Sat-Nav

No - I'm not referring to the little box that people stick to their car windscreen and then drive up the motorway with a little arrow on the screen pointing 'straight on'.... I've discovered more adventurous walking possibilities by using a hand-held GPS device. Here's mine...

The screen here (sorry about the refections!) is just showing the 'trip' display, which can be set to show a number of different readouts. I've set mine to show (from the top) how far I've walked (4.51 miles) the Grid reference of where I am (NG 22097 38334 in this picture - enter that into http://wtp2.appspot.com/wheresthepath.htm to see where I was...) , the time of day, how long I've been on my trip, and (just out of sight) my elevation above sea level.

There are five other screen views which can be scrolled through - the whole lot is controlled by only four buttons, so it's easy to operate, and it's waterproof and shockproof too.

The website I've linked to above enables me to plot a route for a walk on the ordnance survey map, then upload the route onto the eTrex. A display on the eTrex screen then shows me the route which I follow as I walk, and it's accurate to just a few metres. It also keeps a record of where I have actually been, so when I get home, I can download my 'track' from the eTrex to the map on the computer. I can also press a button which puts a 'waymark' onto my track. I do this when I take a photograph, so when I am looking at the map when I get home, I have a pinpoint accurate record of where I was when I took each photo.

It's the best £70 I've spent in years (plus the annoying £15 for a cable to connect it to the computer) but it has enabled me to confidently set out for walks through this kind of pathless country...

...to discover this kind of scenery...

Sue is building up her walking stamina, and will be joining me for some longer walks soon!