descissions, descissions, descissions

Ward H · Jun 1, 2014

I have the 176C GPS as well. Came with the boat. Nice unit.
While we are on the subject can I ask a quick question.
The card looks more like a memory stick of some type, not a SD/Micro Card like I am use to seeing, like for cameras. Am I missing something?

Chris Patterson · Jun 1, 2014

No Ward, that is about it. It's Garmins standard issue, and the exact name eludes me. Ive called it a chip card for years, and as long as it is Garmins, that works..

Sumner · Jun 1, 2014

trainmanjess said:
..I found this 176c (color) for a really great price, and read a lot of reviews, and it has everything I was looking for in a gpsmap set up, so I got it......Jess

Another option that has worked well for us traveling hundreds of miles in new to us water is use the handheld with the laptop. With a usb/serial adapter on the laptop you can connect the handheld to it easily and cheaply.

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/FL-fall-2010/FL-Fall-10-17.html

Connected like this you can do route planning with SeaClear or Open CPN on the laptop and download the route to the handheld in a few seconds. It is much easier and quicker to create a route on the computer with SeaClear or Open CPN than on the handheld.

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor-navigation/Compter-Nav-index.html

We leave the low power (2 amp) computer running below and connected to the handheld. If I want to make a change I just slip below and readjust the route and send the new waypoints to the handheld (in a minute or less). We use the handheld to go waypoint to waypoint. We have a usb/gps dongle connected to the computer so that SeaClear or Open CPN has the gps location at all times. This gives us two plotters online while underway and has worked great.

Since there are two of us and Ruth is usually on the helm I sit forward where I can also ...

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor-navigation/Comp-ChartPlot-2.html

.... see the computer screen below if needed.

If you have the laptop and the handheld spend just a little more and connect them. You won't be disappointed. Also even though we used Sea Clear in the past we are switching to Open CPN as it is also free and has many more features with more being added all of the time. One that I really like is the tide and current info onscreen that SeaClear doesn't offer. A big help someplace like Florida where you have shallow depths and current in the cuts you are going in and out of.

Good luck,

Sumner

Stu Jackson · Jun 1, 2014

Chris Patterson said:
No Ward, that is about it. It's Garmins standard issue, and the exact name eludes me. Ive called it a chip card for years, and as long as it is Garmins, that works..

The GPS Map 76Cx uses a micro SD card.

RTFM. F stands for funny.

To add to Sumner's post:

The Garmin I have came with software, called Map Source. It, too, is a very good tool to use on your computer for making routes and storing, saving and transferring routes, waypoints, and tracks.

RTFM. F stands for funny.

Ward H · Jun 2, 2014

Hi Stu,
Did you confuse the 176C with the 76Cx? I was asking about the 176C.
Apparently Garmin used both, a Garmin Data Card and a SD Micro SD card. That is what caused my confusion. I wasn't sure if there was a Micro SD card inside the funny looking thing in my 176C that Garmin called a data card in my manual.

RTFM. F stands for funny. (I had to look that one up

)

charliegrau · Jun 4, 2014

For your transit are you going offshore, or the ICW?

CurtCarver1 · Jun 4, 2014

Gracious response

Hey thanks for your speedy reply - I must be dreaming - reality has "sunk in" and I got ahead of myself on this one. Planning and scheduling to fit a 2-week trip in remainder of June not realistic. Gratitude to you for at least considering a stranger's plea

God bless your journey - and aloha to you as you make your way to my home state! - Curt

trainmanjess said:
hello all

Curt - it is a 35' Morgan... not trailering it.... going to sail it south to Florida where I will be living... if everything works out right, you are welcome to come along to help... hoping to have 2 weeks for the sail of about 1200 NMiles down... my best friend in Virginia doesn't do boats, his hobby is planes....

everyone else - the Garmin 176c has had a lot of good reviews by a lot of people, and it was within my budget... going to be using it for a long time... this move and my vacation will empty my bank accounts for a long time of extra spending money...

thanks again for the advise and help

sincerely
Jess

charliegrau · Jun 5, 2014

Whichever route you take, I recommend you review the Notice to Mariners for bridge closures, offshore targeting events, etc. A good source is at: http://www.boatus.com/cruising/tomneale/alert.asp You can sign up there for regular e:mail updates on what is going on. I've done the ICW from Miami to Norfolk, and then Norfolk to St Augustine and back...bridges often have changes to their opening schedules or reductions in overhead clearances due to maintenance, accidents on bridges, dredging, special events, etc. Planning ahead can save you lots of time and frustration. Going the ICW may take more than the two weeks you have allotted, so you may want to plan on moving short distances over a weekend or two before you start the "big push". Beaufort, NC is a good launch point for either an ocean or ICW transit. I would also recommend you have a plan if you don't make it all the way. If you average 6knots of boat speed and steam 10hrs a day on the ICW - you can maybe make 65-70 statue miles per day...so that's 18days. On my boat, I could power at about 7.2knots, was underway at first light and anchoring at dusk...75 miles was a real good day.
Offshore, different story, but you need crew you can rely on, liferaft, and epirb. I would recommend the ICW with a new to you boat, plan on 50 statute miles a day, and start looking for interim locations to part the boat so you can finish the trip on weekends.

CurtCarver1 · Jun 5, 2014

trainmanjess said:
hello all

Curt - it is a 35' Morgan... not trailering it.... going to sail it south to Florida where I will be living... if everything works out right, you are welcome to come along to help... hoping to have 2 weeks for the sail of about 1200 NMiles down... my best friend in Virginia doesn't do boats, his hobby is planes....

everyone else - the Garmin 176c has had a lot of good reviews by a lot of people, and it was within my budget... going to be using it for a long time... this move and my vacation will empty my bank accounts for a long time of extra spending money...

thanks again for the advise and help

sincerely
Jess

My pref. post didn't show up, but thanks on the Fla. trip reply back - I spoke out of turn to think I could realistically arrange for a 2-week trip - just within the remainder of June! Grateful for your consideration though! - Curt

charliegrau · Jun 10, 2014

Jess, a great resource for the AICW are the set of guides procude by Mark and Diana Doyle. An excerpt from an e:mail I received recently is in quotes below. I keep my boat in Norfolk and live in Virginia Beach, so keep me in the loop on your plans - I'm willing to help w/local transport -grocery runs, etc.

"1. Non-Profit Pricing

Our transition to non-profit status is complete and has allowed us to drop the print version prices of our ICW CruiseGuide and ICW AnchorGuides to $9.95. And the iPad digital versions are only $3.99. Prices on our three other titles have been similarly reduced:

http://www.onthewaterchartguides.org/order

2. Practical Sailor's ICW "Best Choice"

Practical Sailor Magazine is well-regarded for rigorous testing and unbiased reporting. After a two-month test period on the ICW from Norfolk to Miami, they have awarded us "Best Choice" in two categories: mile-by-mile piloting guides and anchoring guides. This was obviously a BIG deal for Mark and me, and we're proud to have finally publicly bested Skipper Bob's Anchorages Along the Intracoastal Waterway.