Discuss.

I'm leaning GPS for BW and north for durability alone?

fadersup: "Discuss.

I'm leaning GPS for BW and north for durability alone?

"

A Garmin InReach would give you the GPS as well as the text messaging of a phone - just no voice - plus the durability.

Smartphones can be fine for nav, if you have the appropriate app & maps cached. GPS signal doesn't require data to work. Pitfalls can be considerably shorter battery life, especially if you're using it for navigation while on the water with the screen on; susceptibility to damage from drops; high cost of repair or replacement if damaged.

Dedicated handheld GPS devices are typically ruggedized and can withstand some abuse. A pair of AA lithium batteries should have you covered for the entirety of a weeklong trip where the GPS is on whenever you're on the water. Replacement cost is less if it's damaged beyond repair as well. Most entry to mid line GPS unit basemaps aren't detailed enough for the BWCA and installing (free) supplemental maps is necessary for it to be a useful navigation tool.

Personally, I use a dedicated GPS and just use my phone for photos. My eTrex 30 has enough memory to hold topos of all the states nearby where I paddle.

What mirth said. My smart phone gets turned off and locked in my glove compartment. I personally use a Garmin 62S loaded with their Inland Lakes Boundary Waters chip and lithium batteries. The Garmin GPS units are nice and rugged.

I use a Garmin Etrex-30 with the BWCA chip. Battery life is not a problem as it would be for my phone.
Only one or two of our group take a phone (they usually use it as a camera) so my phone stays in the truck.

I just did 5 days in WCPP with my Motorola phone (big battery) & Backcountry Navigator app (andriod only)...had topos and aerials, both, with portages and campsites pre-pinned.
After 5 days on airplane mode, leaving it on at night, I had 29% battery left at the end. Was great.

Had waterproof traditional maps as well, of course, and used those much more.

I just took my iphone 7 into the BWCA for the first time. I had the Gaia maps loaded and was excited to try it out. I snapped a few pictures through my waterproof case while portaging in....forgetting to use the GPS. I had it in airplane mode and it still was at 90% on Day 2. I forgot about it until the night of Day 2 when I discovered that it had 1% battery.

My point is that phones can still be unreliable. Maybe I left an app open or forgot to turn off the bluetooth, I don't know. I would never rely on my phone as the primary navigation source.

Thanks for the responses, makes sense. I've decided to upgrade my Etrex 20x (which was giving me trouble with certain mapping functions) to a 64st with a backroads map chip for Ontario. I'll be bringing my phone to WCPP to use as a second camera and I picked-up one of these to keep our power up for the 10 day trip.

I use the phone as my main camera and rarely gps. Gps seems to be ok but I bet real ones are far better. I like how the gps overlays on that NOAA app though.

I use a Garmin InReach Mini paired with my IPhone 7 for electronic navigation. The IPhone is waterproof and in a protective cover. Both are tethered or ‘carabinered’ in pockets on my PFD when I am paddling. On the IPhone I switch between the Gaia app with the NatGeo Trails BWCA map downloaded as well as the portage and campsite locations file from another web site and the Garmin Navigator app with USGS Topos and waypoints for Target campsites and portages entered. Just before I leave the outfitter I make my last call or text back to home and then switch to airplane mode, turn on Bluetooth to connect to just the InReach, shutdown all open Apps I won’t be using on the trip and shut off location services to everything but the two navigation apps. Takes about 2 minutes. Open Apps that use your location in the background will drain the battery fast. I also lower the screen brightness to the lowest usable level. Screen brightness is another big power drain. In the above configuration my IPhone battery will last 4-5 days. I bring a small Anker battery for a mid trip charge “top up”.

I also use my IPhone as my camera, e-reader for books and if soloing my cribbage opponent.

And of course I have a paper map and compass as a back up but last few trips I only used them in camp for next day’s route planning.

I think a dedicated GPS unit is light years better than a cell phone. Waterproof, shockproof, great battery life.

Savage Voyageur: "I think a dedicated GPS unit is light years better than a cell phone. Waterproof, shockproof, great battery life. "

And far less a problem replacing if lost or damaged.

butthead

I use the iPhone a lot, GPS and photos, but you need to have it on airplane mode or it will drain really quickly. I bring an Anker brick to recharge up to 5 times on a trip, but have yet to use it more than 3 times, and that was with an iPhone 5 which would only work in full search mode. Because it is always looking for a signal, you could watch the battery drain. My XS works great. I use GAIA for the app.

I thought I'd give my thoughts on this as well since I was also in the market for a new GPS option just recently.

Phones are OK and convenient (giving position and detailed maps on a nice screen and easy to use interface), but not as reliable for various reasons. I usually bring my phone along in a waterproof case/bag and cache/download maps of the area I'll be in, but only consider it a backup in case other things fail.

For my primary navigation I've found that I have a strong preference for real maps and a compass over a small screen and I now like to create and print my own maps on waterproof paper. If I find myself having trouble figuring out exactly where I am (rare in the BW because the landmarks are generally pretty good with lakes and portages) I generally just use a GPS to get a fix on my position which I can then plot on the map using UTM. Since I really just use the GPS to get coordinates I've found that I can get away with using some of the smallest and lightest options available for a GPS like the Garmin Foretrex and Instinct.

This system means I have several redundancies (map, compass, GPS, and phone) all at a low cost to overall weight. My phone and Garmin Instinct together weigh less than most of the handlheld GPS units out there and are both multi-purpose tools.

As an added bonus all of my electronic devices run off the same power source. My headlamp uses an 18650 battery and I carry a Nitecore F1 flex charger which allows me to charge either the watch or my phone with my backup 18650 battery or (if need be) the battery in my headlamp.

I have only ever used my iPhone, well 3 of them, a 4, 5S and X. They work great for me as a Swiss army tool, GPS, music, camera along with other apps I occasionally use like birding apps, plant identification, knots, lake depth (Navionics), Alarm clock, note pad, voice memos, sometimes I’ll even put in a movie to fall asleep to if I feel like it. Lots of quality waterproof cases available for main stream phones, I’ve used Otter and Lifeproof units with good luck. I download satellite overlays for navigation. I keep in airplane mood 95% of the time and battery lasts a long time, if GPS is on I turn off cellular data and phone as searching for signal eats the battery like crazy. I’ll bring a USB battery pack to recharge/top off when needed.