order you prefer. Either way, you can edit and add or rearrange the waypoints and via points.




Sent from Motorcycle.com Free App
 
#13 ·
thanks for an awesome thread.. question though and i don't mean to hijack this thread.. but which is the best for base camp… PC or MAC… i have both… just not sure!!!! what does one use?
 
#14 · (Edited)
thanks for an awesome thread.. question though and i don't mean to hijack this thread.. but which is the best for base camp… PC or MAC… i have both… just not sure!!!! what does one use?

Windows® Requirements

IBM-compatible computer running Windows Vista Service Pack 2 or later
Microsoft® .NET framework 4.5.1; a current version of .NET will be installed if needed
A video card that supports OpenGL version 1.3 or later to view 3-D terrain

If you experience problems when interacting with the map views, make sure you have installed current video card drivers.


Mac® Requirements

Intel-based Mac running OS 10.6 or higher
1024 MB or RAM (2048 MB recommended)

http://www.garmin.com/en-US/shop/downloads/basecamp
 
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#17 ·
I like the Garmin cloud for storing routes. The only issue experienced so far is getting an error message on a Windows 7 computer after creating the route on a XP machine originally. When loading the route on Windows 7 it left out segments. Maybe not totally backwards compatible?
 
#18 ·
Basecamp should be totally reconfigured/reworked. Yes, I use it but holy heck!?. You shouldn't have to go through such heartaches to create a stinking map. I've put in hrs upon hrs for just simple tasks that are done in seconds in both googlemaps and mapquest (which are so easy, and should be emulated to a point).

On my other ST forums, BC is one of the most bitched about proggys. The common saying and thought... "antiquated compared to others". I understand Garmin doesn't have the resources and know-how that google and mapquest may have, but a little copy cat would not be a bad thing.

Yes, I use BC but with it in my head... it just has to be better/easier/simplified for today's GUI standards.

...I'm back to BC later today to do another route. I've now got it down (somewhat) but it is still way (weigh) too much hair pulling.
 
#25 · (Edited)
This is why I started this thread, so we can together learn how to use this program. It is very powerful and as such there are specific ways to make things happen and once you learn them they can be used to your advantage. A lot of new technology looks stupid until you learn how to use them so let's learn.
 
#19 ·
Riderman,

There are several ways to create routes. By far the easiest way is to select NEW > Waypoint

Drag the flag to start of journey. Do same process for end of journey. You will see both waypoints in bottom left portion of screen. Holding down control highlight both waypoints and then right click on mouse. Select create route and it will appear on map as a route. You can change the symbol from flag and rename it anytime by double clicking waypoint in left panel where a box opens to allow changes. You can easily move the points with Move Point tool at top of screen

Hope this helps you

Regards Ian
 
#32 ·
Thank you for that. I have just finished a 4900 mile plus route through 8 states, mainly Utah and found it to be a little cumbersome. The route is for 13 days, launch time is 18 hours/12 minutes away. So excited. I will watch the videos named in this thread and hopefully have an easier time of it for the next route. :k16:
 
#26 ·
I looked for an older thread on this forum that had a link to a very helpful video of creating a route without first having a start and end point and then have to alter that created route to then take you through the fun stuff. I can't find that posting yet but here's another one that also shows how you can simply create a route starting wherever you want and then start clicking on the map and "forcing" Basecamp to create a route based on your choices. You're not creating waypoints so you won't have to go back and do the "don't alert" steps if you don't want a waypoint to override your map screen every time you go through a waypoint area. Plus if you do want to alter the route you created, the route has been segmented enough that you can more easily change what ever section you want.
This may not be very clear to some but give this video a chance. It's a little less than 8 minutes long and it is fairly clear on how to use this method. I find creating a route using this method, at times, much easier than first creating a straight line route and then modifying it to suite my desire for some adventure.
 
#28 ·
KCMO Steve

Not hard to do but hard to explain to you on forum. Can I suggest you go on YouTube and pick your way through the variety of videos. Some are really crap but some are okay and the task you seek info on will be found there as I have watched it. I still think you may find it easier though to create a route the way I suggested and to then modify the route with the " rubber band " is relatively easy. I say easy but as with all things a little practise helps.

One of the great functions found at top left of screen is EDIT > Undo so if you make a mistake just do this and start again.

VERY important. When you manipulate a route by moving points be sure to zoom in close to ensure the points are exactly where you intended them to be, on a road for example and not on some piece of farmland.

If anyone gets stuck then re post and someone on here can help. I've learned a lot in a reasonably short time and if I can then others can. Oh an other good thing to watch out for is if you double click on your route on box in bottom left a box opens where you can look at details of journey, add notes etc etc .In here you can also control avoidance such as toll roads etc. My advise is don't put a cross against anything if you don't need to otherwise when you actually follow your route on the bike the Nav will have you going all over the place avoiding what you selected and the Garmin may divert you miles away on all,kinds of weird roads and tracks
 
#30 ·
KCMO Steve

Not hard to do but hard to explain to you on forum. Can I suggest you go on YouTube and pick your way through the variety of videos. Some are really crap but some are okay and the task you seek info on will be found there as I have watched it. I still think you may find it easier though to create a route the way I suggested and to then modify the route with the " rubber band " is relatively easy. I say easy but as with all things a little practise helps.
Because we're all here to learn, you may want to check out the video I posted and with a little practice see how that may work for you in some situations. I've tried both methods and I found my rubber band seemed to snap at times or I would get some weird designs when my way points were a distance apart and I was trying to pick county roads in close proximity to major highways. It seems that Basecamp thinks it knows best. Try picking a road that runs parallel and fairly close to an Interstate and see how long it takes to move/insert points before it finally gives up and lets you stay off the slab instead of popping you back on it at every opportunity. It may even have you backtrack a few miles to find an on ramp. In those and other cases the other method shown in the video works better for me. There's different ways to achieve a Custom Route through Basecamp and I don't believe there's any one method that is the best.

We're not supposed to mention other names of route creating software so I won't mention the one I'm now using instead of Basecamp. I can get around Basecamp fairly well but I decided to pick one and just try and go through one learning curve. This one I don't have to zoom in very far to verify my route is not taking me on a Southbound lane when I'm trying to go North. But I got used to checking over my route at close range to make sure I was on course and not stopping at Susie's Sewing Salon. It happens rarely on the unmentioned route creator.

What I think is one of the big advantages of Basecamp is how you can see multiple routes on the same map. One example is it's a great way to compare alternate routes and be able to see each day's route on a multiple day trip if you choose to break the custom routes up into daily routes. I haven't tried the newest version of Basecamp but I hear you can actually find what you're searching for. That is good news.
 
#31 ·
I couldn't make it through the video Steve mentions in post #26 plus I think the guy may have had an older version of Basecamp.

This is how I make an initial route:

Go to the top and click on the route symbol (3 square green boxes connected together) Take that cursor and left click on your beginning and then again at the end of your route then right click. That's it. Based on your parameters (that we've not discussed yet) it will route you either fastest way, no unpaved roads, no toll roads or whatever you elected to set.

Now as Steve mentions if you already know the side roads and such that you want to take then left click your start and continue left clicking your custom route in small segments, when you reach the end right click to finish. Later you can use the rubber band to adjust even more.
 
#33 · (Edited)
OK class are you ready to set parameters? :gm

At the top of the page click on Edit, at the bottom of the pop up click on Options.

In the pop up window click on Display. Here you can slide the controls to a variety of map features and functions. Play around with them.

Go back in this same window and click on Activity Profile. This is a good one to set those parameters mentioned in a post above.
First there is a drop down window with a lot of vehicles to chose from. Your obvious choice is Motorcycle, NOT. If you pick that it will take you on back roads that won't be very good for our K1600s. I just leave mine as an automobile (driving) seeing as how I am sharing the same roads as cars but hey this is your learning experience so give Motorcycle a try if you like an adventure and see if you like it.

Next is route speed, faster or shorter distances, your choice.

The next 2 are avoidances. Check the ones you want your automatic route maker to avoid. Experiment and see what happens.

The last one is speed. Click on the customize button. The next pop up has a listing of different types of roads you will be driving on with the speeds you might be driving at on those roads. The defaults seem a little slow to me so I typed in what I think will be my average speeds. This information will be used to estimate your travel times when you build a route.

You can look around at the Measurement, Software Update and General sections too and adjust as you see fit.

Now go do your homework. ;)
 
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#36 ·
OK class are you ready to set parameters? :gm

At the top of the page click on Edit, at the bottom of the pop up click on Options.

In the pop up window click on Display. Here you can slide the controls to a variety of map features and functions. Play around with them.

Go back in this same window and click on Activity Profile. This is a good one to set those parameters mentioned in a post above.
First there is a drop down window with a lot of vehicles to chose from. Your obvious choice is Motorcycle, NOT. If you pick that it will take you on back roads that won't be very good for our K1600s. I just leave mine as an automobile (driving) seeing as how I am sharing the same roads as cars but hey this is your learning experience so give Motorcycle a try if you like an adventure and see if you like it.

Next is route speed, faster or shorter distances, your choice.

The next 2 are avoidances. Check the ones you want your automatic route maker to avoid. Experiment and see what happens.

The last one is speed. Click on the customize button. The next pop up has a listing of different types of roads you will be driving on with the speeds you might be driving at on those roads. The defaults seem a little slow to me so I typed in what I think will be my average speeds. This information will be used to estimate your travel times when you build a route.

You can look around at the Measurement, Software Update and General sections too and adjust as you see fit.

Now go do your homework. ;)
Correct me if I am wrong, but selecting Motorcycle ONLY selects the icon. Avoidances selects the type of road to avoid.
 
#34 ·
Combining trip logs

You can quickly stitch together all of the log files from a recent trip by


1) import the .gpx files (file import)
2) right click on my collection and create a new smart list
3) select date within the last (x) days
4) delete any of the logs on the lower left you don't want included
 
#38 ·
I dislike the fact that I can't set a hotel as a waypoint if Basecamp can't find it in Yelp. There's some licensing restriction which means I can't find it unless it's via Yelp? Thanks a lot, Garmin.

By the way, Basecamp shows me Yelp star ratings and such for hotels like this, but it can't "find" them? Not helpful.

The Garmin idea of buying $700 hardware but not owning the maps or being able to use them fully is a joke.
 
#40 ·
I made a route by selecting the beginning (Paulden, AZ) and end (Socorro, NM) with the driver icon showing in the window at the top of the map page. The only avoidances I have set are no unpaved roads or narrow trails. Basecamp built a route using mostly interstates 40 and 25 and Higway 60 for a total of 491 miles.

I then changed only the above icon to motorcycle (left the avoidances the same) and built another route using the same cities for the beginning and end. Basecamp this time built a route that went all over the place and ended up at 654 miles.

I don't know why motorcycle would be different but it was.
 
#41 ·
You've got something different in your profiles. Avoidances, route preference, and average speeds are all on a per-profile basis. Take another look, make sure your routes are using the profile you think they are, and check all of the settings on the Routing tab of each of the profiles.
 
#49 ·
Agreed, the trip planner is terrible. I had already booked hotels, and was just creating a route to see how long each day would be... Using Google Maps ended up being a far less frustrating experience.

Thanks for your help!
 
#50 ·
Interesting development Jim

I've now got many routes planned in Basecamp for my trip in four weeks time to the Austrian Alps. Anyway, I've been experimenting on each individual route that I've set up for daily ride outs which I origionally planned by choosing motorcycle option and not using customisation, therefore there are no avoidances set. Now to the interesting and baffling thing - if I make just one change by changing from motorbike to car, it has a major impact on every planned route and typically it can change a ride out that was 80 miles into one that becomes 194 miles.

I've checked each route and there are no small tracks or trails that a bike could go up but not a car so cannot understand such drastic re-routes that it comes up with. Any ideas would be appreciated

Regds Ian
 
#52 ·
+1 to what Michael said in previous post, if I'm understanding you correctly.

I typically have a couple of different Motorcycle profiles that I use, with slightly different avoidances. I have one that I created that I call "Motorcycle override" that is just like my "Motorcycle" but allows dirt roads. Not that I ride on dirt roads much, but occasionally will be willing to go down something that BC has flagged as dirt that I know (or think) will be OK.

Make sure your routes are using the profile you think they are. If you change the settings for a profile, BC will ask you if you want to recalculate everything that uses that profile, or it will create a Custom profile for you with your old settings and leave the existing routes alone. So think about what you want it to do before launching down that path.

The main thing is, get your Motorcycle profile set to something that makes sense for you. Or don't use it and just create your own custom profile(s) and use it (them).
 
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