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04-27-2016, 03:28 PM
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#1
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: West of the Mississippi
Posts: 17,259
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Good USA Road Atlas
As much as I like and use online mapping apps, there are times when I want to spread out a physical map on the table and plot my route so as I can get a feel for the distance relationships between places. It's also nice to see what else is nearby and worth a stop.
Can anybody recommend a current USA Road Atlas that is accurate and easy to use? It would be nice if a state could be seen entirely on two pages, with detailed maps on other pages if necessary. Spiral bound would be nice but is not necessary.
Or maybe I should just bet a number of plain old ordinary maps, state by state and/or region by region??
What are your thoughts?
__________________
Comparison is the thief of joy
The worst decisions are usually made in times of anger and impatience.
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04-27-2016, 03:46 PM
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#3
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 216
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I use a Rand McNally large print atlas. Started the large print in the last couple of years It has the state maps and small insert maps of large cities. I prefer reading an atlas and planning a trip it.
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04-27-2016, 03:54 PM
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#4
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Northern Illinois
Posts: 16,599
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I just picked up the Rand McNally 2016 road atlas at Walmart. Not spiral bound, but has the states on 1-2 pages each with detail pages of the cities.
I'm still going to get some state maps for the states I need better detail on.
I like having the atlas for general planning and detailed maps for when we hit the road.
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04-27-2016, 03:57 PM
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#5
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Texas: No Country for Old Men
Posts: 50,021
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ronstar
I like having the atlas for general planning and detailed maps for when we hit the road.
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^ This is the best solution. I've never seen a commercially available atlas with the detail available on individual state maps - probably due to weight limitations.
__________________
Numbers is hard
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04-27-2016, 03:59 PM
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#6
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Rio Grande Valley
Posts: 38,140
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Road Atlas? What's that
__________________
Retired since summer 1999.
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04-27-2016, 04:33 PM
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#7
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Spending the Kids Inheritance and living in Chicago
Posts: 17,093
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Even though I have a great GPS , at times I also feel like I'm driving blind as I have no idea where in the world I'm currently at relative to other things.
So far my solution has been to stop at the Welcome Center and pick up a State map to keep in the car.
I do plan trips on the computer at home to get a very high level view of where we will be travelling and adjust to see sites or avoid cities.
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04-27-2016, 05:48 PM
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#9
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: New Orleans
Posts: 47,500
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+1
I keep an old Rand McNally atlas in my car, in case the interstates are jammed and I need to use the back roads during a hurricane evacuation. Otherwise I just never travel far enough to get lost.
Honestly I haven't used it for over ten years. It was a pretty decent atlas for the time, IIRC. I am not familiar with any other type of atlas.
I have an iPhone now so that's another option in case I get lost on a hurricane evacuation. Never had or used a GPS. Never go anywhere unfamiliar enough that I would get lost, normally.
If I wanted to plan a trip (I don't!), I'd just do it on my laptop using Google maps. That gives me a lot more access to information about things I might see along the way, than my old atlas would.
Re-reading this post, my life probably sounds SO boring to most people! It isn't to me but it sure sounds that way. Oh well!
__________________
Already we are boldly launched upon the deep; but soon we shall be lost in its unshored, harbourless immensities. - - H. Melville, 1851.
Happily retired since 2009, at age 61. Best years of my life by far!
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04-27-2016, 06:23 PM
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#10
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 3,413
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Quote:
Originally Posted by braumeister
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Looks like the 2017 edition was released 10 days ago. Time for a trip to B&N, as I need one I can actually read for the car.
http://www.amazon.com/McNally-Large-...85BBB3SVWTN5D4
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04-27-2016, 07:43 PM
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#11
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 1,089
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DW has map phobia. I used to use yellow marker on the map and use post-it stickers to show points on interest and destination. This was still generated a lot of frustration and tears.
Today, I just ask her to enter next point of interest in her iphone and let it tell us how to get there. No more tears.
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04-27-2016, 08:15 PM
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#12
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2008
Location: No fixed abode
Posts: 8,765
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The atlas is a great resource to have, but I still prefer having local maps, at least in biggish cities where the traffic can be unpredictable. Being able to pull over and find alternate routes is so much easier than trying to convince a GPS to tell you where to go. Technology is great, but sometimes analog still kicks @ss.
__________________
"Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement." - Anonymous (not Will Rogers or Sam Clemens)
DW and I - FIREd at 50 (7/06), living off assets
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04-27-2016, 09:07 PM
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#13
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 13,143
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Brings back memories of owning the big Rand McNally atlas.
Then afterwards, using Delorme or Microsoft Streets and Trips software to print out pages and pages of turn by turn maps...so high tech at that time .
__________________
Have you ever seen a headstone with these words
"If only I had spent more time at work" ... from "Busy Man" sung by Billy Ray Cyrus
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04-28-2016, 06:02 AM
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#14
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 2,009
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We've used Next Exit for years. Very good companion if you drive interstates frequently.
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You do not have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.
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04-29-2016, 12:12 PM
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#15
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Spending the Kids Inheritance and living in Chicago
Posts: 17,093
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Quote:
Originally Posted by harley
The atlas is a great resource to have, but I still prefer having local maps, at least in biggish cities where the traffic can be unpredictable. Being able to pull over and find alternate routes is so much easier than trying to convince a GPS to tell you where to go. Technology is great, but sometimes analog still kicks @ss.
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My new GPS (retails about $450) is bigger and generally much better than the old one.
However, when I miss a turn, the old one would complain "re-calculating" and this would allow me the chance to stop, backup/u-turn and fix the issue.
This new one just lets me miss a turn and later says "turn x in x distance" as if nothing wrong has happened.
Makes me look smarter
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04-29-2016, 12:35 PM
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#16
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Northern Illinois
Posts: 16,599
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DW's friends put this map together for their last trip planning. Then rolled it up and took it with them for navigation. Worked perfectly.
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05-03-2016, 08:16 AM
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#17
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 3,083
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People still use an actual paper road atlas? That is so old school.
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05-03-2016, 11:15 AM
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#18
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Charleston, SC
Posts: 13,566
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I have and use a Rand McNally USA atlas. Not only is it helpful for finding campgrounds, points of interest, and potentially interesting alternate routes, it is also a great time waster on long trips without much to do. I am a map lover, though, and never tire of flipping through to look at states I've yet to see, or remember ones I've been to.
I collect country maps from all of our trips and also have a huge wall map full of pins detailing our travels.
__________________
“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it's worth watching.”
Gerard Arthur Way
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05-03-2016, 01:26 PM
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#19
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 8,368
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarah in SC
and also have a huge wall map full of pins detailing our travels.
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We have a full size interactive map of the world right outside our door.
__________________
"Exit, pursued by a bear."
The Winter's Tale, William Shakespeare
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05-03-2016, 01:28 PM
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#20
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Charleston, SC
Posts: 13,566
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Yeah but it is hard to see some of those faraway places from the porch!
__________________
“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it's worth watching.”
Gerard Arthur Way
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