Off course Navigate alerts? where is this feature

I am able to navigate a course that i have uploaded via a GPX file or ridden in the past, but there are no alerts if you are off course, or going in the wrong direction (for 11 miles as i did). The best I seem to be able to do is to watch if you are on the purple line. This requires having the screen on all the time or checking it regularly which is not practical bike packing.

Is there any way that the device can let you know if you are off course (my 820 does this somewhat well, and i was hoping that the 66i would have it nailed).

  • I have been trying to get this to work, but it doesn't. Is it possible that it only works with routes and/or waypoint navigation, but not with tracks? I am urgently looking for an of-track alarm for my GPSmap66 similar to on my Fenix (or any of my other previous garmin's) 

    I am a bit surprised that such a standard feature is so difficult to find/get to work. There is sooo much functionality on the GPSmap but i would expect following the track should be the main feature!

    I could do with a little help getting this to work

  • Although I haven't tried it, I can't imagine any reason why the alerts would work when navigating to a waypoint or via route, but not when navigating a track.

    Have you verified that your unit provides alerts when navigating to a waypoint or along a route? If not, you should try that first. If that does not work, or if it does work but no alerts when navigating a track, I'd call tech support.

  • You are correct that the off course alarm only works with actual routes or navigation to waypoints/POI's. It's not possible to get off course alarms when following a Track. This is how it works on the 66s as well as older devices I tested this on such as the Rino 755t and GPSMAP 64st.

    You would need to convert your track to a route using either BaseCamp or the Explore Website on a computer.Or, if you're in the field, you can sync a recorded track to the Explore App, then use the "Add Route" tool to create a route that follows the track, then sync it to the device and you'd be able to follow that route getting off course alarms. 

    Setting Up an Off-Course Alert on an Outdoor Handheld Device

  • To clarify: does the off course alert work for tracks or only for turn by turn directions?

    I am circumnavigating Mount Hood, and can only use tracks with my 66i since it would have far too many points to give turn by turn directions.

  • As Garmin-Andrew said above, it's the distinction between a track and route. Apparently off-course alerts only work when you are following a ROUTE (rather than a track). Yeah, I know, you can navigate either one but they apparently do not work the same way.

  • Thanks for confirming that. It’s nice to know that I am not crazy and just couldn’t figure it out. But it’s disappointing that it doesn’t work with tracks given the limited number of points you can have on a route. Disappointed 

    For my purposes, when a hike is too long for a turn by turn route is exactly when I most need the off course alert. 

    1. I don’t understand why Garmin would not enable this feature. I mean you can follow a gps track on the Garmin watch and cycle series 5xx, 8xx etc. I end up using my 820 for nav and the i66 for pings so should really have just got the mini. The extra capacity and speed that the i66 has would make a great navigation experience. 

    2. be nice to hear back from Garmin on this one and the rational. 
  • You might hear something here - or not. If you really want to know, you'll probably have to open a support ticket. And the result will probably (IMO) be "by design".

    The other option is to submit an enhancement suggestion: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/forms/ideas/

  • Thanks for the tips. I submitted an enhancement suggestion and went through a live chat with a Customer Service representative. 

    Dan Weber:I've followed those instructions without success for a track.

    Bennett:There's no way to make a track work with the Off Course Alerts, but we did figure out a loophole. If you create a track, and then convert that Track to a Route in Garmin BaseCamp (should keep all it's detail), and then save it back to your device as a route, you would be able to use Off-Course Alerts

    Dan Weber:I can try that. But one clarifying question: I believe that routes are limited to 250 points, and my route has about 3,000. Will it just flatten my route and make it more generic?

    Bennett:Ah yes, there's the trick. You're correct, the 66i is limited to 250 points per route, so you would likely have to break it up into roughly 12 separate routes which is unfortunate.

    Bennett:Not the end of the world I suppose, but not very convenient for sure.

    Bennett:Regardless, the Off-Course Alerts only work with Routes and Navigating to Waypoints, so those are our options.

  • I am not entirely sure that the point limit on routes is built into the 66i. I THINK this MIGHT be imposed by the explore.garmin.com web site and the associated Explore mobile app. Nobody actually understands WHY this limit exists in the ecosystem.

    If I were you, I would try BaseCamp approach and see if it works. The important thing would be to avoid involving the Explore web site or the Explore mobile app in the process of getting the route onto the device.