Garmin Etrex20: can I hide waymarks?

John J

Trail Blazer
My Garmin Etrex20 has OS 1:50k mapping.
When I load a GPX onto it the GPS route displays okay but much of the map detail is hidden by blue flag waymarks.
Can anyone advise if (and how) these waymarks can be hidden / disabled so that just the track shows.
TIA!
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
My Garmin Etrex20 has OS 1:50k mapping.
When I load a GPX onto it the GPS route displays okay but much of the map detail is hidden by blue flag waymarks.
Can anyone advise if (and how) these waymarks can be hidden / disabled so that just the track shows.
TIA!
Are the waymarks where the points of the track are (i.e. each time it changes direction)? If so, I don't get that with gpx tracks on the Etrex30 but I've seen it happen with kml tracks in Google Earth.
You can delete all waymarks by going to "Waymark Manager" in the menu, but that will delete all waymarks, including ones you might wish to keep (though you could reload those later).
A work around that works with kml tracks is to open it in Google Earth, fully expand it's folder to show the points and tracks separately and then delete the points folder. Re-save the track as a kmz file.
 

John J

Trail Blazer
Thanks for getting back.
The waymarks (I'm pretty sure) are the points where I plotted the route....if you know what I mean - where I clicked the mouse.
As for using Google Earth, that looks like another steep learning curve!
As an aside, I'm surprised that it's so difficult to do this, I'd have thought Mssrs Garmin would have twigged that many of their users merely want a trace to appear on the GPS, rather than an over-fussy, blue flag embroidered line.
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
Thanks for getting back.
The waymarks (I'm pretty sure) are the points where I plotted the route....if you know what I mean - where I clicked the mouse.
As for using Google Earth, that looks like another steep learning curve!
As an aside, I'm surprised that it's so difficult to do this, I'd have thought Mssrs Garmin would have twigged that many of their users merely want a trace to appear on the GPS, rather than an over-fussy, blue flag embroidered line.
How are you preparing the routes? On Basecamp? And as tracks or routes?
And how are you exporting/saving them?
 

Nigelp

Thru Hiker
I’m very sure there is a setting on the device to display/hide ‘points of interest’ names or labels as they may call them. I’m not at home so can’t look at my Etrex30. Garmin hide settings so it could be in the route or map settings and not anything to do with the POI settings!
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
I created the route using Walkinghighlands https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/maps/ which allows the route to be downloaded as a GPX. I save the GPX and copy and paste it into the Garmin's GPX folder.
I created a track using Walkinghighlands - in fact it creates a route, rather than a track. If you import it into Garmin Basecamp, you can convert it into a track and that will remove the flag symbols (you'll have to delete the route to see the change).
This means a bit of extra work for you (import to Basecamp, convert, send to device) but it's not difficult.
I'm not clear on the practical differences between routes and tracks. I always use tracks and I haven't found a problem.
 

Nigelp

Thru Hiker
A track is usually where you have walked previously and more like a breadcrumb trail that follow the ‘curves’ of the trail more faithfully. A route is usually pre planned and is made up of a series ‘waypoints’ stitched together to form a route. This can be more straight lined due to the way the device navigates between points.
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
A track is usually where you have walked previously and more like a breadcrumb trail that follow the ‘curves’ of the trail more faithfully. A route is usually pre planned and is made up of a series ‘waypoints’ stitched together to form a route. This can be more straight lined due to the way the device navigates between points.
Yes, but in Basecamp you can create (from scratch) either routes or tracks plus convert from one to the other. And "routes" created on Google Earth are treated by Basecamp as tracks by default. I'm unaware of any disadvantages (or even differences) of using tracks for navigation rather than routes but others may know better.
 

the wizard

Summit Camper
As already mentioned, those blue flags indicates it is a route rather than a track. Those cannot be hide in the device, You have to convert it first to a track. Instead of Basecamp you can use Javawa's RTW tool, https://www.javawa.nl/rtwtool_en.html

He'd also recently made an online map tool, where you can drop your gpx route and save it as track
https://geo.javawa.nl/routefilter/

Another good website for route planning is ridewithgps.com, the route that you've created there can be saved as track, so you won't get those ugly waypoints (no OS maps though, only Google Maps and OSM).
 
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Nigelp

Thru Hiker
Yes, but in Basecamp you can create (from scratch) either routes or tracks plus convert from one to the other. And "routes" created on Google Earth are treated by Basecamp as tracks by default. I'm unaware of any disadvantages (or even differences) of using tracks for navigation rather than routes but others may know better.
Probably nothing. I need to dig out my GPS and have a play with it.
 
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John J

Trail Blazer
Thanks all ever so much for your help and advice!
I went into Basecamp > selected the route > converted it to a track > saved to the device.
I've now got a track that's visible on the GPS and isn't adorned with blue flag waymarks.
 

John J

Trail Blazer
As already mentioned, those blue flags indicates it is a route rather than a track. Those cannot be hide in the device, You have to convert it first to a track. Instead of Basecamp you can use Javawa's RTW tool, https://www.javawa.nl/rtwtool_en.html

He'd also recently made an online map tool, where you can drop your gpx route and save it as track
https://geo.javawa.nl/routefilter/

Another good website for route planning is ridewithgps.com, the route that you've created there can be saved as track, so you won't get those ugly waypoints (no OS maps though, only Google Maps and OSM).

That's very useful - thanks!
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
Brilliant. Garmin software and basecamp is awful.
Basecamp is dated, clunky, has annoying quirks and is awful for plotting route/tracks.
I do find it useful transferring tracks and data between computer and device. And I find it very useful that you can split and join tracks very easily. If there's better software that can do the latter, I'd love to give it a try.
 
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