Finding Trails

[Maxter50]

Hello,

Im new to this whole overlanding thing. Done a lot of backpacking in the past and my main question right now is what method or process do you vets use to find trails in new places?

Sometime this month we will be leaving for an extended overlanding trip to anywhere, and maybe everywhere! Ideally I would like to spend most of the time overlanding and camping out as we go along either using specific trails or by plotting a route that uses off road trails instead of main roads.

This is the thing I am most unsure about how to do of the whole process!

Thank you for any advice or guidance on where to find it even if this question has been answered before in the forums. I didnt see it when I looked earlier.

 

[genocache]

Pick a destination or 2 and look for things to see in the area, then gooooooooooooooooooooooooooogleEarth looking for dirt roads radiating away from said destination, Check youtube for videos of your chosen area, For example; search; offroad trails Ely Nevada to Salt Lake City. Become a Geocacher and search for caches; Geocaching

HTH

 

[rgallant]

Mapbooks, travel guides etc. Here in BC I use Backroad Map Books, they cover the province in a number of books sections and each book has sections on a variety of activities. fishing hunting, wildlife backroads etc. Those sections have reference to specific map pages and grid with in the map.

Anything similar for your area is good place to start

 

[ryanorr280]

The best thing I found was research through a site like OB. Many trails listed in the overland routes section. Which showed me that there are trails in nearly any area. Which then led me into using different mapping apps, I chose gaia gps. With it in the premium version is shows the USFS roads and trails, the MVUM, and many other overlays. It’s been a bit to learn. But it works well for us. It makes me confident knowing I at least have a road map of an area we are heading out into.

 

[ryanorr280]

I found this section to be amazingly helpful for us.

https://www.overlandbound.com/forums/forums/overland-bound-routes-downloadable.29/

 

[Maxter50]

Thanks for the advice, its all good and im looking into it. Trying to find trails, the TransAm trail looks like a good starting point. Use that and find other trails nearby along the route. We dont have a time limit so could be weeks or months, doesnt matter!

I used Gaia maps in the past for hiking but its been so long id have to relearn it. Gaia keeps popping up around boards and such so probably worth looking into again. Would that work well enough for tracks as well (if we do the TransAm I guess its all tracks.)

 

[ryanorr280]

Thanks for the advice, its all good and im looking into it. Trying to find trails, the TransAm trail looks like a good starting point. Use that and find other trails nearby along the route. We dont have a time limit so could be weeks or months, doesnt matter!

I used Gaia maps in the past for hiking but its been so long id have to relearn it. Gaia keeps popping up around boards and such so probably worth looking into again. Would that work well enough for tracks as well (if we do the TransAm I guess its all tracks.)

i started using it because I could import the gpx routes I downloaded into it and download offline maps. If that’s what you’re referring to as tracks, yes you can. And it works very well in my experience.

I typically download way more than I need for any given area, but if you stick to basic maps the file sizes are small.

I’m still learning more every time we go out using it though. Still catching on with the lingo and such.

 

[Billygoat Rocklanding]

Hello,

Im new to this whole overlanding thing. Done a lot of backpacking in the past and my main question right now is what method or process do you vets use to find trails in new places?

Sometime this month we will be leaving for an extended overlanding trip to anywhere, and maybe everywhere! Ideally I would like to spend most of the time overlanding and camping out as we go along either using specific trails or by plotting a route that uses off road trails instead of main roads.

This is the thing I am most unsure about how to do of the whole process!

Thank you for any advice or guidance on where to find it even if this question has been answered before in the forums. I didnt see it when I looked earlier.

Trails Offroad: Explore the Best 4x4, ATV, Overland, Jeep, and Truck Offroad Trails in Your Area | Trails Offroad I would suggest for anyone new or new to an area. makes things a lot safer they have outlines of the trails by waypoints, video you can download their tracks to your GPS. You have the full picture before you head out. We found the site after a 2-hour trail ride turned in to 6 hrs of Rock Crawling because it looked good on the map and on satellite images and once we passed the point of no return just had to keep pushing. I use their tracks more then my own.

 

[Louiston]

If you're using gaia, here ya go ..........