How to upload KMZ paths?

I just purchased a 700i as my first handheld GPS. The primary purpose is to find old abandoned rail lines that I have mapped with Google Earth and then exported as KMZ files. I converted the files to GPX format and uploaded to the 700i in the GPX directory. I cannot get these paths to display. Google Earth placemarks will display as waypoints but I cannot get Google Earth paths to be visible on the 700i. As a newb to Garmin, I'd appreciate any advice.

  • Can't say I've ever tried this, but it ought to work - provided that the converted .gpx contains one or more track segments. Take a look at the .gpx with a text editor (like Notepad) and see what it contains.

    You can also do this in a supported way by importing the .kml into explore.garmin.com from the Map tab. Import as a track, not a route. Of course, the means you have to deal with the whole collections thing. And again, it's only going to work if the .kml does contain a track.

  • Thanks for the reply. Examining the file in Notepad shows that the kml paths are converted to GPX polylines and not tracks. I don't know how to force the conversion to tracks. I've also been playing around with the demo version of ExpertGPS which does convert kmz and kml files into GPX and they display correctly on that PC app. However, the paths are categorized as "shapes" and not "tracks" even though they are not closed and thus they will not export to the 700i. Haven't been able to try  Explore Garmin yet but will do so later today.

  • Please post the .gpx you have to the forum here. I am curious as to how the polyline was represented in .gpx. Almost has to be ptseg - but I have never, ever seen a .gpx that uses this construct.

    I suspect that ExpertGPS will allow you to change the type to track. But it's been a while since I used it. And I don't know about the ptseg constructs in general.

  • Here's a link to the file on my Onedrive account since I couldn't find a means to attach it to this post.

    1drv.ms/.../s!AlJ7KP7zoOc9qvhi814SNL32spqNsQ

  • Note the file contains placemarks at front end and you have to scroll down a ways to get to the polylines.

  • This is getting really frustrating. Using explore.garmin.com to import the kmz file seemed to work perfectly. All of my Google Earth placemarks and paths were imported into my library as waypoints and tracks and they display perfectly on both the website and mobile Garmin Explore iOS app. However, the tracks will not sync with the 700i, only the waypoints do. That's after forcing syncs through the website and mobile app with the 700i either paired through Bluetooth or plugged in and running Garmin Express. I haven't gotten into collections, and currently do not fully understand what they do and how they work. Could that be the source of the problem?

  • Could be the collections mess. Or it might be that tracks do not sync to the device. I can't remember about the latter. The last time I looked, activities (as opposed to tracks) NEVER sync to any device.

    The Reader's Digest version of collections.

    Every device has a "primary collection". Anything done on the device (waypoints, tracks, activities, etc.) syncs to this collection. Depending on the device, sync occurs through an appropriate mobile app. For the 7x0i, this is the free Explore app. (Legacy devices still require the use of the wired sync desktop app.)

    Optionally, the device may have one or more "sync-d collections". Things added to these collections are sync-d TO the device on the next sync.

    Manage these things through the Plans & Devices tab at explore.garmin.com. Use the Collections link under the Sync heading (right had side of the pane). This opens a pop-up window where you can actually select the primary and sync-d collections. (There is also a relatively new toggle here for choosing between Sync Everything and Sync Selection. Have not experimented with Sync Everything - but it's likely a bad idea.)

    In typical Garmin fashion, you cannot create collections from the pop-up where you assign them to the device. You must do that from the Map tab, left sidebar, Collections header (which has a + button).

    Note that the real data (waypoint, track, activity, or whatever) exists in the Library. The Library is not a collection. It's a different animal. Collections do not actually contain real data. Instead, they contain "references" or "pointers" to things in the library. (Yeah, I know. Clear as mud.)

    Bottom line: Create two new collections from the map tab - one for primary and one for sync-d data. On the Plans & Devices tab, select the primary and sync-d collections. Sync with the Explore app (first from the web site to the phone then from phone to device). The syncs in the app should happen automatically as long as the device is paired (BT) to the phone, device is on with BT enabled, and the phone has Internet connectivity.

    Some explanatory info on collections exists here:

    https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=2E4OTCbfuV0CK19GZWw179

    In a quick scan, I did not see a definitive list of what is/is not included in the sync. I am reasonably sure that activities do not sync TO the device. I BELIEVE that tracks do sync, but not sure. Routes do sync. However, using the explore web site to convert a track to a route "thins" the points down to some ridiculously low number of points (200, IIRC).

  • As expected, ExpertGPS can convert the shapes to tracks. If nothing else, you can select all the shapes in the list, right-click, and select Convert to Track. This results in a gazillion track segments (one per shape). Don't think there's any easy way to remedy that automatically. Not knowing what I'm looking at, it does not appear that the shapes/tracks can be automatically connected end to end in any sane way.

  • Thank you for all of your work on this issue. I very much appreciate it.

    I have subsequently discovered a workaround. Like I previously said, I can import all of my Google Earth placemarks and paths as waypoints and tracks into Explore Garmin. I just have to add another step. I have to export that data into a GPX file from the Explore website and then drop that file into the GPX folder on the 700i file system and it displays fine. Therefore, this isn't a hardware issue in displaying the tracks but rather a syncing issue that could be with the Explore website, mobile app or both. I'll pursue that with Garmin Support, though I'm not hopeful given the lack of success with that group reported on this forum.

  • That works, too. The whole sync thing as it relates to collections is a work in progress. I can never remember if tracks sync to the device or not. And I usually do it the way you did here - get my .gpx and drop it directly onto the device. That way, I KNOW what happened. The curve ball with your use case was starting with a .gpx containing shapes...