Your GPS Could Be Leading You Into Trouble

Above, on the Million Dollar Highway in Colorado. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Whenever I am on an RV road trip, I take routes that are easily mapped.

I keep a RV road atlas in my motorhome and check routes with it before even leaving the driveway. After doing that, I use the free Google Maps app on my phone. I have never encountered any problems of any major consequence. One gitch was that a friend and I were using Google Maps to go to a restaurant but the directions were goofed up and we ended up circling around a Houston airport parking lot. We never found the restaurant.

There are some people who have encountered major glitch errors with the GPS system they're using. 

That is the topic of an article in RV Travel. 

They begin with:

Most RVers trust their RV GPS navigation. They also have at least one story about it being spectacularly wrong. Maybe it routed you toward a low bridge, down a dead-end road or to the back gate of a campground instead of the office. Chances are you caught the mistake before it became an expensive lesson. Not everyone does.

A recent highway closure involving a commercial truck that apparently followed GPS directions onto an unsuitable route is another reminder that navigation apps are remarkably helpful—but they aren’t perfect. While truck drivers have wrestled with bad GPS routing for years, RVers face many of the same challenges.

To read more, go here. 

Major Google Maps Update

Above, the motorhome at Arches National Park Visitor Center. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

During my vacation in July to Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota and Utah, I made good use out of Google maps. I also made good use out of a paper road atlas.

That wasn't the app version, but the one available to anyone online. 

For those who use the app version, there will be major updates coming, some of which could "doom" trip planner apps.

From RV Travel:

The day of paying for an app to help you plan your trip’s route or find places and services along the road may soon be over.

Google is rolling out a major update to its Google Maps that uses artificial intelligence to make it easier for RVers and other motorists to navigate unfamiliar towns, find fuel or groceries near a campground or safely guide a large rig through tight turns and avoid routes with low bridges. And it won’t cost a penny.

The upgrades come from integrating Google’s Gemini AI directly into maps, adding smarter voice assistance, more intuitive directions, and better on-the-ground exploration tools. It’s GPS on steroids.

To read more, go here. 

Gallup's Coal Avenue: Then & Now

The El Rancho Hotel's Facebook page posted the following images originally posted by Avi Wolf:

According to Wolf:

Route 66 Truck (now just Coal Ave) in Gallup NM facing East, then (from a late 50's/ early 60's postcard) and now (from Google Maps).

The Chief Theater at left (now gone) was once owned by R.E. Griffith, brother of the famed Hollywood director D.W. Griffith.

Downtown Gallup looked like a thriving town back then with colorful business signs along the boulevard. Today, it looks drab with the signs gone.  

Above, the main lobby of the El Rancho Hotel. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Along with the aforementioned Chief Theater, R. E. Griffith built the El Rancho Hotel in Gallup in 1936 that opened in 1937 as a base for Hollywood movie productions. The El Rancho is open today and visitors to Gallup should stop in and take a look at their collection of movie star photographs on the second floor of the hotel's lobby.

"Adventures of Superman" Plaque Today

Here's a look at the Adventures of Superman plaque as it is today according to Google Maps.

When we had the plaque dedicated in August 2014, it was a few feet north of where it is now. The homeowner felt this would be a better location for it (I agree) and it was better anchored into the ground when it was relocated.

Here's a photo taken by the Los Angeles Daily News at the dedication:

The plaque when I picked it up at the monument company:

Thanks to Paul McCall for the Google Maps photo!

For more on the plaque, here's its page on The Historical Marker Database.

Get A Soaking In Tokyo

Above, a communal bath in Tokyo. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

An enterprising gent in Tokyo has compiled a list of Japanese public baths (sentos) in the Tokyo area.

According to Japan Today:

TOKYO —Public baths, or sento, as they’re called in Japanese, used to be an ubiquitous part of Japanese cityscapes. Since the 1950s, though, infrastructure advancements have made private bathing facilities a part of almost every modern residence in Japan, and as a result the number of operating sento has been steadily declining. 

After taking a long look at the writing on the wall, some public baths have decided to call it quits and convert themselves into other sorts of businesses. However, there’s been an uptick in sento interest recently, with some young adults being drawn to their retro atmosphere and the affordable luxury of a quick soak without having to travel out of the urban environment. 

So to make speedy sento forays more convenient, Japanese Twitter user @mangetsu1129 began compiling a list of all the sento, super sento (larger-scale public baths), day-use hot springs, and saunas in Tokyo.

The list is now complete and available for viewing at Google Maps. Go here to see it.

To read more, go here.

Godzilla Via Satellite

Above, a satellite view of Kurihama Flower World. Can you spot the Godzilla slide?

The other night, I was looking up something in Yokosuka, Japan. After I was done finding what I was looking for, I decided (for the fun of it) to see if I can get a satellite view of the Godzilla slide at the Kurihama Flower World park.

Sure enough, once I located the park through Google Maps, I zoomed in on the park and hit the satellite view feature and was able to find the Godzilla slide pretty fast.

Above, a little closer view. The Godzilla slide casts a familiar-shaped shadow.

As you can see from the accompanying satellite photographs, Godzilla was relatively easy to spot by his distinctive shadow. The overhead power lines that I knew were there were also an aid to finding the Godzilla slide.

Above, zooming in on the Godzilla slide.

In the photographs, it is easy to spot the shadow image of his dorsal spikes and tail.

Above, a view of the Godzilla slide from the ground. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

If Godzilla were a real creature and the Japanese Self Defense Forces had to find him via satellite, this would be what they would likely see to pinpoint where to direct their weapons.

The Godzilla slide is covered in The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan on page 32.