TOPIC: Anyone Use a GPS Unit While Hunting

The GPS I ordered got deliverd yesterday, and just from an afternoon of playing around with it, I love it. What I really like is the \"tracking\" feature it has. You can import that information into Googleearth and it will show on a satellite map where you have been. That would have been incredibly helpful on that new piece of ground I have been hunting. I try and look for landmarks to know where I have been, but I know I have covered some of the same ground twice.

It's about 5:20 Saturday morning, and I'm just waiting on the sun to come up. I'm going to load up my four wheeler and head to the woods and really see what this unit can do. This may be my last hunt of the year. We had some strong wind all day Thursday, and the leaves really fell from the trees. Not only did those leaves cover alot of the seng, but the floor of the woods is covered with yellow making it hard to spot any seng. I'll post again after I get back and give a little more feedback. Hope everyone that's going out this weekend fills up their sacks with hogs!

What a great day today. Not only did I get into some nice ginseng, I got to break in my new toy. I'm kicking myself for not getting a GPS unit sooner. That thing is awesome. I marked where I parked my four wheeler and took off walking. I didn't trust it at first, so I kept checking to make sure that I had a signal every hundred yards or so. I ended up in a DEEP holler, and that thing didn't miss a beat. After I saw that I would have a signal, it was off to the races. I took off and didn't worry where I was going. That unit took me right back to where I parked. What's more, I was able to mark the few hot spots I found so I can get back to them in following years, plus I can see the path I traveled, so it's really going to cut down on the amount of doubling up I sometimes do. I know Billy has expressed interest in one, so the highest recommendation I can give is that I'll never be in the woods without one again.

On a side not, I told everyone here a big lie. I said today was probably my last hunt, but after my results today, I'm heading in tomorrow morning. The holler I was in today was so deep, the wind from a few days ago couldn't get in and cause the leaves to fall. It was also nice and damp down there, so at least half the seng I found was green. It surprised me because I thought I was done with green seng for this year. It's hard for me to put into words just how much enjoyment I get from being out digging and dicovering new things. I Hope everyones day went equally well.

I know I wouldn't trade mine for all the compasses in the world..glad you like it..

O.K Guys im sold on getting one.What is a decent gps purcahase brand,name etc what about price range etc.

Billy, by no means am I an expert, but here's what I did. It turns out my uncle has one of the cheaper models, and he said his always told him to \"move to a clearing\" while in the woods so it could get a signal. I didn't want that situation, so I went with a little higher end unit that would get signals in thick woods and deep hollars (so far hasn't missed a beat). I bought a Garmin Etrex that was around $179. I bought it on Amazon.com. The only negative thing I can see is the map it comes with. It's very basic. If you want detailed topographical or marine maps, you need to purchase them seperately and download them to your unit. It's not a big deal to me. I just need to be shown what direction to head. If there's a ditch or incline at some point, I'll figure out a way to cross it or go around it. Hope this helps.

Jacquo wrote:

Billy, by no means am I an expert, but here's what I did. It turns out my uncle has one of the cheaper models, and he said his always told him to \"move to a clearing\" while in the woods so it could get a signal. I didn't want that situation, so I went with a little higher end unit that would get signals in thick woods and deep hollars (so far hasn't missed a beat). I bought a Garmin Etrex that was around $179. I bought it on Amazon.com. The only negative thing I can see is the map it comes with. It's very basic. If you want detailed topographical or marine maps, you need to purchase them seperately and download them to your unit. It's not a big deal to me. I just need to be shown what direction to head. If there's a ditch or incline at some point, I'll figure out a way to cross it or go around it. Hope this helps.

Billy, I agree with this post by Jacquo. If I'm heading way back in somewhere what I usually do is set several waypoints along the way and then I can reverse course point to point if I have to. That big woods I was in last week I would have had to cross 3 very steep and deep hollows if I would've just headed in the direction of the truck. Instead by looking at a topo map and setting several waypoints along the way in I just followed the ridgetops back out. I think topo mapping features would be nice to have, but really not worth the extra cash to me. I would definately suggest talking to someone who has used one in the mountains before buying one. I think most of the newer models have pretty good recievers and will pick up signal through the canopy of the woods pretty good, but none of them are going to pick up signal through the side of the mountain. you've got to recieve signal from at least three different satelites for those things to work. I really do like my etrex, but have never tried it in the mountains. G/L

got my Etex off of e-bay for $140.00 ...the best feature is the easy operation..not to complicated

Hey BIllY man when you get one you want be sorry me and hillbilly use them for our jobs with forestry you wouldn't believe what your missing especially in big wooded areas.great investment(It's even better when you work for forestry and don't have to come out of your own pocket for one

Thanks everyone I am going to get one.

Here's my two cents a gramin 60cx. It is better than the etrex, but maybe more than you'll need. I got mine for $225