[Mikeyyah]

Sometimes when I load a saved route in my Garmin it then calculates a route which goes off the planned route. Sometimes it follows the route half way and then tells to to go off route, eventually getting me to my destination but not following the planned route. I have auto calculate set to off and faster time setting to on. It happens pretty often. 1 out of every 3 times. Any idea as to why this happens?

 

[Yorik]

Try making your route with more waypoints/viapoints. You also have to be strategic about where you place them. I found it best to put them near intersections, but not too near. This will allow the software to recognize that you want to turn at a specific spot, but not u-turn you to send you on the way it thinks is best.

 

[Mikeyyah]

I plan a route on google maps and then transfer it to base camp. Maybe that is the issue? I never tried planning a route through base camp. i find google maps to be easier.

 

[Yorik]

Yup. That's the problem. Dragging your route around in Google maps will insert a waypoint when you drop the route onto another road, but it's the routing algorithm that determines the path it produces. Google and Garmin (and all the others) use their own different algorithms. Google maps also limits the number of waypoints you can have, so it's not that great for custom routes.

Try BaseCamp, like you said, or even MapSource if you can track down an old copy. I hear MapSource is easier to use than BaseCamp. There are also other free resources on the web for route planning, but nothing will be as easy as Google maps. Of course, as you've figured out, there's a price to pay for the easiness.