- Time of past OR future Camino
- Francés and routes in Andalucia
For those of you who like to use Wikiloc for such things as finding alternative trails that lead to accommodation off the camino or for seeing what trails in an area would allow you to detour around disruptive roadworks, there’s a new way to search called “Search by Passing Area.” (I know many people who are walking well-signed caminos don’t use or need GPX tracks, so the following is meant as an update for readers who do have a need for finding alternate tracks.)
It used to be that you could search for GPX tracks on Wikiloc only by keyword or by the location where a trail began, but their new search tool allows you to center a circle on the search map and find all the trails that pass through that circle. What’s more, you can designate two (or more) circles and find all the trails that pass through both of those areas. (See photo below for an example of tracks through the dune area between Bolonia and Tarifa on the Camino del Estrecho.)
I’ve been playing around with this for a few weeks now and have found it very helpful for finding alternate routes between two points; finding trails to off-camino sites of interest; finding alternatives that avoid long stretches of road-walking; turning linear out-and-back routes into circular routes; finding alternate trails for walking a route in reverse; and finding trails that are harder or easier than my original route, or that go closer to the coast, or that shorten or lengthen a day, etc.
“Search by Passing Area” is part of Wikiloc’s premium membership category for which there is a charge of $9, but to me, it’s been well worth it. (You can still search by keyword or starting point for free.) The feature works on both the computer and the phone app. Wikiloc users have uploaded more than 7 million gpx tracks for Spain and Portugal, often with photos, waypoints, and notes in addition, so there is a lot of helpful information available. Happy searching!
It used to be that you could search for GPX tracks on Wikiloc only by keyword or by the location where a trail began, but their new search tool allows you to center a circle on the search map and find all the trails that pass through that circle. What’s more, you can designate two (or more) circles and find all the trails that pass through both of those areas. (See photo below for an example of tracks through the dune area between Bolonia and Tarifa on the Camino del Estrecho.)
I’ve been playing around with this for a few weeks now and have found it very helpful for finding alternate routes between two points; finding trails to off-camino sites of interest; finding alternatives that avoid long stretches of road-walking; turning linear out-and-back routes into circular routes; finding alternate trails for walking a route in reverse; and finding trails that are harder or easier than my original route, or that go closer to the coast, or that shorten or lengthen a day, etc.
“Search by Passing Area” is part of Wikiloc’s premium membership category for which there is a charge of $9, but to me, it’s been well worth it. (You can still search by keyword or starting point for free.) The feature works on both the computer and the phone app. Wikiloc users have uploaded more than 7 million gpx tracks for Spain and Portugal, often with photos, waypoints, and notes in addition, so there is a lot of helpful information available. Happy searching!
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