Originally Posted by
BBassett
Yeah, stumbling around in the dark for many hundreds of thousands of year, thanks for making my point. Now, something the size of a pocket watch can let you know where you are anywhere on this planet within seconds. Soon the moon and within a decade Mars too. Amazing toy, for someone that actually uses them daily. I mean we all use them daily. You wouldn't have cable TV or your precious internet connection if GPS didn't exist. But, yes I meant a handheld device for bike touring. I'm not saying you couldn't get out of your state with just a compass, another fantastic little toy by the way. With a GPS you can easily get to any point that you want. Pretty slick trick, yeah I'm serious.
Actually, my wife and I rode across the U.S. without a GPS and without a compass. We had a cell phone, but it definitely was not smart!
I used a GPS unit in my work, for personal use, and in search and rescue activities. They are great tools, but we did not feel the need for a GPS unit on a straight forward trip like getting from one side of the country to the other side. Paper maps worked fine. In large cities, we would stop in at the Chamber or a bike shop and pick up a cycling guide or at least a city map.
Yes, we do use our smart phones, but it is not an absolute necessity. I've only used my GPS unit in Europe. It did do a good job of navigating through large cities. Since smart phones came out their is no need for the hand held GPS on most bike trips.
I was a military pilot before the advent of GPS, and some of the other more sophisticated navigation aids, and managed to get where I wanted— well, most of the time
