maps for the west of USA

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
PJ520
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Joined: 23 Mar 2008, 3:49pm
Location: Seattle WA USA

Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by PJ520 »

Good luck.
You only live once, which is enough if you do it right. - Mae West
Vorpal
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Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by Vorpal »

I will check with my brother. I've had a little look around the USGS site and it's not obvious to me what he does. It's likely to be a few days, though before I can post on here.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
PJ520
Posts: 990
Joined: 23 Mar 2008, 3:49pm
Location: Seattle WA USA

Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by PJ520 »

Here's what someone on theACA site said

"I have found that National Forest maps are ideal for cycling - the scale is 1inch = 2 miles.
Many have topo contours now and most are now available in plastic.
Crossing the Cascades might entail two or three maps - same for the Rockies.
They have campground, backroad, trail and facilities information.
Plus, land ownership status for those who wish to do dispersed camping."

There's an outfit in Seattle, Metsker Maps, http://www.metskers.com/ that sells maps for the world over. You can even get OS maps from them. They may be able to help with Forest Service maps (much touring terrain is in National Forests)
You only live once, which is enough if you do it right. - Mae West
PJ520
Posts: 990
Joined: 23 Mar 2008, 3:49pm
Location: Seattle WA USA

Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by PJ520 »

Individual states have cycling maps that you can get from their tourism departments (you'll have to find these departments yourself but they do exist) and they are usually free. In my limited experience, WA state,they are road maps color coded to show how busy roads are. It's worth a poke around. How much does it cost to get ACA maps in the UK? The Northern Tier set is $147.50, almost exactly £100, plus P & P I suppose. Expensive but they save you an awful lot of work. Think how many OS maps it would take to cover 4256 miles, very roughly the coast of the UK mainland and nobody has sussed out the best route.
You only live once, which is enough if you do it right. - Mae West
Vorpal
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Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by Vorpal »

My brother had quite a bit of information. I shall try to condense it into something sensible...

1) My brother said a friend of his uses http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/maps/state/all as a first stop for maps for his Garmin

2) the USGS site has a thing where you can click on the map and get a list of all of the maps available for the area. Some areas have quite good, large area maps that can be downloaded as pdf files and printed in a suitable size. This is a bit hit and miss, as the 'good' maps are not available everywhere and/or are dated for some areas.

3) If neither of those provides suitable information, the USGS data can be dowloaded and manipulated with other software. My brother bought a software package, but says there is also shareware around that will do the same thing.

4) the site linked above, gpsfiledepot has a tutorial about how to make Garmin files from map data

5) USGS is creating mountain biking maps in conjunction with the International Mountain Biking Association. There is some news about it on http://nationalmap.gov/ and on various mountin biking sites. I don't know anyone who has used these maps, yet.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
irc
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Location: glasgow

Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by irc »

Nigel Laverick wrote:Can anyone suggest good maps for the west of America - Arizona , Utah , Idaho , Oregon and the Pacific coast. I've costed the American adventure cycling maps but these seem very expensive. Thanks


They are not cheap but are great if you are on those routes. Otherwise I've found in the west that state level maps are usable as there are so few roads. Assuming you are sticking to mainly tarmac. For navigating any urban areas google map printouts are OK.

The state maps provide litle detail. A marked settlement can be anything from a few buildings to a small town big enough to have a gas station/store. I always carried a couple of days food when off Adventure Cycling maps in the west and kept my water bottles topped up whenever I could.
PJ520
Posts: 990
Joined: 23 Mar 2008, 3:49pm
Location: Seattle WA USA

Re: maps for the west of USA

Post by PJ520 »

irc wrote:
Nigel Laverick wrote:Can anyone suggest good maps for the west of America - Arizona , Utah , Idaho , Oregon and the Pacific coast. I've costed the American adventure cycling maps but these seem very expensive. Thanks


They are not cheap but are great if you are on those routes. Otherwise I've found in the west that state level maps are usable as there are so few roads. Assuming you are sticking to mainly tarmac. For navigating any urban areas google map printouts are OK.

The state maps provide litle detail. A marked settlement can be anything from a few buildings to a small town big enough to have a gas station/store. I always carried a couple of days food when off Adventure Cycling maps in the west and kept my water bottles topped up whenever I could.
Sound advice
You only live once, which is enough if you do it right. - Mae West
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