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Navigation - Apps or Maps?


huami

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Hi Guyz ..... Just a few more weeks and I will be back to where life started 66 years ago.
I haven't stopped gathering information since I decided to buy a Narrowboat, much with thanks to members of this forum, and YouTube video's.


Navigation! .... That's the big question. Should I go 21st century and buy some "apps" for my mobile or iPad, or should I rely on the paper ring bound guides (that I fear may not be 100% "up-to-date")?

I would appreciate any advice, and I am sure your experience would be of great value. I'm not only looking for maps, but more for what there is to do and see along the towpath.


Thanking you all in anticipation,    Neil

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2 minutes ago, Graham Davis said:

Map books in a waterproof case; the batteries don't go flat!
I prefer Nicholson's but other publishers are available.

Hi Graham, A lot of truth in what you say but how "up-to-date" are the map books? Could the answer be a combination of both?

Have a great day ... Neil

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3 minutes ago, Gayzingalone said:

that I fear may not be 100% "up-to-date

Rivers, canals, locks and bridges tend not to move, close down or change their opening hours!  Maps all the way for navigation.  Google all the way for “find the nearest pub”, “supermarkets near me” or “locate the nearest boatyard”.

  • Greenie 1
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2 minutes ago, The Dreamer said:

Rivers, canals, locks and bridges tend not to move, close down or change their opening hours!  Maps all the way for navigation.  Google all the way for “find the nearest pub”, “supermarkets near me” or “locate the nearest boatyard”.

Hi Dreamer,
So a combination of both, but which "app" should I have for keeping up-to-date with closures and stoppages? 

Have a great day .... Neil

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CRT (as above) will automatically email you with stoppage information for your nominated waterways.  You can also download a pdf waterway guide for a chosen waterway that includes all active stoppage notices relating to that waterway.

 

i use these in conjunction with a Nicholsons guide.

Edited by Chewbacka
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The Nikkies guides show the waterway concerned on a section of an OS map but IMHO the Pearsons have more character. (Part of their 'character' being North as a moveable feast on their maps)

 

As for apps on 'phones, tablets etc..........

                                                        ................. books are cheaper to replace once they've taken a dunking!

 

 

 

Edited by Victor Vectis
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Hi Guyz .... Everything in life is a learning curve but listening to advice from others is invaluable. I'm taking all your comments "on board" and value all your suggestions. It's going to "fun"(?) making lots of mistakes along the way but I am really looking forward to chatting to and meeting others as my journey progresses. Here in Thailand that is something I have very much missed, just saying hello, saying "Hi how are you today"? 

Thanks again .... Neil

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1 hour ago, Gayzingalone said:

Hi Guyz ..... Just a few more weeks and I will be back to where life started 66 years ago.
I haven't stopped gathering information since I decided to buy a Narrowboat, much with thanks to members of this forum, and YouTube video's.


Navigation! .... That's the big question. Should I go 21st century and buy some "apps" for my mobile or iPad, or should I rely on the paper ring bound guides (that I fear may not be 100% "up-to-date")?

I would appreciate any advice, and I am sure your experience would be of great value. I'm not only looking for maps, but more for what there is to do and see along the towpath.


Thanking you all in anticipation,    Neil

A lot depends on what you need to know.

Nicholson's are often out of date on things like water points and time dependant items.

You will need to know how to get from your boat to main roads, shops, and other non waterway locations. Plus locations to park a car, if you have one. Before you get to it.

Nicholson's maps give some of this but often miss the bit you are looking for.

E-canal maps give all local roads as well as canal stuff.

You may also like some eclectic information so Pearsons is the way to go.

Anything that relies on an electronic signal can not be relied on.

We use ECM for street/canal maps, Pearsons where we can and Nic's as a last resort. 

You will also find that you visit the same waterway often, so you should also mark up your guide for next time you visit an area.

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37 minutes ago, Gayzingalone said:

Hi Guyz .... Everything in life is a learning curve but listening to advice from others is invaluable. I'm taking all your comments "on board" and value all your suggestions. It's going to "fun"(?) making lots of mistakes along the way but I am really looking forward to chatting to and meeting others as my journey progresses. Here in Thailand that is something I have very much missed, just saying hello, saying "Hi how are you today"? 

Thanks again .... Neil

You won't get beyond uttering just four words.

"Pump out or cassette?"

In answer to your question, paper. Much easier to  read in the sun.

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I use https://www.waterwayroutes.co.uk/wr/maps.html the Memory Map version (but PDFs also available) for fairly detailed route planning + google maps sat view. Google for pubs and shops. This is then transferred to a post it note over a coffee in the morning just containing the bare essentials such as 3 locks, turn left after bridge X, moorings after next lock etc. Backed up with a Nicholsons guide provided that hasn't got too soggy or blown away in the wind ?

 

Also use a variety of sources to look at the 'heritage' of the area I'm passing through - mainly found by google searches.

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We bought all three nicholsons in 1980.

They are covered in blue squiggles and amendments particularly the southern stratford, which following an episode in 1986 states clearly ‘ dont bother closed’.

However subsequent notes such as 2018 ‘go through bridge at full speed, “ “and walk  boat through bridge with 2 people on the bow ”evidence improvements.

 

A classic mis navigation on the t and m several years ago evidenced the loss of 2 pages of the central book, and lead to a very late tie, up and shouts of the bloody books wrong, until we remembered the pages blowing out of the book in the mod 90s.

historical artefact and provides endless reminiscence.  

The books remain the same the boats have changed but they remain too fat or too deep not to have notes.

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Nicholson's when on the move, then Open canal map or Google when down below out of the daylight and not bothered about dunking the electronic device. Make alterations to the paper map as you find out changes are permanent.

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If you want to go with an app, I, like many others, use 'open canalmap'.

 

Nicholson's and canalplan for general planning and navigation, then the app to zoom in when looking for a good place to moor up, it does also show many of the current closures and identified problems.

 

 

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When we started boating in the 1990s we bought a mixture of guide books, but we are now fully Pearsonised. Michael Pearson's guides are accurate, informative, clearly-mapped and boater-friendly, and he updates them fairly frequently.

Of course, no guide book can tell you that the pub in Little Bloggett closed down last week. Having no experience of "apps", as we don't have a computer on board, I can't comment on them.

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11 hours ago, Gayzingalone said:

Hi Guyz ..... Just a few more weeks and I will be back to where life started 66 years ago.
I haven't stopped gathering information since I decided to buy a Narrowboat, much with thanks to members of this forum, and YouTube video's.


Navigation! .... That's the big question. Should I go 21st century and buy some "apps" for my mobile or iPad, or should I rely on the paper ring bound guides (that I fear may not be 100% "up-to-date")?

I would appreciate any advice, and I am sure your experience would be of great value. I'm not only looking for maps, but more for what there is to do and see along the towpath.


Thanking you all in anticipation,    Neil

Maps each and every time. Always work and easier to quickly thumb through. 

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1 hour ago, Kendorr said:

If you want to go with an app, I, like many others, use 'open canalmap'.

 

Nicholson's and canalplan for general planning and navigation, then the app to zoom in when looking for a good place to moor up, it does also show many of the current closures and identified problems.

 

 

Hi Kendorr,
That sounds like quite a good piece of advise. At the moment I am trying lots of options so I am sure I will find the right one in the end (after wasting a lot of money!)

Have a great day and thanks for your contribution ...

Neil

1 hour ago, Athy said:

When we started boating in the 1990s we bought a mixture of guide books, but we are now fully Pearsonised. Michael Pearson's guides are accurate, informative, clearly-mapped and boater-friendly, and he updates them fairly frequently.

Of course, no guide book can tell you that the pub in Little Bloggett closed down last week. Having no experience of "apps", as we don't have a computer on board, I can't comment on them.

Hi Athy,
Sorry to hear that the pub closed down in "Little Blogget", but thanks for your invaluable information.

Have a great day
Neil

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17 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Maps each and every time. Always work and easier to quickly thumb through. 

Hi mrsmelly, 
Thanks for your advise, Possibly I might go for a combination of paper maps and apps ..... 

Have a great day,

Neil

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14 hours ago, Gayzingalone said:

Hi Graham, A lot of truth in what you say but how "up-to-date" are the map books? Could the answer be a combination of both?

Have a great day ... Neil

Many of the canals you will use will have been in situ for over 200 years so any book you purchase will be more "up to date" than the canals. :captain:

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