Route Planning (4.34MB) - Tracks4Africa

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Volume

2 TRACKS4AFRICA

Overland Navigation

Route Planning

OVERLAND NAVIGATION

Route Planning

© Tracks4Africa Enterprises (PTY) Ltd Unit 8, Innovation Centre 1, Meson Street, Technopark Stellenbosch, 7600, SOUTH AFRICA Phone +27 (0)21 880 1196 • www.tracks4africa.com

Garmin® is a registered trademark of Garmin Ltd. Or its subsidiaries, registered in the USA and other countries. MapSource®, MapInstall®, Zūmo™™, Nüvi™™, Quest™, StreetPilot™ and eTrex™ are trademarks of Garmin Ltd or its subsidiaries. Windows® is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.

Table of Contents Tracks4Africa Map Philosophy ............................................. 3 Understanding Tracks4Africa Maps...................................... 5 The ‘most travelled’ track ..................................................... 6 Readability of GPS ............................................................... 8 Farm Gates and Road Obstructions ..................................... 9 Routable and Non-routable Maps ....................................... 11 Route Planning with T4A GPS Map.................................... 15 Travel Times and ETA........................................................ 16 Special Places on the T4A GPS Map ................................. 20 How to ‘Find’ T4A Special Places ....................................... 21 Finding Information on the GPS ......................................... 22 Calculating a Route ............................................................ 26

Tracks4Africa Map Philosophy Tracks4Africa Maps are strictly speaking not maps; they are the collective travel experience of a community of overland travellers over a period of 8 years. These travellers are serious about travel safety and even more so about the environment in which they travel. At Tracks4Africa we like to think that we are not mapping Africa, but rather modelling it; modelling it in a way that allows the fellow traveller to experience Africa in such a way that is informative and has a positive effect on the continent’s environment, cultures and people. Reading this document, you would understand that T4A GPS Maps are not following any trend, we evaluate all and then engineer the best way of constructing a map to meet our goals. Our goals are that of informing the traveller. The late Jan Joubert professed that Conservation = Information. Taking a cue from National Geographic who coined the phrase Geotourism, we would like to extend the provision of information to include the full meaning of geotourism, which is: geotourism (n): Tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place – its environment, heritage, aesthetics, culture and the well-being of its residents The Tracks4Africa map is not about roads. It is about places and destinations. Navigation data (roads and points of interest) on T4A GPS Maps are constructed using strictly and only GPS recorded and confirmed data from the T4A Community. No other data can be used. This ensures that a fellow traveller can trust the information on the map as that which has been collected and reported by a likeminded traveller. For a road/track to be published on the Tracks4Africa map it requires at least three independent GPS recordings and if a road or track is not re-recorded within 24 months the road or track is removed from the map. The road lines on the T4A map are spatially averaged from actual GPS recorded and confirmed data. The road lines are accurate to less than 5m.

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Because the Tracks4Africa map comprise only of GPS recorded and confirmed data, the map can never be complete. The Tracks4Africa map explains where and why people travel in Africa. Tracks4Africa is not about ‘mapping’. It is about the ‘modelling’ of destinations in a way that ensures travel safety and which is environmentally correct. Construction of the Tracks4Africa map is governed by two engineering principles; Configuration Management and Quality Management and performing this one the atomic level. If you do this, then two things come automatically; data quality and data integrity. Data Quality and Data Integrity are what you could expect from Tracks4Africa maps. The core business and focus of Tracks4Africa is not ‘mapping’. It is the development of the 4th-dimension of eco-travel which is information. • • •

Information needed not to expose yourself, your travel companions, your assets and the environment to unnecessary risks. Information needed to make informed decisions on the spot. Information needed to be “un-stupid”.

Development of the 4th dimension of eco-travel cannot happen in thin air. It requires a super accurate vector map as foundation. Such a map does not exist and it possibly never will. It took 8 years to develop the current Tracks4Africa map and it will take another 5 years to develop the 4th dimension to the same level of quality, perfection and user confidence.

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Understanding Tracks4Africa Maps Understanding the Tracks4Africa philosophy of map making or modelling Africa, you would have to appreciate that our methods do not guarantee that our maps will have each and every road on the continent. We like to believe that we have less than 5% of the navigable roads in Africa on our map; however we probably have more than 95% of those used by travellers. There are only so many places people visit in Africa and there are only so many roads leading to these places. You can and should however trust that when Tracks4Africa shows a road on the map, it does exist and someone has travelled it before you. Where certain roads or places are considered to be dangerous or sensitive, we indicate this by means of a red diamond in a red square.

It is your responsibility as a visitor in Africa to use this information wisely and consider your abilities, preparedness and the environment.

Figure 1: Warnings of Seasonal Water Crossings in Moremi, Botswana

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The ‘most travelled’ track Statistically some tracks or trails are travelled more frequently than others. These tracks or trails are referred to as ‘most travel’ and they behave differently on the T4A GPS Maps.

Figure 2: Most travelled track does not show at 7km zoom level

Zooming into the map from 7km to 5km, the ‘most travelled’ tracks appear as a solid black road line which is easy to read. (For the eyes older than 50 years)

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Figure 3: Most travelled track appear at 5km zoom level as solid black line

Built into the T4A GPS Maps is a routable preference towards the ‘most travelled’ tracks. i.e. ‘most travelled’ tracks carry a higher ‘road class’ and autorouting will give preference to ‘most travelled’ tracks.

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Readability of GPS With GPS screens the size of a match box, reading the screen is a problem for the eyes older than 50 years of age, particularly in the bright dessert sun of Namibia and Botswana. So, apart from the ‘most travelled’ track appering as a solid black road line, the dark green park areas switches OFF automatically on a 1.5km zoom level.

Figure 4: Dark green parks switch off at 1.5km zoom level

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Farm Gates and Road Obstructions Knowing exactly the status of farm gates and also the different opening mechanisms is vital information for the biker community. To make a bike stand on deep Kalahari sand is often not an easy task. They say that the fourth time your bike falls over you set up camp for the night... For other travellers it is also important to know if gates are locked, manned or to be closed after using it.

Figure 5: Example of farm gates on T4A GPS Maps

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Other road obstructions such as cattle grids, veterinary control points, police road blocks, weigh bridges, toll gates are also indicated as points of interest on the map.

Figure 6: Road obstructions are searchable POI

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Routable and Non-routable Maps Most of the T4A GPS Maps are routable maps (except certain parts of North Africa). It is therefore necessary to understand the difference between the two types of maps and to know how to use routability for route planning. The difference between a routable and non-routable map is essentially that a routable map allows the user to select a destination and use the GPS to calculate a route along available roads from the current position to the destination. This is a very common application in a city where one would require turn-by-turn directions in order to navigate from points A to B. On MapSource® the difference between a routable and non-routable can easily be illustrated by the following two figures.

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Figure 7: Routable map for Kaudom, Namibia

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Figure 8: Non routable map of Penjari, Benin

The use of auto-routing must be considered. In the city it makes life a lot easier; consider the traffic around you and the fact that you may have to keep to the correct lane in order to take a required turnoff.

Figure 9: Auto-routing in Gaborone city, Botswana

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There are many reasons for not wanting or having to use auto-routing while travelling overland: • • •

You know to which destination you are heading and only require the GPS as a reassurance that you are on the correct course. You may want to actively partake in the navigation experience, i.e. make conscience and calculated decisions at each turn. You simply cannot stand the voice of the GPS when you are trying to enjoy your trip to nowhere slowly.

The argument is that whilst you are in a hurry to get to your next meeting in the city, auto-routing is a very good navigational aid, however when on a journey in remote parts of Africa it could be very dangerous not to mention irritating to rely on auto-routing as a navigational aid. Consider the effect when the GPS suddenly stops functioning; in the city you can stop and ask for directions, but in remote areas you may not have this luxury and you have to ensure at all times that your mental map is intact and calibrated. In remote areas a single navigational aid such as a GPS is not recommended and you should at all times travel with additional aids such as a good old paper map and compass – and know how to use them! When doing route planning, the day, week or month before your trip, it is very helpful to have an auto-routable map. On your PC or laptop you could have MapSource® installed and use its route capabilities to construct possible routes. If the GPS map you are using is auto-routable then this process is much easier and faster, however a word of caution: route planning should be an interactive process whereby you must verify the results derived from an automated route calculation.

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Route Planning with T4A GPS Map All roads or tracks and trails are routable including hiking trails, MTB trails, quad bike trails, bike trails, off-road trails and even river boat trails on the Okavango and Zambezi rivers are routable. In certain cases we choose to disconnect road networks from the routable road network. This is done on an ad hoc basis and one example would be where a private road network exists and the particular land owner does not want unauthorised entry to his land. Auto-routing on the T4A map is not about ‘Sally’ giving turn-by-turn instructions. In fact, following this lady’s driving instructions blindly will get you into deep trouble because the remote areas of Namibia have killed people before and it will do so again. Route planning (auto-routing) is about instantaneous and accurate information on distances and travel times. (ETA = Estimated Time of Arrival.) Auto-routing on the T4A GPS Map implies you must select the roads you plan to travel. ‘Sally’ cannot do this for you. You must actively take part in the decision making process.

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Travel Times and ETA The ability to estimate your estimated time of arrival (ETA) or total travel time is of great importance to the overland traveller. Attempting the crossing of a treacherous section of road when the sun is already far to the West could end up in unsafe night driving which is something you simply avoid in remote parts of Africa. Travel times or speed indices for each road was derived from the T4A Vault (7.3 million km of GPS recorded track data). Every road line on the Tracks4Africa map carries a unique speed index. This gives accurate and reliable estimated travel times based on actual driving speeds of fellow travellers.

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Figure 10: Estimated travel times for a calculated route in MapSource®

The distance from Luanda to Oshakati is the same as from Oshakati to Karasburg; however it will take twice as long to travel these Angolan roads because their speed indices are much slower. Take note that these travel times assumes continuous (non-stop) driving and you have to factor in stops. If you are a keen birder then double your travel time. Routing from Swartbooisdrif to Epupa Falls along the South bank of the Cunene is only 94km but it will take 11 hours of non-stop driving,

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Figure 11: Distance is not the only measure of travel time

It is very important to note that if routing on the off-road tracks of remote Africa which exceeds 5hr, then you have to assume it is a full day’s driving. The route between Swartbooisdrif to Epupa is a 2 day trip (one night wild camping).

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Driving from Windhoek to Swakopmund in Namibia is a 360km trip which will take 3hrs and 30min, travelling from Buitepost to Vergenoeg is only 28km but with deep sand and many farm gates will also take 3hrs and 30min.

Figure 12: Note the difference in travel time on different routes

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Special Places on the T4A GPS Map By the nature of community mapping it will eventually reveal where and why people travel. What is a ‘special place’ to the one may not be a special place to another. But if a T4A data members packs car and family to drive 6,000km to visit places, then these places are ‘special places’. Statistically (from GPS recordings) some places are visited more than others. These are examples of some of the T4A Special Places from the Tracks4Africa Community.

Figure 13: Examples of T4A Special Places on the T4A GPS Map

‘T4A Special places’ are modelled on the T4A GPS Maps in a special way. They’re encapsulated by a green diamond and the name is displayed in bold print.

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How to ‘Find’ T4A Special Places MapSource® does not provide a facility to ‘Find’ T4A Special Places. In order find T4A Special Places with MapSource® we had to change the way MapSource® will detect certain types of points of interest. In order to ‘Find’ T4A Special Places you need to go to “Find Places...” under the “Find” tab. Then use the “Feature” tab in “Find Places” to search for T4A Special Places. We have placed T4A Special Places under Attractions Category.

Figure 14: How to Find T4A Special Places in MapSource®

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Finding Information on the GPS T4A GPS Maps are populated with more than 50 000 accurately recorded points of interest. We have over a 140 categories of points of interest; however there are a couple which are of particular interest to the traveller. When members of the T4A Community travel, they ask 5 questions: Q1: Where do we get fuel?

Figure 15: Searching for Fuel Stops on T4A GPS Maps

Q2 (a): Where do we sleep tonight?

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Figure 16: Searching for Accommodation on T4A GPS Maps

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Q2 (b): And what is the contact number and who do I speak to? Using satellite phones, it is a very specific requirement that contact details must connect you to the reception desk of the lodge and not a booking company somewhere in Johannesburg or Frankfurt.

Figure 17: Accessing the Contact Details for an accommodation listing

Q3: Where can we buy things? (The biltong shop)

Figure 18: Searching for Shops on T4A GPS Maps

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Q4: What can you do or see here? (Tourist attractions)

Figure 19: Searching for Tourist Attractions on T4A GPS Maps

Q5: Where are the medical facilities?

Figure 20: Searching for Medical Facilities on T4A GPS Maps

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Calculating a Route Most of the T4A GPS Maps are routable and allows the user to automatically calculate a route in MapSource®. There are however a few simple rules to adhere to when performing automated route calculation with T4A GPS Maps. T4A GPS Maps are not your common street navigation map, and so it does not adhere to the rules of common street maps. The process of route calculation is one of interaction and partaking in the calculation of a specific route. The basic rules are as follows: •





When performing an overland route calculation you have to zoom in and specify waypoints of where you want to travel. Consider fuel stops and overnight accommodation. Estimated travel times are to be interpreted with caution. A full day’s driving is equal to 5hrs of travel time on a calculated route. If you stop very often you should adjust this figure. You may start off with a single route and refine your intermediary stops. This may well lead you to start from scratch and rather have several shorter routes, each representing a day’s travel. This allows for easy fuel range calculation as well.

The following example shows the recommended steps for planning a route in MapSource® using T4A GPS Maps.

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Route Calculation Step 1: Create Waypoints for Start and Destination of your Route Let us create a route between Gaborone and Audi Camp just outside Maun in Botswana. Use the Waypoint Tool and click on desired POI to add them as waypoints to your project. Zoom in and out as necessary.

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Route Calculation Step 2: Set Routing Preferences If you are in a hurry to get to your destination you may need to set your route preferences to ‘Faster Time’ and ‘Highways Prefered’ as these normally yield the best route to take if time is of the essence.

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Route Calculation Step 3: Create a Route from Start to End Points Use the “Route Tool” to connect your waypoints.

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Route Calculation Step 4: Terminate the Route Calculation This is done by Right Clicking you mouse and then select “Cancel” from the options.

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Should you wanted to continue the route you could have selected more waypoints for the route to navigate. For the purpose of this example we stop at two waypoints.

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Route Calculation Step 5: Give the Route a Proper Name You may create various routes as part of your overall trip planning and it will be good practice to name your routes in order to revisit your trip planning at a later stage.

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Route Calculation Step 6: Insert intermediary points Note that this particular route (Gaborone to Audi Camp outside Maun) is 933km long and the estimated travel time is more than 12 hours. You will need to refuel and stay over inbetween. For this you will have to either create two separate routes or insert waypoints for refuel and accommodation stops. You may also wanted to stop at specific location along the route, all of which has to be inserted as waypoints on your route. Let us assume you also want to stay over in Khutse Game Reserve at Khutse Camp as well as Central Kalahari Game Reserve at Deception Camp before contuing your journey to Audi Camp outside Maun. You also estimate that you have to refuel at Lethlakeng and Rakops along the way. Now let us insert these stops as waypoints.

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Route Calculation Step 7: Insert intermediary stops from waypoints into route, set their route sequence and recalculate the route

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Double Click the route to show Route Properties

Route Calculation Step 8: Evaluate the results 35

The route will now look as shown in the image below. Note that the route is navigating via Francistown which does not seem like the best route. This is because our preferences for route calculation are set to give a high preference to highways.

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Now set the preferences for routing to have a neutral position between highways and minor roads.

Now recalculate your route by right clicking on the route and selecting “Recalculate Route” as shown below.

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The route will now change and not route via Francistown. Note the difference in distance and travel time. Evaluating the results of your route calculation is extremely important in order to ensure the results are what you expected. You may also be awrae of ceratin roads which are in very bad condition and may intentionally want to avoid these. If you would have set you routing preferences for this particular example to give preference to shorter distance the route would change completely and navigate you from Khutse via the Central Kalahari Game Reserve to Deception Camp. This traverse is not for the novice and it is recommended that one does not attempt it in a single vehicle. Playing around with the settings may yield very different results which could require very different equipment and preparation.

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