If you got a new handheld GPS, IÆm hoping the weather is nice enough for you to get out and play with it. Here are some tips to help get you off on the right foot:

Play with it around town û Learn to set a waypoint and navigate to it, and how to follow a track or route, before going off into the wilderness with it. And if you donÆt know what those words meanà

Learn the terminology û WeÆve got a handheld GPS 101 series just waiting for you.

Read and learn more from GPS TrackLog - http://gpstracklog.com/2011/12/a-bakers-dozen-tips-for-your-new-handheld-gps.html#more-14037

I have been navigating since about 1969 when I started flight school. I have been using GPS since 1992 when it was a breadbox size Trimble and you had to use special charts.

Absolutely the worst time to learn a GPS is when you need it. Like any other tool, you need to know all the functions without having to spends hours in the menus or the manual. When I get a new GPS I use it every day. Use it to go to the market. When you get there, create a waypoint. Then use the waypoint to get there the next time you go. If you have a unit that is designed for off-road use (Lat/Long) don't use it in Streets mode. Those damn signs are a real pain to find in the back country. Learn to input waypoints from a map or a list of waypoints.

True words of wisdom.

I might add, don't depend on the "street" feature. Depend on your eyes.

That means, look at the land to see if a road exists.

While this may not make sense to a lot of people. keep in mind that many areas of the country have had rural subdivisions laid out through local planning processes.

These plans have included official published maps AND many subdivisions were never built.

Unfortunately, many of these maps have been incorporated into gps units.

A GPS is a wonderful tool. It cannot replace a map and your own common sense.