'Cross-Use of Garmin'

I have various Topo maps on my Nuvi 50lm that I've used on 4wd trails up in the Colorado mountains around Silverton, Durango, etc.

But, some are not all that accurate. If I was biking I'd be careful.

I wouldn't recommend a nuvi for Mountain biking ... not waterproof or shock resistant and the battery life is not adequate.

One alternative (although expensive) is the Garmin Montana handheld. With the automotive cradle and City Navigator map add-on, it has a nuvi mode for on-road travel.

Probably the best solution though is to have her keep the Edge for biking and get her a nuvi for use in the car.

By all means resist the temptation to be trendy, particularly a solution that is dependent on-grid telco cell tower data/tracking & further expensive subscriptions. One of the Garmin handheld hikers (GPS+GLONASS), equipped w/GPSFileDepot topos, OSM, & perhaps free internet trails/maps available on Google Earth or other known web sites. (Choice however would be eTrex30).

User skills might including mashing scanned paper maps w/GE GPS coordinates & then loading them onto the etrex. (Use a modest 5" Nuvi to get to the parking location, then the handheld once you are out of the vehicle.)

Here are some resource links:

http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/
http://garminoregon6xx.wikispaces.com/Maps
http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Garmin/eTrex_30
http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/

I’ve loaded topo maps on many of my Nuvi’s using Garmin’s Mapsource and Mapinstall programs. For the most part, they work well. I’m not sure about routable maps on an Edge though. IMO, the screen size on most handhelds is a bit small for automotive use.

I loaded topos on my Nuvi 855 and used it on my mountain bike for a couple of seasons. The 855 has a replaceable battery and I got around the short battery life problem by carrying spares. The big problem is the screen brightness which isn’t adequate for direct sunlight. The Nuvi’s also don’t have the customizable screens that the handhelds do so it is difficult to keep track of distance, time and elevation changes.

I never had a problem with the 855 caused by vibration but I don’t ride severe trails. As alandb said, Nuvi’s aren’t designed for use in extreme environments so I would use caution.

I eventually spent the $$ and bought a Montana which is ideal for biking. The Oregon series also works well but I find the screen a bit small to read on the fly.

Your daughter needs a Montana and I have one for sale.

PM me if interested.

Although old, is waterproof and has modes for biking and boating as well as walking and driving. The problem I have is that bike mounts for the unit suck. I broke one on a road. Not even very bumpy... The battery lasts for hours. Even now, about 5 years later. It's also replaceable, so carrying a spare is an option. Most trails are well defined though, so using a handheld and referring to it at intersections would be the better choice.

My two cents.

I’ve busted a few mounts myself in the past until I tried the RAM mount system. For the 500, you need a cradle:
http://www.gpscity.com/ram-mount-garmin-nuvi-500-series-crad...

A ball :
http://www.gpscity.com/ram-mount-diamond-plate-with-1-inch-b...

A handlebar mount:
http://www.gpscity.com/ram-mount-zinc-u-bolt-motorcycle-moun...

And a clamp:
http://www.gpscity.com/ram-mount-plastic-short-arm-b-socket-...

A bit pricey to start but if you get a new GPSr, all you need is a new cradle. Most are < $10. All the other parts are reusable.

I’ve used this RAM bike mount with a half dozen different GPSr’s over the last 7 years with no problems whatsoever.

She needs a Montana.

I have one for sale, includes 2 Li-on batteries, USB cord, bike mount, 12 VDC powered automotive mount with speaker and charges the battery in the Montana.

PM if interested.

If by ripped off is meant stolen, then aside from which technology works, I would also be going over best practices for minimizing the threat of loss of property with my daughter.

My experience is that with tech items(cell phones, gps, etc), being such temptations to be stolen, to be simply replacing an expensive lost or stolen item without addressing possible safeguards does little to minimize the frequency of a recurrence.

Just another thought on this issue

...at papalpha at gmail dot com