Mountain Biking Falls City to Lincoln City - Take Two

Now that the summer is almost over, another try at the Falls City to Lincoln city route is in order. The trip is planned for 9/27 and 9/28, with an overnight stay in Valsetz. We're trying a different route (further north, past Valsetz) with the help of a forestry expert who knows the area well. We'll also bring along a GPS, AND the map, AND the compass. The good news is that no matter what happens, we will know where East and West are, and with those general coordinates we won't get "lost". The crew configuration will be changing just a bit, as new EDS venturers join us and we lose a cousin to a date with the traffic court.

If anyone reading this blog has a lead on a good GPS, please drop a comment. I've been looking at the more expensive versions (Garmin Oregon 400t and the Nuvi 500). The Nuvi is intended for car use, but could also double as a stoway in a backpack. The nice thing about the Nuvi is that is does speak directions, and it has a nice easy-on-the-eyes screen. I believe that both have topo maps. I could go with a lower-level GPS, that simply displays the longitude and latitude, and then use the coordinates on the topo map to determine exactly where I'm at. At this point I'm just not sure which approach is better. I'd rather not spend the $'s on the nicer unit, but don't want to go "cheap" either and then regret that I didn't spend the extra money to get a unit with the more advanced features. In either case, I believe that I will need to purchase topo maps that are more detailed. They are around $100 for the US.

Anyway, time to close off the blog post. Happy Mountain Biking!

-Shannon