Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Always Trust Your Vehicle's GPS!

Can't even remember the number of times a GPS was giving me bad directions and called bullschit.

BTW- don't trust them when you're in other countries, either. If it doesn't look right, it probably isn't. Have had them try to dump bad juju on me in MX and Italy, multiple times in both countries.

Not much is known about the husband but the wife had survival training (allegedly) and was tri-athlete. Probably best that she went although looking back at it. They should have just called for help in the first place!

I have GPS & nav systems in both cars. Also a handheld Garmin. Still, if I'm going somewhere new, I'll almost always carry a regular map as a backup, and study it beforehand so I have a good understanding where I am going. And backup warm clothes, food, water, etc. in the winter. Sat messenger isn't a bad idea, either.

and yeah, besides not planning, he should turn in his man card.

First time I took an eighteen wheeler into Sydney using a gps I worked out how much I could trust the system.

My go to is the current edition of the 'truckies atlas' with gps as a very general guide for highway.

But she had taken a wilderness SURVIVAL class.

Why the hell did things go wrong?

I just don't get it?

Not too happy with the water maps?

The first time I tried the new super duper GPS system in my new at that time car, I put in the destination and it wanted me to go off into the Superstition wilderness, about 100 degrees southeast of the direction I knew I needed to go. So, I don't mind using it as long as it's a backup to a map. Also, in heavy rain/snow it's not too reliable it seems. Poor signal.

10 bucks the 'man' was driving.

There is an unimproved mountain road up here connecting two valleys that is not maintained for winter travel. It's 13 miles across using this road but to go around on paved roads is 60 miles. On several occasions travelers have programmed their GPS for the shortest route only to end up stranded. A buddy made $1,500 one time using his bull dozer to drag out an 18 wheeler that became hopelessly stuck. The county finally listened to complaints from the nearest residents and put a gate across the road.

The classic was the case about 5 years ago when a couple from BC left the highway in so. Idaho and ended up in no. Nevada where they got stuck in snow. The man tried to walk out and never made it. Hunters found his body a year later. The woman was rescued after 7 weeks. She stayed in their van.
They were on their way to convention in either Reno or Vegas. I don't know if anyone figured out why they left the highway.

I've had GPS try to get me lost in places that I KNEW, trying to get me to go down a road that I KNEW wasn't passable. I've pretty much given up on 'em.

I don't listen to them much. I look at old-fashioned road atlases and Mapquest, and follow my own "internal GPS" and a couple of compasses I keep in the vehicles.

I am NOT directionally challenged, like my wife is. I can do pretty well just by the seat of my britches. Wifey can get lost in the back yard. Road signs help a bit, too.

I DO use Mapquest, to try to get the closest routing, or to avoid places like NYC or Chitcago. It's been pretty useful for that purpose, but I wouldn't want to rely on it out in the wide open spaces.

Very well stated. Choose teh best tool for each job. Not very hard to figure that out.

I have vetoed Garmin directions on several occasions but then I most always have maps too. You gotta watch how you program ie.. shortest-fastest etc...

He climbed a hill and called for help after giving her plenty of time to freeze to death.

Several times out here in the big, big West, I've had my GPS try to turn me off a paved road to send me down a two-rut tractor trail across a pasture. I can only assume that the satellite view didn't see the barbed wire gate across the trail...

Selfish ego damn near killed that family. The park is closed, but we want to see it anyway. So we'll go.

Certainly was a potential Darwin Award pending. I read a number of accounts and the husband and 10 year old boy left the car some time after mom and went in another direction.
So all vacated the rented car that got stuck. Eventually dad got a cell signal and called 911. She saw a sign that said it was 14 miles to the canyon entrance and walked there. She broke in and wrapped up in blankets. "Survived" by eating pine twigs and drinking her urine.
She is a biology professor at a local college in Pennsylvania. I bet she believes in climate change.

She failed to understand what "road closed" meant. Hope the locals send the two idiots a bill for "services rendered".

I picked up a hiker one time in the Bighorn National Forest while elk hunting with my wife. He stated he was lost. Come to find out he was lost in an 18 wheeler and got stuck trying to turn around in front of some cabins. Look up Big Goose ranger station and see where this genius got stuck. you would have thought the 8 foot cattle guards he knocked the sides off of would have been a clue. But he managed to get the trailer off the rig in some rocks before he decided to walk. Which he did in a complete wrong direction. He told the Sheriff's who were looking for him by this time, his GPS did it......

My google maps couldn't find it!

I've found GPS's work best when you know where you're going....

I read a longer story on this. The man was recovering from a broken back. Wife went to go get help, walked 26 miles over 36 hours until she found the cabin and broke in. He spent the night with their son, knew something went wrong with the wife and then struck out the next morning and hiked 15 miles to get to cell signal and called 911. So the story that she saved the family wasn't accurate. She didn't save them. He did and then the rescue guys searched and located her and rescued the boy as well. And yes, they were dumbasses for being there in the first place.