Google Earth Navigates Backcountry

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ech savvy hikers rejoice! Google Earth has added GPS-based interactive hiking information. From the Google blog:

Trimble Outdoors has partnered with Google to provide Google Earth viewers with GPS-based interactive hiking information. We’re very excited about being able to share all the great GPS content we’ve developed over the years and through partnerships with magazines including Backpacker, Bicycling and Mountain Bike. It’s an outstanding resource for outdoors enthusiasts, or really, anyone who wants to do a little research before setting out on a hike. You can access lots of multimedia info on fitness and outdoor adventures, including routes, points of interest, pictures, video segments and even audio clips. Essentially, anytime, anywhere you can launch Google Earth, you can view hundreds of hikes that have already been logged and completed, and view personalized web content.

I’m actually pretty excited about this, I’ve used Trimble’s website before, but the GPS overlays didn’t seem to be available to non-Trimble subscribers. So I had to settle for the free map previews. Indeed, the last wilderness backpacking trip I took was navigated using a monochrome printout map from Trimble overlayed with red ink and augmented by handwritten notes. The contour lines were unintelligible and I had to trace the route several times in order to make it clear.