Does anyone have any experience using Tarmacs? https://tarmacs.app/routes/edit/new

It seems to have some nice bikepacking-relevant features including showing potable water sources and shelters, as well as being able to tinker with the surface and terrain you're after. I've not checked their business model, so they could well be harvesting your kidneys or the like, nor does it have an undo button which is bloody annoying but it may be a good one to add to the mapping toolset.

I use cycle.travel and think it's very decent.

Just had a quick play and it routes you along footpaths and the wrong way down one-way streets, so might need a bit of refining yet

I've been using free site gpx.studio for two or three years for tarmac-related routes. You can choose 'motorbike' for do-not-leave-tarmac options, or 'MTB' for bridleways and 'run/hike' to include footpaths. And it has an undo button.

Looks like a one-man-band (polish guy) entering a very crowded market.

redefined_cycles wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2024 11:28 am I use cycle.travel and think it's very decent.

Dave Barter wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2024 11:57 am Looks like a one-man-band (polish guy) entering a very crowded market.

I use cycle.travel sometimes too. That's also a one-man-band as I understand it. It also has the best loading gif around …



To be honest, I find all of them as good as as they are useless as 'just click and follow' route planners and they rarely generate the route you'd plot manually, but they can all make for a good starting point to tweak, and do like the extra info that this new one seems to provide. I guess there's a lot of common/shared routing tech behind them, graphHopper for eg, then each add their own flavour. It's quite fun to add the same start and end points to various and see how they differ. eg, Kentmere to Coniston: OS vs Komoot vs RideWithGPS vs cycle.travel vs Tarmacs. I've just added a blog post to collate these: https://cycling.hypertelia.com/cycle-ro ... g-services

You are exactly right in my view Hyppy. I'm a massive cycnic about auto-route creation and we are building a product designed to make it easier for people to share routes and directions https://geovey.co.uk. Our work is targeted at walking trails at the moment and we don't plan to go near cycling as the route planner sites have them covered.

cycle.travel have invested a lot in their router but under the covers, it's Dijkstra with some custom costs/rules for cycling. Strava have so much data that their route planner should rule above all else, it's not bad but it still doesn't do it for me. I prefer plotting on top of OS maps. I built a prototype route planning package aimed at off-road riders but had to abandon it as the OS license fees are designed to tell small operators like me to do one.

It's quite fun to add the same start and end points to various and see how they differ. eg, Kentmere to Coniston: OS vs Komoot vs RideWithGPS vs cycle.travel vs Tarmacs. I've just added a blog post to collate these: https://cycling.hypertelia.com/cycle-ro ... g-services

looking at all the options that came up on there, the Cycle.travel option is the most cycle friendly. some of the other options are pretty crap.
i have used the Cycle.travel app both home and abroad, and it is by far the best. it tends to keep you off busy roads. IMHO.............

ton wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2024 5:12 pm some of the other options are pretty crap.

I liked Komoot suggesting Garburn Pass as 'bike touring' friendly and 'suitable for all skill levels'. That's gonna be a rude awakening for someone.

suggesting Garburn Pass as 'bike touring' friendly and 'suitable for all skill levels'

i could have cried going over Garburn on the winter Jennride. it was just horrible.

Komoot loves to stick you on footpaths too - it doesn’t seem to distinguish that well between the different rights of way.

I've just added a blog post to collate these:

Looks like one decided up and over garburn was the best way... Its not the way i would go

I use Komoot, and generally find it pretty decent. Bonus points that it mates seamlessly to my Wahoo. Some acquaintances raved about RideWithGPS, but I found it clunky and frustrating.

Komoot can’t seem to tell the difference between a bridleway and a footpath. Easy to use though.