Forum Discussion

CA_Traveler's avatar
CA_Traveler
Explorer III
Jul 03, 2015

Elevation and Routing

I was looking for an app to give me elevations along a driving route and this free app posted on another board does exactly that.

Website click.

Example


Select your route the click on the Get Elevation tab. It may take a minute or so to display the elevations. There are various other options for this Google based app like hiking trails, directions and exporting elevation data.

The above picture shows an elevation of 11,900 feet for the Eisenhower tunnel which is 11,300. The app displays terrain elevations so they will be higher on tunnels and lower on bridges. Try the Golden Gate Bridge and it will show 0 feet, a wet ride at high tide? :B I really like this free app.
Roads and Routes

10 Replies

  • CA_Traveler's avatar
    CA_Traveler
    Explorer III
    Jul 04, 2015
    Thanks, There are some nice features in Google Earth. Here I've zoomed in to the tunnel.

  • oldcat1's avatar
    oldcat1
    Explorer
    Jul 04, 2015
    I use Google Earth. Use the get directions function. Once the route is displayed, right click on the blue route line. Elevation graph is displayed below the map. You can use the mouse to move along the elevation graph and an arrow follows along the route on the map above. This way you can see the elevation at any point along the route.

    Safe travels.
  • lbrjet's avatar
    lbrjet
    Explorer
    Jul 04, 2015
    I use the $5 app called Topo Profiler on my IPad. Well worth the money and you can save up to 10 routes.
  • Nunyadamn's avatar
    Nunyadamn
    Explorer
    Jul 03, 2015
    paulj wrote:
    While an elevation graph like this can be handy, it is easy to find the information on the maps themselves. Just turn on terrain mode, and zoom in to the desired level of detail

    For example the area around the tunnel, at a zoom that shows elevation contours, ski runs, and US6 zig zags over the ridge while I70 goes straight through the tunnel. And for greatest detail go to streetview.

    https://goo.gl/maps/IXry0

    You can even get streetview images of the ski runs.


    All true, but working the map for long distances this way would take a long time. I have done this when I want to know what the elevation of a specific location, but when traveling letting the plot run first is the easiest/fastest. My guess is not everyone knows of either way to do it (terrain mode/plotting elevation) or think of it ahead of time.
  • paulj's avatar
    paulj
    Explorer II
    Jul 03, 2015
    While an elevation graph like this can be handy, it is easy to find the information on the maps themselves. Just turn on terrain mode, and zoom in to the desired level of detail

    For example the area around the tunnel, at a zoom that shows elevation contours, ski runs, and US6 zig zags over the ridge while I70 goes straight through the tunnel. And for greatest detail go to streetview.

    https://goo.gl/maps/IXry0

    You can even get streetview images of the ski runs.
  • Nunyadamn's avatar
    Nunyadamn
    Explorer
    Jul 03, 2015
    This is a good option. I was using GPS visualizer, but since google changed their setup to ridiculously bad it has not worked.
  • CA_Traveler's avatar
    CA_Traveler
    Explorer III
    Jul 03, 2015
    The author has a blog and appears to be receptive to improvements. I'd like to be able to save and reuse a configuration. And adjusting the vertical scale on the elevation chart would be nice. So I may get a login and make those suggestions.

    You can also mouse over the elevation chart and get distance/elevation and click to set a point on the map.
  • toedtoes's avatar
    toedtoes
    Explorer III
    Jul 03, 2015
    Thanks. That's a nice app since you can check ANY road. Will keep it handy.

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