When creating routes in bascamp, route uses nearby roads and not paths

You need to set it to direct or Basecamp (and your GPS) will use the routeable map that is part of the Discoverer map ... which means routing along roads.

Sorry for sounding thick, but set what to direct and how do I do that?

The activity profile, needs to be direct not hiking etc.

Tried that and it doesn't make any difference. As soon as you select another point along a track it immediately routes it along the nearest road. Also Direct as an activity doesn't exist on the Oregon 450

Further to the above, I did create it as a track then converted to a route. That looked OK and so downloaded it to the Oregon. Everything looked ok until I zoomed in on the route and suddenly the route length went from 11 miles to 21 miles!! it had re-routed it to the roads again.

On the Oregon you need to ensure it's set to 'off road', that's the equivalent of direct. If you selected direct in Basecamp it won't route along roads, I suspect you haven't done it correctly. Right click the route and select Open, or double click the route. Look top right where it lists the activity profile for that route. It needs to be set to Direct.

Tried that and it doesn't make any difference. As soon as you select another point along a track it immediately routes it along the nearest road. Also Direct as an activity doesn't exist on the Oregon 450

Double click on the route in the lower left pain and make sure the Activity Profile is Direct in the Properties window. If it is, open the program options from the Edit menu. Choose Activity Profile, select Direct from drop down menu and verify that every thing is grayed out on the Routing Tab. If it isn't or it is and your route is still following roads, you probably have a faulty installation and should reinstall BaseCamp.

All devices will have Direct Routing, although it may not be called that. Any profile (or set-up if a device doesn't use profiles) where the Routing Set-up uses Off-Road or any other name that describes the routing as a point to point calculation or navigation will be the same as BaseCamps Direct Profile for routing purposes.

Ah right. I'd changed it to direct in options (Basecamp), but didn't realise that doesn't appear to change the activity profile when you create a route - so changed that as well. I now have a route created without going onto roads. Brilliant, thanks for that.

When I transfer it to the Oregon (with the activity set now to Off Road as you suggested), everything initially looks fine. I open it up in the map. Great. However when I zoom in, it suddenly increases the route length because its going back to routing it onto the roads again.

Sussed it. On the Oregon there is Off Road and Direct Activity profiles. Changed it to Direct and it now works fine.

Thanks for the help. One final question though, why have a profile on both basecamp and Oregon called Hiking when it routes you on the road all the time. Anybody setting up a GPS like this would naturally select hiking if they are out walking in the hills, but it doesn't work. Seems crazy.

Anyway thanks again

One final question though, why have a profile on both basecamp and Oregon called Hiking when it routes you on the road all the time.

Because there are maps that do contain routable hiking trails (yours don't).

FYI "Off Road" is the historical name, in the Garmin universe, for point-to-point aka "direct" routes. I believe the terminology was changed because "off road" commonly means non-paved roads to many people. "Off Road" traditionally meant "not on a road on a Garmin map" regardless where one was (e.g. on a road just not on the map).