Originally Posted by
Machka
I've used several online mapping programs, and for some reason, when they get near main highways they want to use the main highway, even if there's a nearby side road which I'd prefer to use ... and they'll add all sorts of interesting twists and turns (and U-turns) to force you use the main highway.
And if your route goes anywhere close to an overpass, the online mapping programs will add a whole heap of extra stuff ... outs and backs and loops etc. Overpasses seem to confuse those programs.
It's something to watch for when creating a route or trying to follow an online route.
The better mapping websites have two modes: follow-the-road and don't. You sometimes have to turn off follow-the-road for a bit until you are going down your road of choice or else put your points very close together. Later you can often come back and delete these intermediate points, after saving the route of course, because you'll never know exactly what the thing is going to do. If one is mapping for a Garmin, put turn points just past the turn to keep the thing from doing a loop in the middle of the road and confusing the device.
Being a ride leader, I've done literally hundreds of routes using mapping websites. I did our entire tour in the Czech Republic this way, over 600 turns on tiny roads and paved paths I'd never seen and which don't show on less than 1:50,000 print maps, which would have weighed over a kilo, plus the volume. So we had cue sheets and an 800. Worked perfectly, meaning sure we made some wrong turns but corrected immediately. Stoker navigated, which made it go much more smoothly. Worked just as well in the rain. Mostly we could just ride the bike, look at the scenery, and arrive at our destination, kind of like riding familiar roads, but vastly more interesting. Totally anal in some respects, but I enjoy the planning a great deal. Everybody's different.