Messy traces

Some of my GPS traces end with the last few track points joined in the wrong order leading to a zig-zag trace over the editing screen. I understand you can’t delete any of your traces, which is a shame as they must mess things up for others - although in fact the points can still be used for mapping. I use GPS Utility for downloading from my GPS, which is a Garmin Etrex. Why does this happen and is there any way I can avoid it?:rolleyes:

The Etrex does not add timestamps to the data which causes the lines to zigzag. The OSM software needs the timestamps to determine the order in which the dots are connected. Best option is to add dummy timestamps using the GPSBabel tool. Unfortunately the tracks without timestamps cannot be deleted and reuploaded as that option is missing on the website…

Thanks for this. In fact it looks as if the Active Logs on the Etrex do have timestamps that they lose once saved, which fits with the fact that my worst problems were from saved tracks.