Originally Posted by
njkayaker
If you have a smart-phone (and carry it, when riding), there are a fair number of apps that will display a gpx route and your location on a map (Motion GPX is one example and there are others that are free).
This would let you use the smart-phone as a backup to get back onto the route (even if you aren't using it for navigation all the time).
I pretty much assumed the OP didn't have a smart phone but yes, if you have one you have all kinds of options. With Android all you have to do is use your navigation app which uses Google navigator. Press the "map" button and your location ( and map ) comes up on the screen. Then you can move the map any which way to see what roads you want to use.
I use "ridewithGPS" for mapping purposes but that's because I have both a smart phone and a Garmin.
On a PC you can also use Google map which also has many mapping functions. You can also use "Open Street Maps" as well. I am very partial to "ridewithGPS" but I would think "Map my ride" is about the same. One of those ( I would think ) would have to let you do enhanced screen grabs.
Just the other day I was mapping a route on ridewithGPS and the map wouldn't let me go down a certain road. I kept moving the marker points but the map just wouldn't let me go down the road I wanted. Finally I switched to the "draw" function and just drew the line down the road I wanted. Later when I was riding the route I found out that the road I had wanted was closed off and impassable.

I don't know how but somehow the "ridewithGPS" map knew about the closure and was trying to reroute me. Too bad they just didn't put some kind of marker in so you knew what was going on when you were mapping. Still, real nice that it does this. It also lets you map on known bike paths as well, a very nice feature.