Scattered throughout our biketrail.blog website are links to Google Maps. They generally appear at the top of a trail page. These provide riders with a map of the trails and also provide directions to or from the trail and help you to ride the trails. Using maps successfully is important to cyclists as on-track signage can be less than adequate. Here is a sample of a map link
Map of ride to see the Opera House (Sydney Map) >>
How to use maps on mobile
If you want a general view of where the trails that we have mapped are, go to the big map to get an overall view. For example, let’s use the large Australia bike trail map as show in Figure 1. While this map doesn’t show the directions of all of the trails, it does give a general idea of the good trails are and also can provide a link to a detailed sub-map.
Here is the link to all the trails on the Google Maps (Australian Trails Map) >>
Note: it is highly recommended to have Google Maps installed on your device .
Now you’re viewing the big Google maps, zoom into the place you want to go. Let’s use Sydney as an example. Pick a trail in a location you are interested in riding in marked using the purple bike (figure 2) , or alternatively use the green marker to find more detailed sub-maps of that section of Sydney with more trails and path detail (figure 3).
Once you’ve picked a trail, you’ll most likely want to know how to get there. Google Maps has inbuilt directions, GPS and voice navigation features which are useful for planning and using your commute. You can access these directions by long tapping the place where (or near) where you want to start the trail, this should place a pin on that location. Once you’ve placed that pin, you can press the navigation/directions button. If you want voice navigation and live GPS, there is a start button at the bottom right of your screen to activate it (figure 4).
Most trails are fairly straightforward to follow but you can get extra assistance in navigating a trail after you have arrived at your starting point (figure 5). The process is the same, place a pin on the end of the trail (or wherever you want to stop or turn around), choose directions and Google will assist you to find your way there. Use Bike maps rather than car or public transport for this. More fun is knowing where North is and keeping an eye on the blue dot as it shows you where you are.
Google Maps on PC
As a general rule, it’s better to plan a ride on a bigger screen, particularly a Windows PC. If you have a Google account and an android phone, the experience is the best as you can view a map on the PC and then use the Google Maps app on the android phone. When you do this, the last trails you looked should be provided as a background layer to the mapping app.
Notes: You can look at recent maps using “Your Places” in Google Maps as in figure 6. You then find the Maps at the right hand side. On a phone this generally is not obvious but it is there. Then choose the map you want as in figure 7. Otherwise, you can return to a map using www.biketrail.blog
Retrieving a Google MyMaps on Android
If you can’t see the map as a background in standard google maps on a phone, choose
- Your Profile (as per pic 1 below).
- Now choose Saved
- Now choose Explore Maps
- Choose your map Sydney or Australian Cycling Trails
- This should make the map visible. But if you touch the screen and it returns to the list of maps, press Explore (as per last picture)
Just be sure to not use your phone while riding – pull off the trail and take your time “
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