Google Earth Outdoor Maps

Google Earth is providing a fun new service for you off-time. Available now, users can get GPS-based information for hiking, backpacking, biking, running, 4 wheel driving…whatever form of transportation you like to take in the woods. What a great service! In the [recent] past, outdoor enthusiasts have been limited to using real maps or purchasing separate topographical maps for their GPS devices. I had a Garmin, and those programs aren’t cheap.

You can access multimedia info on outdoor adventures, “including routes, points of interest, pictures, video segments and even audio clips. Essentially, anytime, anywhere you can launch Google Earth, you can view hundreds of hikes that have already been logged and completed, and view personalized web content. Then, through the convergence of Trimble Outdoors’ technology and Google Earth, you can click one button, and the exact trail route is exported to your GPS-enabled phone.”

Yet another reason for me to upgrade to a GPS phone.