Fenix 6X Pro - why do my GPS tracks have straight line sections?

Ah, yes, good point, that might be a consideration too. I have only ever used ‘Walk’, never ‘Hike’ or ‘Climb’.

I've been using 'Navigate' and that was generating straight-line sections. I did wonder if the different activities might use a different algorithm however you'd hope that 'every second' meant every second whichever activity you're using. I was out for about 5 hours today in the Lakes. I was tracking with 4 GPS devices at once. I'll see how they compare over the weekend.

I'll try and replicate Anders tests at some point and report back here. I really want accurate tracks off my 6X. I think the GNSS receiver is generating a perfectly good location, the watch just needs to write the trackpoints to the FIT file.

PS. Glad I'm not the only OSM fan :-)  Up in Scotland there are lots of OSM paths on the high ground that are unmarked on the OS 1:25k maps, even in honey pot areas like Glencoe, Ben Nevis and the Mamores.

I have the same problem when climbing mountains at slow speed with my F6x Sapphire. And I tested F5x and Venu 2 at such slow speeds and they never showed this problem. So it is clearly a software bug, which can be solved. See this thread for details: forums.garmin.com/.../fenix-6x-sapphire-does-not-uptade-gps-position-when-ascending

And just in case check if "Lock on road" feature is off.

Thanks for that Dima. I am also a mountain climber which is why I bought the watch.  To discover that it can't track me properly is very disappointing and has to be a cockup on Garmins part.  It sounds like slow movement is the key and that tallies with the straight-line sections in my tracks. I've got straight-lining on uphill and downhill sections but they tend to be where for one reason or another, I was going slowly. eg Tricky ground or carrying a heavy backpack uphill.

I've switched off 'lock on road' and anything else that might interfere with the track recording.

I've just discovered that Garmins BaseCamp software will open a FIT file and allows you to examine every single trackpoint and its associated data.

I've made a picture of a tracking error here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/SJaG9uqDfr3H9rJVA
The picture shows the straight line on the map, the FIT file data and a photo of the section I was climbing. I was slowly climbing a snowy/iced ridge and the track straight-lined. You can see the evenly spaced points the watch records. It's obviously wrong. My speed jumps from 0.5km/hr to 35km/hr

It would be hard to be under a more open sky and I'm certain the GNSS receiver would be able to see plenty of satellites. I was using it in multi-GNSS mode. My smartphone and Garmin eTrex 20x have tracked these kinds of sections no problem at all. 

The Garmin support article you linked to could be straight out of a comedy sketch. Garmin said  "To avoid this, increase movement speed so position updates more quickly."  Errr no, I think I'll take it steadily thanks!  Fixing the bug would be a much better solution.

I am in the Lake District and have never seen these straight lines - I usually walk around Keswick. Buttermere / Crummock Water area but if you on the fells generally GPS conditions are pretty much ideal.

This is a recent super slow hike with a family member in their 80s so it wasn't speedy! I should say I never seem to see these bizarre problems some people do, so maybe I am not the ideal person to respond, but with several hundred miles and way over 100 walks in the Lake District, I've never had a problem with my GPS tracks. It's very strange!

Thanks for caring. Can you share the original FIT file with me so I can examine the individual trackpoints please? That screenshot is no use for checking the track detail. I agree with you. GNSS reception is nearly always perfect in the Lake District. I think it's a firmware issue or similar not a reception problem.

What settings do you use on your Fenix 6X? Just checking that you are using a 6X?

Sure - here is the .FIT from that activity above: https://1drv.ms/u/s!AlVHIini1UNhwQbKYTEuPcOLJWt1?e=IBewf4

I am using a 6 Pro, not a 6x. Sorry I missed that the thread was about the 6x.

I use GPS + Glonass, Auto Climb Off / 3d Speed Off / 3d Distance Off / Auto Pause Off / 1s recording

That's great. I've got that thanks. As you reported, I couldn't find any of the odd sections that my watch is recording but my tracks have much longer sections where the 'leg speed' is very low. Dunno if that's responsible yet. I also don't know if the 6 uses different hardware to the 6X.

Thanks for the settings info.....pretty much the same here although my FIT files don't include 'heart rate' and 'cadence' which I note yours does. I doubt that has anything to do with the differences....

Thanks for your help. I've now sent one example to Garmin to see what they say. Here: photos.app.goo.gl/oqnf6znuJbgExfYq8

sis651 said:

Strava heat maps imagery on JOSM

Wow, I didn’t know it was possible to edit OSM data with a Strava Heatmaps layer. I will have to check this out. Do you have to do anything special to see this?

Hi. On JOSM just find and enable Strava heatmap imagery in imagery provider settings. Maybe ID has that imagery option, too.