Ah thank you so much I really appreciate it. These videos are always a little more challenging to make when I'd rather be hiking, so it's great to hear that they're helpful. And any questions as you get to know your Epix, just leave a comment. Best, Cris

Thank you 👍👍 and hope it hasn't been to much of a hassle managing all the tracks. I know the "collections" on Explore can be clunky. I think Basecamp still works way better, even if its dated. I also tried to connect my Epix to Basecamp (on a Mac) but it wouldn't connect in any of the storage modes. Oh well...

Hello, a year ago from your message, are you satisfied with Fenix 7x? The 7 pro is out now. It seems to be more visible than the previous 7x. My dilema would be 7x or 7x pro. I don't know if the light on 7x is enough or if the pro is better for me. I would be a first-time garmin watch owner.

@@user-fn4pm2pb9c hello, I am fully satisfied with Fenix 7 X. Battery life three weeks in normal usage. Last week I charged it on Friday, two days 12hours daily navigation, on Tuesday still 49% battery. Readability excellent under direct sun or full daylight even without glasses. Indoor it is worse, but I care when being outdoor. Would I like to have pro version? Yes, as I get ready for 2024 PCT, every day of battery life will count. Pro version is ready for more metrics, I believe blood pressure is under certification. Torch is stronger in Pro version, but torch in 7X is enough for everything I needed so far. I am 55 so yes, I would like to know this parameter. But cost of new watch is too big for me now, more than value I could get. Will I suggest you Pro? Yes, if you are like me. You will be thinking of additional features you are missing... X vs standard size? X!!! They are not that big on a wrist and bigger display is better for outdoor. Epic vs Fenix? Fenix, absolutelly. Display OK (what you need to know outdoor is whether you are still following route, not whether map is with many shades degree... If I need more info and details anyway I will pick mobile. And battery last much more. Saphire glass or standard? Saphire. Many times with Fenix 5 and Fenix 7 X I hit wall, stone or bike, newer scratched Saphire... Both 7X and Pro will make you GREAT service. I follow closely major brands, for me, there is not better brand than Garmin. BTW, flashlight is a godsend. There are SO many everyday life occasions, where having torch on your wrist is simply - godsend😊. Just map torch to one of buttons and you are safe. Map other button to Garmin pay and you spend your money very quickly😁

@@rpsota23 now you can have Epix Pro 51 mm with flashlight. :)

Agree 100% - one the trail I mainly use Gaia GPS on my phone and have the maps on my Epix as a backup. I'm going to make a video on my nav workflow shortly because I think it might be helpful. The hardware is great, but all the supporting software and OS is def lacking.

Just got a Fenix 7 and I'm about ready to return it because of this. Steep learning curve and clunky. I figure I'm better off going back to a chest strap hr monitor, and putting the watch money towards a mini in reach

the apps are sooo bad :(

Getting waypoints onto my quatix 7 is a nightmare!

Agree 100%

Good idea, I will!

Yea, agree, it's a mess. I would have thought that Garmin would have done something like CalTopo or GaiaGPS at this point and offered a robust set of data and planning tools online (and charged for it). It's really a shame that they offer the only outdoor GPS hardware but the software is so weak. Very frustrating in 2022. It will be interesting to see the (rumored) new Apple Watch built for the outdoors.

Just did a hike with my Fenix 7 Sapphire Solar and the MIP screen rocked! I could see it perfectly fine even without my glasses. All I needed the map for was to let my buddy and I know whether or not we were on or off trail. I did make the mistake of leaving the map constantly on and that drained my battery from 95% to 35% after 8 hours! I had All + Multi-Band on like this guy in the vid. I should have gotten at least 22 hours out of it but, yeah, the map screen was probably the culprit! I'll know better next time. I think I have to dive deeper into the waypoints and alerts, so I don't have to keep looking at the map screen. I could just look at the data screens and save the battery.

@@NLVDragon2054 yep, it's best to just leave it on a data screen or watch face until you find a fork in the trail, then I'll pull the map out. You can have it alert you for going off course anyways, so if you accidentally do, you can turn back and find where you should be going.

Yea that's a newer feature that wasn't around when I made this video. Probably time for a new version here.

I use elevation and total ascent (how much I've climbed)

Yea, it's confusing I know. So you need to create "course points" to get the distance remaining. And if you want to save those points as "waypoints," known as "saved locations" on the watch, you have to do that separately in Garmin Explore. They are two different entities from a data standpoint. You can route to saved locations, but that would be something outside of navigating a course. And for trackback, yes, you'd have to edit the course, reverse it, and then go. I haven't actually tried it and am not sure if the course points would show up, but logically they should.

Yes, in the watch you can navigate past activities, or you can do it from Garmin Connect.

I've heard that people have difficulty seeing the AMOLED in bright sunlight but it hasn't been an issue for me. I'm in Southern California where it's sunny all the time, and the Epix has consistently been much easier to see, even now as I hike through summer when the sun is high. The Epix does seem easier to read than the Apple Watch in direct sun for whatever reason.

Thanks for the feedback.

I don't think the 245 has these navigation features.

Thanks for the note and glad to hear that guide and Epix are solid on your end. For waypoints, you can save them to a collection in the Garmin Explore app and then sync that with the watch, or add them as course points in Garmin Explore. If you have the whole stretch with track and waypoints in a GPX file, you should be able to import it to Garmin Connect > Courses and the waypoints will read as course points. Not sure on the size restrictions there though. Worth a try

Yea Garmin is perfect for military training - you can change it to display MGRS - works anywhere a GPS unit does - you might want to check out the tactical watches that Garmin makes too.

I'd say if you have AllTrails and it works well, you wouldn't need this. Otherwise just download the GPX file from AlltTrails, import as a Course, and sync to your watch.

Go into the activity, settings, activity settings, routing, make sure direct line is not selected

I don't know any other deeper dives aside from the manual, but maybe it makes sense for me to do a walkthrough at some point. For your treasure hunt. you can long press the upper left button and then do "save location" - the waypoint is saved. Now when you are in an activity like hiking choose navigation > and then select the waypoint You could also create a new route and add the waypoints to the route as stops I think

The Garmins won't do a synced navigation with the watches, but you can do that with the handhelds & Garmin Explore I think. What I do to accomplish the same thing is load a GPX to my watch as a course, which gives me turn-by-turn guidance, and then load the GPX to my phone with Gaia GPS. I download maps in Gaia GPS for offline and use that when I want to dig deeper into my surroundings, and just use the course on the watch when I want to know if I'm in the right place.

You can just track the hike and get all the stats - just select the activity and hit start

What you're describing is what you can do with course points. It will work exactly as you described. They come in very handy.

@@Hikingguy thanks for your reply. I understand that. but if there are no predefined course points. Can I measure distance to random place/point on a map using Fenix in a similar way I would do in GPSMAP (there I just move cursor and see distance to any point on a map)

@@al3us0 yes put it on the map screen and long press down anywhere on the map, it will give you the distance away in straight line

@@Hikingguy can I do this with Fenix 6x?

@@Hikingguy last question 🙏 can I do this on Fenix 6 with buttons or it needs to be the newest 7 with touchscreen?

Think "on" means avoid

@@Hikingguy ah okay thank you. I couldn't work out if on was avoid on or on was allow.

My guess is they purposely get you to the edge of wanting more so you buy an etrex or whatever 😂 another thing to charge, update, edit, manage...

Thank you 🙏🙏🙏🙏 appreciate it big time!

Just did a test, marked a location and not seeing it on the Map app. Not so great.

@@Hikingguy thanks:) was hoping it would be like on Suunto, where you see poi/saved locations on the map, not a deal breaker, but it's nice to see my locations/poi on the map without searching for them:)

Big thank you! And yup, just the website, if you go to 13:44 you'll see that I create a snap-to course on the app. It still blows my mind that the Explore website doesn't support this.

HR zone - distance - timer - pace - average pace - elevation - total ascent - time of day

Topoactive Maps are great for hiking & mtg - try the map manager - www8.garmin.com/manuals/webhelp/GUID-C001C335-A8EC-4A41-AB0E-BAC434259F92/EN-US/GUID-501D6F25-266A-4913-8F18-35AEEB9335DE.html Garmin Express is usually a quicker update than the watch's WiFi

@@Hikingguy Thank you so much for your reply and for the links you sent me.

It's not as slick as it could be but with the Apple Watch alone you can't really plan any hikes without a iPhone

The onboard maps work well for me on the West Coast USA

It's one of the time fields, just customize it. There's lap time and just "time" which is total

I have same issue

Nope, "up ahead" only works with course points.

It probably wouldn't be practical but doable.

Not sure of the exact scenario that you have but my guess is that it's routing you on trails, and the bug is pointing you in the trail direction, which may not be the same as the waypoint direction since trails rarely go in the straight line

yup > support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=P003xjvIua50cfhcivVe99

By default I think it measures temp, which looks like a mix of your body and exterior temp. I think you can pair with a Tempe sensor but haven't tried it. Just ordered one and will try it out.

Yes, the only connection with the inReach is as a remote, not the GPS

Waypoints are extra/ optional points like a stop you want to make. I never make them on hikes, but I don't go far.

Navigate a route

Course points are only info - displayed on Up Ahead - you can't navigate to them on the fly or set proximity alerts. With waypoints you can. They should really be one in the same for functionality, but they're not.

It depends on the number of points along the course. support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=gMt4emKnTc5t2mdbI86517

Battery is still solid and I wear it 24/7 - and not a problem going all day with tracking an activity. I do it often and can usually get 2-3 long days before charging again.

ugh I think you're right, will dig this week

Thank you!! 👍