On Suunto Ambit2 - Comparison with an Altitude Post

After using my good old Sony GPS-CS3KA for more than 5 years mainly for the GPS track logs and photo-tagging, I finally upgraded to a more functional gadget, namely the Suunto Ambit2. While I wanted to keep the GPS logging alive, I also wanted to learn and record about my heart rate during long hikes (or any other sports) as well as immediate altitude and temperature info. After a little bit of research online, all fingers pointed to Suunto Ambit2 for increased functionality and exceptional battery life for extended adventures. Hence I decided to buy one and did so recently.

So far, I was able to use Ambit2 in several hikes (including our hike to the top of Mt. St. Helens) and bike rides and I can definitely say that GPS logs rendered by Ambit2 are much smoother than those of the Sony GPS-CS3KA. I plan to prepare a comparative post on the GPS log performances but for now I just have the following photo where I hold the Ambit2 next to the altitude post at the peak of King's Mountain in the Tillamook region of Oregon. Note that the post reads 3226 feet which is equal to 983.2 meters making it 5 meters off from the Ambit2's reading of 988 m (in other words Ambit2 reads 3241 ft whereas the post states 3226 feet). I cannot verify the accuracy of the post but 5 meter difference should be okay.

Edit: Approximately one month later, we were in the summit again and I had the chance to record the summit moments with a GoPro.

Larch Mountain Backpacking - Oregon, United States

Larch Mountain Backpacking

We started on Friday around 7 pm and keep walking until the sun set around 8.10. Found a nice camping spot next to the river and setup the tents. Thanks to the tall trees and no moon, the camp site was pitch black making it a different experience. Had our dinner and went to sleep around 10.30 pm. Woke up at 4.30, had breakfast and started walking up. The weather and the trail were nice. There was snow after 3500 ft but it was okay. We reached the Sherard's point at Larch Mountain at 8.30 am. The view was worth the climb. Except Mt. Rainier, all major mountains were visible (Mt. Hood, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. St. Helens and Mt. St Adams)

Mt. Hood from the Larch Mountain Summit

Our camping ground:

Mount St. Helens Walk-up

We started around 6.30 am after camping overnight. After walking continuously around 6 hours we reached the summit around 12.30 pm. We reached back the Marble mountain sno-park at 4.00 pm.

Mount St. Helens Walk-up

Mount Rainier and Mt. St. Helen's Crater Rim

Climbers on the crater rim.

Mt. Rainier and Spirit Lake

Smoke coming from the Mt. St. Helen's crater

Nick Eaton Ridge Hike, Oregon

We reached the trailhead around 6.30 and started to hike around 7 am under 0 celcius. The pipes of the waterpacks got frozen, so needed to use the bottle for the water need. Reached the peak around 9.30 am and started descending until we found a nice spot for the breakfast.

Nick Eaton Ridge Hike

Snowshoeing at Boy Scout Ridge near White River in Mt. Hood

We reached the trailhead around 7.10 am and got prepared. Started to hike around 7.30 am and hiked until 9.00 am. Had our breakfast and head back to trailhead. Mt. Hood was clearly visible when we started but later it was covered with cloud and not visible. GPS machine stopped working after a while so the track is not complete. I tried to complete it myself hence there is no accurate information after 3.5 km of the track.

Snowshoeing - Boy Scout Ridge

 

Wahclella Falls - Highway State Trail Hike

Wahclella Falls - Highway State Trail

Snapshots:
Our GPS log overlayed on Google Earth:

Podgorica-Istanbul Flight

Podgorica-Istanbul Flight

This is recorded during the Turkish Airlines flight (TK1086) from Podgorica, Montenegro to Istanbul, Turkey using my Sony GPS-CS3KA gps tool. With relatively clear skies, I was able to capture snapshots during this short Balkan flight. Right after take off, the plane headed towards Albanian border and flown over the Lake Shkoder. Those sitting on the right side of the plane were lucky enough to clearly see the city of Shkoder and its landmark Rozafa Castle. 

Cape Lookout Hike

This hike was in my to-do-list for a long while, but I was not able to find the time to go and get it done. Finally, today I was able to see it. The best part was that my 1-year old Meryem and 4.5 half year old Omer were with us as well. This was Omer's second and Meryem's first hike. Omer walked all the way by himself and Meryem enjoyed being carried by her mom and dad. As for the trail status, occasionally it was muddy. Except for the very steep cliff on the end of the trail, it is very family friendly and easy paced.

I did geotagging using the Sony GPS-CV3KA and the accuracy was overall satisfactory. I also had my Samsung Google Nexus S geotag using the Google "My Tracks" app. But it was having trouble in getting the GPS satellite connection. So, dedicated GPS machines still seem to perform more accurately than the smartphones (at least from my experience). Below are snapshots of our track overlayed onto Google Earth and maps.

 

Mount St. Helens Trip, Oregon

Mount St. Helens

The famous (or notorious) volcanic eruption of the Mt. St. Helens in 1980 had been on the headlines for a long time. After 31 years, we did a trip to see the landscape ourselves.

Rome-Milan-Zurich with Eurorail

Rome-Milan-Zurich with Eurorail

	On the way to Milan (outbound from Rome) the Eurorail has reached 272 km/h which is the record speed on the ground for myself. The coaches are comfortable enough that it is easy to forget that you are speeding that much.

Sony GPS-CS3 Geo-tagging Performance in Wilson River Trail, Oregon

Last week, I had the chance to go for a short hiking trip on the Tillamook region of Oregon. Specifically, we aimed for the Wilson River Trail. The track was rather narrow so while going back and forth we passed from the same route with a great probability. However, as can be seen in the above snapshots, the geotags for the round trip do not overlap to each other. We can easily see two distinct routes for forward and backward directions. This is kind of disappointing for the performance of the GPS as at some points 5 meters of deviations exist.

Geo-tagging two International Flights on April 24, 2010

Istanbul - Amsterdam flight

Amsterdam - Portland, Oregon flight

GPS Tracking of two consecutive international flights by Sony GPS-CS3. The first flight is from Istanbul to Amsterdam via KLM on April 24, 2010 and the second one is from Amsterdam to Portland, Oregon on the same day via Delta Airlines. As long as the GPS unit is close to the window, it is possible to receive sufficient GPS signals (mostly two bars). However, there are intermittent loss of GPS tracking without any apparent reasons. Also, battery life is a concern for long flights as changing batteries dramatically affects the re-connection to the GPS signals while on the move. I recommend to get connected to the GPS satellites before or during taxiing as well as utilizing a long-life battery.

For another posting on geo-logging, please check the following link:
Sony GPS-CS3KA Review (Geo-tagging) and Performance in the Airplane

Portland-Cannon Beach-Astoria-Columbia River Loop

Portland-Cannon Beach-Astoria Loop

A Day trip to Mount Hood and Columbia Gorge

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Sony GPS-CS3KA Review (Geo-tagging) and Performance in the Airplane

First few minutes of a flight from Long Beach, CA to Portland, OR

Final moments of the same flight while landing to PDX

A successful logging from Paris to Istanbul

I have been using Sony GPS-CS3KA over a year and so far I have been satisfied with it although I wish some of its features were better. One point I would like to note is that it is possible to log your flight routes (of course as well as photos taken along the flight) with this GPS.  It is pretty exciting to see the actual roots taken while flying between cities. However, in my experience, one should sit by the window for satisfactory performance. If the GPS unit is not close to the window, then it is difficult to get connected to the satellites which unfornutaly means no logging. Also, one should make sure that battery employed within the GPS unit is full before the flights (especially the long ones). While airborne, several times I had difficulties in reconnecting to the satellites after I lost connection due to battery change or any other reason.

Flight from Istanbul to Antalya.

For example, in a particular flight from Istanbul (SBH) to Antalya, it was not possible to grab the signal even during the taxiing. However, approximately 20 minutes after getting airborne, the GPS unit was able to connect to the satellites and the resulting route is given in the accompanying figure on the left.

Also, check the below link for two additional international flight:
Geo-tagging two International Flights on April 24, 2010