# Whats my options for mapping a route



## gazza81 (28 Jan 2019)

Ive got strava, would it use a lot of data/battery to use it to follow a route?

Ive got a route planned but being unfamiliar with the area id like to follow a map without having to print one and stop at every turn to see where im going.

Any options i dont know about?


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## Markymark (28 Jan 2019)

I use rwgps on my iPhone. To use it live you need premium which costs about £35 a year. You can download the map in advance then no data is needed. In fact putting your phone in airplane mode then saves battery life. It downloads the route and a few miles either side. If you go beyond that you’ll need to switch in data.

I also have a charging case which gives me an extra 1.5 charges. So all in I get about 8 hours cycling before I need to recharge which is more than eviugh for me. In tours I have carried a small extra charging bank fir emergencies but never needed it.


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## rugby bloke (28 Jan 2019)

Another vote for the ridewithgps and iPhone combo. Downloading the routes to your phone works really well and does not rinse your battery too quickly. I've had it running for 8 hours and still had charge left at the end - even if I was completely spent !


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## gazza81 (28 Jan 2019)

I'll check it out cheers

Im only gonna be out for a couple hrs at most really so hopefully my batt should last


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## Markymark (28 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> I'll check it out cheers
> 
> Im only gonna be out for a couple hrs at most really so hopefully my batt should last


If that only uses 50-60 % of your battery then all good. Beyond that I’d get a mini power bank in case of emergencies.


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## KneesUp (28 Jan 2019)

Komoot is also worth a look. Has offline maps and you get one area free. The area is large but obviously if your route goes over the edge you’ll be out of luck. But you can buy areas for £8 or the whole world for £20. It does directions and will also suggests walks, off road and on road cycling routes.


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## Distorted Vision (29 Jan 2019)

Have a look Bikemap (www.bikemap.net).

I use the app as I prefer it over the RidewithGPS one when out riding. Also the free version of Bikemap has features which are only included in the paid for version of RidewithGPS eg Turn by Turn navigation and voice navigation. Both require paid for service for offline maps and navigation. For me I have no need for it and so use the free version. Also Bikemap premium is alot cheaper than RidewithGPS. One thing route planning is better with RidewithGPS so I create my routes and export as GPX which I import into Bikemap.


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## Distorted Vision (29 Jan 2019)

I thought this was a cool battery power bank albeit expensive:







https://www.amazon.co.uk/NOTSTRØM-Shockproof-Suitable-ActionCam-Smartphone/dp/B00HWUT8CC/


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## steveindenmark (29 Jan 2019)

Distorted Vision said:


> I thought this was a cool battery power bank expensive:
> 
> View attachment 449592
> 
> ...


Wow. That is expensive. The only thing it has got going for it is the novelty.


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## steveindenmark (29 Jan 2019)

With Ridewithgps you can also customise the route sheet and print it out.


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

So ive had a little play with all of them and so far i like kamoot the best, the free map covers where i wanted to go on the weekend so thats a bonus, £9 for extra maps or 20 for the whole world is good too.
The mapping is a little frustrating tho, it just wont let me go down some rds which other apps will, it wants to send me a long way round.

Ride with gps £75 for premium member! Deleted once i saw that lol


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## Markymark (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> So ive had a little play with all of them and so far i like kamoot the best, the free map covers where i wanted to go on the weekend so thats a bonus, £9 for extra maps or 20 for the whole world is good too.
> The mapping is a little frustrating tho, it just wont let me go down some rds which other apps will, it wants to send me a long way round.
> 
> Ride with gps £75 for premium member! Deleted once i saw that lol


you only need the $50 a year plan for what you need.


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## Heltor Chasca (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> So ive had a little play with all of them and so far i like kamoot the best, the free map covers where i wanted to go on the weekend so thats a bonus, £9 for extra maps or 20 for the whole world is good too.
> The mapping is a little frustrating tho, it just wont let me go down some rds which other apps will, it wants to send me a long way round.
> 
> Ride with gps £75 for premium member! Deleted once i saw that lol



Have you bought it yet? Let me know before you part with your £20.


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

Heltor Chasca said:


> Have you bought it yet? Let me know before you part with your £20.



No I haven't got it the free map covers most of my area so for the time being that will probably do me ok


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

You can plot routes on the Kamoot website and override its suggestions if you want to. Then save it and it will be available on your mobile device. Or you can import a route from elsewhere.


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## jiberjaber (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> So ive had a little play with all of them and so far i like kamoot the best, the free map covers where i wanted to go on the weekend so thats a bonus, £9 for extra maps or 20 for the whole world is good too.
> The mapping is a little frustrating tho, it just wont let me go down some rds which other apps will, it wants to send me a long way round.
> 
> Ride with gps £75 for premium member! Deleted once i saw that lol


As Marky says - you only need the middle subscription... also you (even with the free version) have access to different map layers which offer different takes on routing and visable land features plus the ability to use the Google pin man to check street view (which will go some way to confirming the conditions of the street /route/path you wish to use). 

Komoot is good (I have the full works on that also) but limited on level of zoom and only using Open Street maps, which are good but sometimes conflicting with Google maps and ignorant sometimes of true rights of way. Other bonuses are the visualisation of the road surface but often it is only as good as user contributed.

The best solution overall for actual planning is combining both plus the definative map of the area you wish to use. For navigating on the bike it does seem Komoot is probably the winner.

This chap has done a really good job at bringing all the PROW definitave map data in to one easy place http://www.rowmaps.com/


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## HobbesOnTour (29 Jan 2019)

Just to offer an alternative....OSMand.
It's free (at least the first 5 maps are -that'll cover the UK at the very least), has turn by turn navigation and has a lot of possibilities for marking Points of Interest or importing ones. It can be used for hiking, biking or the car too.

It is *not *the most user friendly option - it takes a while to get used to - but in my opinion is well worth the time it takes.

It is the only mapping app (that I know of) that allows you to plot a route offline and save it.

I always find it helpful to consider the *planning *of the route differently to *following *the route. OSMand is for following (and in emergency for plotting).
Pair it with https://cycle.travel/map to plan the route and you are on to a winner. Cycle travel is especially useful for planning loops - specify the distance and it gives you 3 options.

No matter what app you are using, planning your route is better done on a computer. Phones are too small in my experience.

And, if using your phone to follow the route make sure you have a good holder and some kind of protection against sun and rain!


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## steveindenmark (29 Jan 2019)

I have got Rwgps and I certainly didnt pay £75. I have used it all over europe and it works a treat.


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## jiberjaber (29 Jan 2019)

HobbesOnTour said:


> Just to offer an alternative....OSMand.
> It's free (at least the first 5 maps are -that'll cover the UK at the very least), has turn by turn navigation and has a lot of possibilities for marking Points of Interest or importing ones. It can be used for hiking, biking or the car too.
> 
> It is *not *the most user friendly option - it takes a while to get used to - but in my opinion is well worth the time it takes.
> ...




Good shout on the offline capability - I thought that was available in Komoot and just tried with my phone in airplane mode and it wouldn't plan!

cycle.travel is also very useful for finding the least trafficed and flattest route (or at least a starter to work from). It uses a precompiled dataset of traffic volumes to do that which is a good feature..

I think the collective takeaway from all this is that there are many tools and getting the right blend of all of them is the ideal but it all depends on your intended use case  For me I feel there will never been a dot-it-all solution.


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

Airplane mode turns off GPS doesn't it? Not sure how any device doing navigation would work without that?


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

Actually - from memory the route planning in Komoot is done by their servers - I suppose it's much faster to send the instructions to plot a route to a proper computer and get the answer back than to plot the route itself. I believe that's how google maps etc work too. I You can mark a pre-planned route as available off line and it will then do that without a data connection as long as you have GPS.


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## Markymark (29 Jan 2019)

KneesUp said:


> Airplane mode turns off GPS doesn't it? Not sure how any device doing navigation would work without that?


No, or at least it shouldn't. Airplane mode disables any transmission data and phone calls./ GPS should simply receive the satellite signals so can do so without sending anything out. Some phones also use local arial triangulation to enhance or speed up GPS so it wouldn't be able to use that which might very slightly slow down the speed in which it locks onto your initial location but it's not really a problem.


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## HobbesOnTour (29 Jan 2019)

KneesUp said:


> Actually - from memory the route planning in Komoot is done by their servers - I suppose it's much faster to send the instructions to plot a route to a proper computer and get the answer back than to plot the route itself. I believe that's how google maps etc work too. I You can mark a pre-planned route as available off line and it will then do that without a data connection as long as you have GPS.



I've had issues with Google Maps in offline mode.
Coming from a touring background, I'll often save the area I'll be travelling in on Google maps, marking off useful info such as campsites etc. However, in reality, in the sticks with phone data off and no wifi anywhere available I have found Google Maps places my actual location in the wrong place. Now, maybe that was my phone at the time, but they do say it's accuracy is improved with data and by scanning local wifi networks.

Having played around with most of the apps discussed above, you're right in the sense that you can use routes previously created if you specify. However, issues can arise if you go off course. 

As @jiberjaber says...


jiberjaber said:


> I think the collective takeaway from all this is that there are many tools and getting the right blend of all of them is the ideal but it all depends on your intended use case  For me I feel there will never been a dot-it-all solution.



Intended use is the key thing.
For me, touring in strange places, an offline mapping ability is essential. For someone who wants to pootle around the locality that is far less relevant.

And for any app, give them a good test before relying on them 100%. Try going off course. Check battery usage and any battery saving features. Try routes that cross themselves -eg a figure 8. Try them in urban areas that you are familiar with before unfamiliar cities.

My current phone leaves the gps on when in airplane mode.


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

Markymark said:


> No, or at least it shouldn't. Airplane mode disables any transmission data and phone calls./ GPS should simply receive the satellite signals so can do so without sending anything out.


You are of course correct, and it turns out I thought the 'Mobile Data' icon on the quick settings page was GPS all this time. In my defence, the last time I flew I had a Nokia of some description, so it's not a mode I use much  Interesting my phone (iphone 5s) leaves wi-fi on when you select Airplane mode.


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## Ming the Merciless (29 Jan 2019)

Depends on the phone. In airplane my phone turns all the above off. But if I wish to turn on wifi or Bluetooth or GPS when in airplane mode that is fine. You just turn it back on. GPS is not normally active on my phone anyway.


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

Im komoot, What are the roads with a grey line on? It seems to avoid these but cant see why


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## Phaeton (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> What are the roads with a grey line on?


Rivers?


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

Haha no definatly roads



Like this one it wont let me cycle on but its a tarmac road


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## Phaeton (29 Jan 2019)

I only say that as many many years ago, (late 70's probably) we were stuck on the A1 coming south somewhere around York, I handed the map to my wife (then girlfriend) saying "had enough find us a different way home" she found the page we were on, then the page where we needed to go to. The first comment was "There should be a turning coming up on the left, if we go down that little black road for a little while then turn right down this blue one we should get home a lot easier" Once explain what the road colours meant she changed her mind.


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> Haha no definatly roads
> View attachment 449612
> 
> Like this one it wont let me cycle on but its a tarmac road


Change your method travel to 'Touring' or whatever it's called.


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## jiberjaber (29 Jan 2019)

To clarify - as it seems to have set some hares running!

I turned the phone to airplane mode to remove any internet/data connection - i.e. true offline planning. Nothing to do with GPS


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

KneesUp said:


> Change your method travel to 'Touring' or whatever it's called.



Nope that wont do it either, its like a glitch. It stops half way down the rd and it i try and go further it takes me back on myself all around the block then back up the rd it wont let me down!!! 

Well i think ill stick with this one and just follow the route it plans for me as it'll do for the time being and its costing me nothing


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## Phaeton (29 Jan 2019)

I've not found a 'proper' mapping system yet, I use bridleways mainly & come across this problem regularly with them all


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## HobbesOnTour (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> Nope that wont do it either, its like a glitch. It stops half way down the rd and it i try and go further it takes me back on myself all around the block then back up the rd it wont let me down!!!
> 
> Well i think ill stick with this one and just follow the route it plans for me as it'll do for the time being and its costing me nothing


Try planning the route you want using the road you want on cycle.travel. Export to GPX/TCX, then load it into Komoot.


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

Komoot, like OSMAnd, is based on Open Streetmap data, which is what makes them affordable. If you spot errors, you can submit corrections to make it better for others (and you if you regularly plan routes that are 'wrong')


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

Well playing with it a bit more and there is grey areas, the road it wont let me down happens to be a boarder road on the grey bit, just dont know why or what the grey sections mean!?!?


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## jiberjaber (29 Jan 2019)

gazza81 said:


> Well playing with it a bit more and there is grey areas, the road it wont let me down happens to be a boarder road on the grey bit, just dont know why or what the grey sections mean!?!?
> View attachment 449617




Can you zoom in a bit more or use the web app to show exactly which bits you are referencing?

I think the bit you are refering to is the area High Weald AONB?

Sometimes there are disconnects in the map data which the routing algorithm are unable to route along but either local knowledge or another map layer shows that the route is indeed routable...
Sometimes these disconnects are either path not drawn to connect or change in path type (footbpath vrs cyclepath) or a one-way road which is actually not one-way for cycles... (just some examples of course  )

ETA: This might help? https://www.openstreetmap.org/key


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

This is zoomed in to the boarder, the road running down the middle is the one it wont let me down and the lake to the right is where ill be heading.



The grey areas are scattered all over the map not just my local area but cant find anywhere explaining what it actually means!!


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## KneesUp (29 Jan 2019)

The shaded bit is a National Park or similar - High Weald AONB as @Jibberjabber says.


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## jiberjaber (29 Jan 2019)

Yep - Confirmed Komoot won't (by default) route along Ensfield Road on to The Tudor Trail - even trying to add waypoints don't resolve to take that route. It's not linked to the map layer or to the "Follow Ways" on/off option so must be something in their routing engine.






RWGPS with OSM Cycle (and google maps) does route along the road though:






cycle.travel also routes along there too:


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## Bobario (29 Jan 2019)

When you click to add a waypoint, there is a tiny circle in the bottom left of the dialog box "follow ways". If you untick this it should let you plot a series of straight lines till past the point it doesn't want to route you through. Then click the same thing to turn autorouting back on. This is assuming you are using a computer not a phone app.

Gah! Sorry didn't read your previous post before replying. But I've just plotted your route in short sections and it worked fine.


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## gazza81 (29 Jan 2019)

Having a play on the lap top now im home, its much better although still easy to use on phone.

I really like the little points of interest you can set as a destination.

So if i plan a route, put phone on airplane mode and follow the route, then i decide to stay out longer with it register where ive been?


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## gazza81 (24 Feb 2019)

Well been using kamoot for a few weeks now and i must say its been spot on! 
I just turn my gps off to save batt and the screen turns off an wakes up when giving directions.
Guess it uses around 10% per hr which i can live with.
Wont be using anything else for the time being!


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## Tiger10 (26 Feb 2019)

Heltor Chasca said:


> Have you bought it yet? Let me know before you part with your £20.



I have been intending to get the full mapping but can't see it less than £29.99 anywhere?


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## LeetleGreyCells (26 Feb 2019)

Tiger10 said:


> I have been intending to get the full mapping but can't see it less than £29.99 anywhere?


I live on the border between two regions so had to pick one as the free one so now I can only ride north of home with navigation while I try Komoot out. If I like it then I don’t mind paying out, but I too would like to pay less that £30 for all regions if anyone has a discount code or similar. 

I did my first ride today using Komoot, a utility ride to collect some wood screws from Screwfix so perfect for testing the app. I turned the screen off on the outbound journey but only heard approx. half the cues on full volume. Riding back, I left the screen on which used 13% battery in 11 minutes. I’ve got to work out a way of hearing the audio cues - I won’t wear headphones cycling on the road. Maybe a single earpiece? I don’t really like the idea of that though.


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## burntoutbanger (27 Feb 2019)

I've worn headphones while using Komoot, no safety issues at all. Only had to stop to look at the screen once or twice on a twenty mile ride when coming to a T junction and the voice cue telling me to go straight on.

Try it somewhere quiet if you're unsure but I had no issues.


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## gazza81 (27 Feb 2019)

I cant always hear what its saying but i can hear that its saying something and because the screen wakes up i just look at it and its showing me where to go.

Ive unlocked a couple other reigns for 3 quid each


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## Heltor Chasca (27 Feb 2019)

Tiger10 said:


> I have been intending to get the full mapping but can't see it less than £29.99 anywhere?



Can you send me a PM? I’ll send a reply with some stuff Komoot gave me that I don’t need.


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## jiberjaber (27 Feb 2019)

LeetleGreyCells said:


> I live on the border between two regions so had to pick one as the free one so now I can only ride north of home with navigation while I try Komoot out. If I like it then I don’t mind paying out, but I too would like to pay less that £30 for all regions if anyone has a discount code or similar.
> 
> I did my first ride today using Komoot, a utility ride to collect some wood screws from Screwfix so perfect for testing the app. I turned the screen off on the outbound journey but only heard approx. half the cues on full volume. Riding back, I left the screen on which used 13% battery in 11 minutes. I’ve got to work out a way of hearing the audio cues - I won’t wear headphones cycling on the road. Maybe a single earpiece? I don’t really like the idea of that though.



After a couple of weeks (10 days) of signed up for free using the free region they will send you a discounted email, I think it was £10 off the £30


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## LeetleGreyCells (27 Feb 2019)

jiberjaber said:


> After a couple of weeks (10 days) of signed up for free using the free region they will send you a discounted email, I think it was £10 off the £30


Fantastic news. I did get the Derbyshire region for £3.99 this morning so I could have a proper shakedown of the app over 50km which I have to say worked very well. My only gripe is pronunciation, but then place names always have the weirdest pronunciation.


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## jiberjaber (28 Feb 2019)

LeetleGreyCells said:


> Fantastic news. I did get the Derbyshire region for £3.99 this morning so I could have a proper shakedown of the app over 50km which I have to say worked very well. My only gripe is pronunciation, but then place names always have the weirdest pronunciation.


I've not tried the routing during the ride - I usually just create the route and then sync it with my Garmin. One problem with that is that you can not download a new route whilst an activity is running so you need to stop, save then download.

I once tried out RWGPS phone routing and noticed it was unable to workout if you were riding a route backwards (I did a route out to somewhere then rode the same route back but with the guidance on). It still gave you the turn announcements but reversed!... not tried Komoot for this yet but should do as I usually use these things as backup should the Garmin fail on an Audax


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## LeetleGreyCells (28 Feb 2019)

jiberjaber said:


> I've not tried the routing during the ride - I usually just create the route and then sync it with my Garmin. One problem with that is that you can not download a new route whilst an activity is running so you need to stop, save then download.
> 
> I once tried out RWGPS phone routing and noticed it was unable to workout if you were riding a route backwards (I did a route out to somewhere then rode the same route back but with the guidance on). It still gave you the turn announcements but reversed!... not tried Komoot for this yet but should do as I usually use these things as backup should the Garmin fail on an Audax


I don’t have a Garmin so Komoot will be my go-to navigational app. I could do with a better phone holder for the bike as my current one holds the phone at too steep an angle. I also wondered if I could get a single earpiece for the audio.


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## LeetleGreyCells (4 Mar 2019)

So I got my promo offer through and got the whole world maps for £19.99. I've used Komoot now for navigation and simply recording a ride and I'm very happy with it. My only gripe is that it's a faff to upload to Strava as Komoot is trying to compete in this area, but it's not impossible. This do nicely for my local rides plus when I take the bike with me on holiday in the summer for early morning rides while the rest of the family are asleep. 

I'm using the route planner on the web more than on my iPhone as it's easier to see and I need Google Maps Streetview to find town and village signs for the ABC Challenge. I have used the planner on the phone once as it was easy enough and not as fiddly as I thought it would be.


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## Phaeton (4 Mar 2019)

Just signed up for komoot to try & already have a problem, if you search for a place called Ranby in Nottinghamshire, you will see there is a canal going past the village I want to ride up the side of the canal & then go onto Green Mil e lane & it will not let me it re-routes me on every occasion up the A1 which is not a road I would like to cycle on.







It also won't allow me to continue down the Byway which can be seen on this satellite image as it continues past the houses (in the centre) & then along the treeline to the top left. Unless I'm doing something wrong which is highly likely.


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## LeetleGreyCells (4 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Just signed up for komoot to try & already have a problem, if you search for a place called Ranby in Nottinghamshire, you will see there is a canal going past the village I want to ride up the side of the canal & then go onto Green Mil e lane & it will not let me it re-routes me on every occasion up the A1 which is not a road I would like to cycle on.
> 
> View attachment 455835
> 
> ...


Have you tried dragging the route line where you want it to go? Or, if on a laptop, right-click and select Add Waypoint.

Worth a try.


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## Phaeton (4 Mar 2019)

LeetleGreyCells said:


> Have you tried dragging the route line where you want it to go? Or, if on a laptop, right-click and select Add Waypoint.
> Worth a try.


Yep that's what happens in the 2nd image


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## LeetleGreyCells (4 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Yep that's what happens in the 2nd image


How strange. I’ve not come across this issue yet. I’ll see if I can have a play with the mapping when I get home. 

You could email Komoot and/or go on OpenStreetMap and see if it needs a correction adding.


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## Richard Fairhurst (4 Mar 2019)

The canal towpath doesn't have any connections to the roads in OSM, so the routing engine doesn't know you can go from one to the other.

The byway doesn't appear to be marked on OSM at all.

You could log into OSM and make the changes yourself, or if you're not confident in that, leave a 'note' on OSM so someone else can do it.

On cycle.travel you can choose "go direct" between two via points to do a straight-line route in circumstances like this, but I don't know if Komoot lets you do that.


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## Phaeton (4 Mar 2019)

Richard Fairhurst said:


> You could log into OSM and make the changes yourself, or if you're not confident in that, leave a 'note' on OSM so someone else can do it..


I've tried to edit, but I can't work it out lol, so I've put notes on there


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## Phaeton (4 Mar 2019)

Worked out how to edit but put them for somebody to check in case I did it wrong


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## gazza81 (5 Mar 2019)

Id like to be able to see my top speed after ive logged a route.
Sometimes im flying down a hill and would just be fun to know what i was doing


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## Phaeton (5 Mar 2019)

Strava, RWGPS, all do it


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## Heltor Chasca (5 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Strava, RWGPS, all do it



And neither have set up self help groups for stat addicts.


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## LeetleGreyCells (5 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Strava, RWGPS, all do it


Komoot and Cyclemeter too.


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## gazza81 (6 Mar 2019)

LeetleGreyCells said:


> Komoot and Cyclemeter too.



Where do i find it on komoot?


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## slowmotion (6 Mar 2019)

I don't have a bike computer and tend to rely on tiny paper segments from online mapping sites. The only tip I would give is to try and have a look at really complicated junctions in urban areas on Streetview before you go. It jogs your memory when you get there. I once viewed all the 60 miles from the Hook to Amsterdam in advance on my computer screen. It turned out to be quite handy. Yes, yes, I know it's pretty sad.....


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## LeetleGreyCells (6 Mar 2019)

gazza81 said:


> Where do i find it on komoot?


Apologies, my mistake - I thought Komoot gave you maximum speed info, but it doesn't show you on the app or website. It does include the data when you export the GPX and upload to Strava or similar.

Cyclemeter app definitely shows the data on the app.


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## gazza81 (6 Mar 2019)

How do you export the gpx?


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## LeetleGreyCells (6 Mar 2019)

gazza81 said:


> How do you export the gpx?


Go on the Komoot.com website (on laptop, tablet or phone using browser and without opening app)
Click on your profile name
Select Completed rides
Select your completed ride title
Select Export to GPS Device
Save GPX


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## antnee (8 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Strava, RWGPS, all do it



Well I tried a few different ones though found one called plotaroute which has various features on it like inclines how long up hill sections plus gradients are and down hill too but in the end I use RWGPS and load straight into the garmin


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## gazza81 (15 Mar 2019)

With komoot, say i upload a route to it but the start point isnt where i want it to be, but the route passes where i want to start, would it recognise that and still direct me?
Does that make sence?
Im having trouble just moving the start point


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## Heltor Chasca (15 Mar 2019)

gazza81 said:


> With komoot, say i upload a route to it but the start point isnt where i want it to be, but the route passes where i want to start, would it recognise that and still direct me?
> Does that make sence?
> Im having trouble just moving the start point



Yes. Once you are on track.


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## Phaeton (15 Mar 2019)

Heltor Chasca said:


> Yes. Once you are on track.


Do you know if Garmin does that as well?


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## Heltor Chasca (15 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Do you know if Garmin does that as well?



Sorry. I binned Garmin way back. Onto Wahoo now.

Do not see why not, but I can’t say for sure.


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## gazza81 (15 Mar 2019)

Thanks sorted it now

How comes strava is so much more popular than the other options? At least it is with people i know

Does it offer something the others dont that im missing?

I keep playing with it because i know people on there but just keep going back to komoot, it just seems so much better!


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## LeetleGreyCells (15 Mar 2019)

gazza81 said:


> Thanks sorted it now
> 
> How comes strava is so much more popular than the other options? At least it is with people i know
> 
> ...


I export my rides from Komoot to Strava as a back-up. Loving Komoot though.


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## gazza81 (16 Mar 2019)

Yeah i have done a couple but its just a bit of a pain
I find komoot easier to navigate too


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## Heltor Chasca (16 Mar 2019)

I agree with the ease of using Komoot for the type of routes described above.

HOWEVER I have stopped using it for importing files. On a few occasions I have imported files to Komoot from a reliable source like Cycle.Travel and RWGPS and Komoot has corrupted the route beyond annoying. Both cases were on 200km winter Audax rides. Once (on my road bike) I was sent up, out of a nice flat valley onto a stony off road ridge gravel track. Unnecessary elevation and wasted effort and lost speed and time needed to finish the ride. Another time it sent me down a 2.5km peaty drove. I was knee deep in ancient plant matter on a road bike. I was spitting.

I complained to Komoot about the corrupted files to see if it was an error on my part. Turned out it wasn’t. It took them almost 10 days to answer my ‘ticket’. The second time they didn’t even reply.

It could have potentially serious ramifications on a remote tour. So it’s ok for little, point to point stuff in the 1st World, but it is way too unreliable for my liking and for what I need it to do. As for customer service: Pffft.

Give me Cycle.Travel or RWGPS any day.

(Playing with Strava’s Route Builder at the moment and I like the option to choose popular cycle routes and flatter elevation)


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## antnee (16 Mar 2019)

Well I'd never heard of of this komoot (realise Komoot is the old bikely the bike radar site which was) now that route mapping tool and of first look it medieval compared to Ride with GPS or plotaroute don't know about strava or garmin as never used them for plotting Still had to put my two pennyworth in and I asked komoot to do a route from my home to an airfield in south Somerset and though it was 6 miles shorter it certainly wasn't cycle friendly as the on i'd plotted and can't see a way of editing route either plus looking again also see that they seem to be wanting you to pay for it!


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## LeetleGreyCells (16 Mar 2019)

antnee said:


> Well I'd never heard of of this komoot (realise Komoot is the old bikely the bike radar site which was) now that route mapping tool and of first look it medieval compared to Ride with GPS or plotaroute don't know about strava or garmin as never used them for plotting Still had to put my two pennyworth in and I asked komoot to do a route from my home to an airfield in south Somerset and though it was 6 miles shorter it certainly wasn't cycle friendly as the on i'd plotted and can't see a way of editing route either plus looking again also see that they seem to be wanting you to pay for it!


You edit routes by dragging and dropping the route line at the point you wish to deviate.


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## freiston (16 Mar 2019)

I tried Komoot for planning/saving/exporting rides but didn't get on with it (plus I couldn't tell if they were being made available to all and sundry in the "public domain" - don't really want a load of rides going to and from my home for all to see, whether there's a liability in it or not). I went back to cycle.travel (or CycleStreets or bikehike) to create routes/export as .gpx files and then upload to the relevant folder on my phone for Osmand to pick up and follow. Osmand will plot routes with intermediate waypoints quite nicely (after the learning curve) and it works out even long routes between points nicely too but I prefer to do my plotting/planning on the big screen and desktop pc at home.

A big advantage in cycle.travel (or the aforementioned alternatives) and Osmand is that they are free (but I did pay about £1.50 for the Osmand contour line layer). Osmand works without any data signal (but I haven't tried/don't know about route planning whilst offline) and will navigate with only GPS. Night mode is good too.


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## Phaeton (17 Mar 2019)

Never heard of cycle.travel & just tried a route, apart from taking me down a oneway street the wrong way & then through the middle of a bus station the route wasn't too bad, a couple of tweaks & it was there. But I think this shows the underlying problem with all of them, it's the quality of the maps they use. Even the ones that claim to use Openstreet maps must use different versions as some bridleways/paths are on some maps but not on others. 

I think it's find one that works for you & then every now & again check out another just to see if the one you're using is still the right one for you.


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## freiston (17 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Never heard of cycle.travel & just tried a route, apart from taking me down a oneway street the wrong way & then through the middle of a bus station the route wasn't too bad, a couple of tweaks & it was there. But I think this shows the underlying problem with all of them, it's the quality of the maps they use. Even the ones that claim to use Openstreet maps must use different versions as some bridleways/paths are on some maps but not on others.
> 
> I think it's find one that works for you & then every now & again check out another just to see if the one you're using is still the right one for you.


Out of interest, did it direct you down the one way street/through the bus station "on foot" or cycling (cycle.travel will include dismounted sections and give the dismounted mileage total as well as roads and cycle paths)? Cycle.travel use OpenStreetMap


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## Heltor Chasca (17 Mar 2019)

Some cycle routes do go down one way streets in the opposite direction to the flow of traffic. You’ll know because motons will hurl abuse at you. Victims of rubbish infra. All of us.

Ridiculous but true. Yet more infrastructure designed while planners were asleep or on LSD.


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## Phaeton (17 Mar 2019)

freiston said:


> Out of interest, did it direct you down the one way street/through the bus station "on foot" or cycling (cycle.travel will include dismounted sections and give the dismounted mileage total as well as roads and cycle paths)? Cycle.travel use OpenStreetMap


Currently out will check on return home


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## antnee (18 Mar 2019)

LeetleGreyCells said:


> You edit routes by dragging and dropping the route line at the point you wish to deviate.


Cheers! Was Probably not concentrating and Perhaps knowing me wasn't looking at all the symbols


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## Phaeton (19 Mar 2019)

freiston said:


> Out of interest, did it direct you down the one way street/through the bus station "on foot" or cycling (cycle.travel will include dismounted sections and give the dismounted mileage total as well as roads and cycle paths)? Cycle.travel use OpenStreetMap


Apologies been busy & not had time to reply, there is nothing in the instructions about dismounting, it claims that it is a cycleway but I'm not 100% sure here is the link to it on Google https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.3...4!1sBjHPag5Sh-Eml-RJJrJ2mA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 the on the 1 way street from again no dismount instruction but no way through (legally) https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.3...4!1sBjHPag5Sh-Eml-RJJrJ2mA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656


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## Richard Fairhurst (19 Mar 2019)

Just had a look - the one-way street wasn't marked in OpenStreetMap (the source for cycle.travel's street data). I've fixed it now, so cycle.travel's route choices will reflect it next time I update the maps - probably in a week or so.

The little cut-through was marked as "bikes permitted" by a mapper last December - looks legit enough to me but I don't know the area!


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## Phaeton (19 Mar 2019)

Richard Fairhurst said:


> The little cut-through was marked as "bikes permitted" by a mapper last December - looks legit enough to me but I don't know the area!


It's not too far from me, but I rarely ever go there, I'll try over the coming weeks to see if I can make it to confirm


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## Phaeton (19 Mar 2019)

@Richard Fairhurst are you involved in cycle.travel, with your comment "next time I update the maps - probably in a week or so"


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## Richard Fairhurst (19 Mar 2019)

Yes - it's my site!


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## Phaeton (19 Mar 2019)

Ah okay, there are a few other bridleways which need updating as well which I have added to Openstreetmaps which is why I asked, have you considered a MTB option?


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## Heltor Chasca (19 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> @Richard Fairhurst are you involved in cycle.travel, with your comment "next time I update the maps - probably in a week or so"



Richard should be addressed as The Under Lord of Cycle Travel


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## Phaeton (19 Mar 2019)

Heltor Chasca said:


> Richard should be addressed as The Under Lord of Cycle Travel


I apologise my liege


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## freiston (19 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Apologies been busy & not had time to reply, there is nothing in the instructions about dismounting, it claims that it is a cycleway but I'm not 100% sure here is the link to it on Google https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.3...4!1sBjHPag5Sh-Eml-RJJrJ2mA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 the on the 1 way street from again no dismount instruction but no way through (legally) https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.3...4!1sBjHPag5Sh-Eml-RJJrJ2mA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
> 
> 
> View attachment 458165
> View attachment 458166


Thanks for the reply - from the subsequent posts, it looks like there's a positive outcome from it


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## Richard Fairhurst (19 Mar 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Ah okay, there are a few other bridleways which need updating as well which I have added to Openstreetmaps which is why I asked, have you considered a MTB option?



Cool - good to see more data added!

Ultimately I'd quite like to do an MTB/bikepacking route option, but for boring technical reasons adding extra route types is quite expensive - each one takes up an extra 12-16GB RAM on the server, which means renting another server, which means paying out more £££ each month. So it's not something that'll happen for a while, but I'll keep it under review.


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## JohnE (20 Mar 2019)

Another thumbs up from me for mapping with cycle.travel. Its bias for quiet roads matches what I want from a bike ride. I do however also use RideWithGPS as it links directly to my turn by turn navigation app, Bike Tracker from PC Ability (Android only). I just use the audio guidance as I don't like to be distracted by reading a map while riding. 

As backup, I have OSMAnd (Open Street Maps) on the rare occasion when I need to check the map, or in an emergency when I need to be guided to another destination. 

All free ! I tried Komoot, but baulked at paying for maps that are available for free elsewhere.


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## GuyBoden (9 Jul 2019)

For off road paths, WalkHighlands is worth a look:

Free 1:25K online OS maps, if you register.

https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/maps/?sid=9c32a732a3c9be74e9c30b85ab38e46f


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## CXRAndy (9 Jul 2019)

Ive just used cycle.travel on the recommendation from my mate. It worked very well plotting a quiet route on lanes. You get options to pull the route to your preferred choice. It tells you how much is lanes, A roads or traffic free. It has options to use tracks aswell- choose paved only if dedicated road bike. 

I downloaded the Gpx onto my phone, opened the file with Wahoo Elemnt app, it converted it, I selected route on device. I reversed the route for homeward journey


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## Phaeton (9 Jul 2019)

GuyBoden said:


> Free 1:25K online OS maps, if you register.


Thank you for that good source of OS maps


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## Phaeton (11 Jul 2019)

Just trying out Komoot with their free map for one county, put it on an old phone & mounted it to an out front Garmin mount, downloaded the route via WiFi then put it in Aeroplane mode for the actual route, very impressed, clear concise onscreen directions which I could see (can't on the Garmin 800) there was also spoken directions but for the most part I couldn't catch those, tried using an earpiece but that doesn't work for me, it affects my balance.


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## LeetleGreyCells (11 Jul 2019)

Phaeton said:


> Just trying out Komoot with their free map for one county, put it on an old phone & mounted it to an out front Garmin mount, downloaded the route via WiFi then put it in Aeroplane mode for the actual route, very impressed, clear concise onscreen directions which I could see (can't on the Garmin 800) there was also spoken directions but for the most part I couldn't catch those, tried using an earpiece but that doesn't work for me, it affects my balance.


Komoot works great with my Wahoo.


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## Phaeton (11 Jul 2019)

LeetleGreyCells said:


> Komoot works great with my Wahoo.


I liked it due to the 5" screen my Garmin is only 2" & when you are bumping along a bridleway I can't make out any of the directions


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## bluezelos (12 Jul 2019)

CXRAndy said:


> Ive just used cycle.travel on the recommendation from my mate. It worked very well plotting a quiet route on lanes. You get options to pull the route to your preferred choice. It tells you how much is lanes, A roads or traffic free. It has options to use tracks aswell- choose paved only if dedicated road bike.
> 
> I downloaded the Gpx onto my phone, opened the file with Wahoo Elemnt app, it converted it, I selected route on device. I reversed the route for homeward journey



Andy, does this method provide turn by turn navigation? apologies not read the whole thread.


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