Course points (Waypoints?) displayed during courses?

I don't remember offhand exactly what is shown on the watch, but you can add waypoints (I too forget what name Garmin uses) using Basecamp. I do this mostly to give the watch something to use for the auto-calibrate elevation from waypoint feature, so I don't really look for them on the map. 

I believe that the Garmin Explore Android app should also be able to add them, but I mostly had problems using that app so I just stick to Basecamp, which is old and ugly, but does get the job done without any fuss. 

Garmin Connect on desktop has the option to 'add course point' when you are editing/creating a course. You can name these points and set the icon. I am going to test it tonight to see if the watch will show distance to next waypoint as it will be useful for showing the checkpoints in an ultra I have next week.

I tried that last night on a course I plotted. I had two waypoints recorded as summits with custom text names. I received no alerts or distance to information.

Let me know how you get on please. 

I've just read into it a bit more and it seems that if you use garmin connect then it will also add lots of invisible waypoints for the turn by turn instructions. A solution seems to be to import the route into plotaroute.com and then add the waypoints there. Then export that as a .FIT file and manually copy onto the watch in the newfiles folder. I'll give this a go later and let you know if it works.

Thanks. Will that upload to the watch as an activity instead of a course?

Thanks and looking forward to your findings. 

Yep thats what I do. And as a bonus, you can add extra TBT points, and points to display on the map, using the PlotARoute method

Sounds perfect! Out of interest how would you follow an activity as a course in this instance? I’m used to just uploading a course from GC then choosing my Trail Run activity then the course I want to follow.

Thanks. 

It's exactly the same. Once the watch is disconnected the file is made into a course you select via Trail Run as usual

You can see how remote an area it was, even with the UK Topo LIght maps there's nothing there but contour lines!

What I also found useful for Aid stops is that if you can get a precise location for them, save them as Saved Locations on your watch (Garmin Basecamp is good for this) and then setup alerts when you're <1Km from them :)