Lively or Not

Summer 2019 I plan to cross Montana as part of a bike tour from OK to Seattle. My primary navigation will be to follow the route I'm mapping using Ride with GPS. I'll have offline map access there and through maps.me. I'll also print out cue sheets. I've ordered the state highway and bicycle maps and will carry them. I'll carry a decent compass with rotating bezel, etc. I feel reasonably good about managing my planned route - offline electronic mapping, GPS, and paper backups.

But in the moment I might decide to change my route in minor or major ways. So here is my question. Is there a particular resource that is especially useful for navigating rural Montana as a go-to backup when GPS may become flaky? Would those of you in the know say what I'm bringing is adequate for on-the-fly routing by someone new to the area/

Thanks!

308jerry

Title sez Nebraska, post sez Montana.. A good friend told me a few years back when I was looking for a Garmin, he said when I found what I was looking for, not to lose my atlas or my common sense . Holds true today still...... If you end up in Nebraska stop in any little town and ask about the senic route. They'll be plenty.....

halfmile

Lively or Not

Sorry for the state mis-match. I edited the post to correct myself, but could not edit the title or delete the post to start fresh. Thanks for the suggestion, 308jerry!

Lively or Not

I've seen some of those videos. Great stuff. I didn't realize they traveled without a fixed route; I'll definitely have to reach out to him for info on how they managed route decisions day-to-day. Thanks!

rm -rf

GPS is broadcast by satellites, so all you need is a view of the sky to make it work. No cell service required.

You have both downloaded offline maps and paper maps? Very good. If you can handle possible gravel roads, rerouting will work fine.
Do your maps show elevation and terrain? That would help when choosing between alternate roads.

teacherlady

6 years ago, whena I rode across Nebraska as days 2 through 8 of a summer-long bicycle trip, there was an excellent state road map showing road surfaces and number of cars per day or hour (I forget which). I rode with Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska (BRAN). BRAN happened to be starting the day we'd be starting across Nebraska, and we decided it would be easier to join them then compete with them. We had a wonderful time with them. They've been riding across Nebraska every summer for at least 40 years, and have a pretty good catalog of good routes. I would look for archived maps of their routes.

indyfabz

Two pro tips:

1. Check the date of the original post before responding.

2. Read all the posts before responding. (He was asking about Montana, not Nebraska, as corrected above.