Guide to using GPX files
Files in GPX (GPs eXchange) format are available to download for routes organised by the Club des Cent Cols. As the GPX format is by definition non-proprietary and not associated with any particular type of software or GPS receiver, you will need to use the documentation for your equipment or software to use these files.
Note: some software (such as BaseCamp) allows you to permanently store points such as passes in the form of route points (waypoints). If you use specific symbols for the passes (for example, to distinguish between passes already completed and those still to be completed), then you run the risk of overwriting these symbols when you import a track or route containing passes with the same name. To avoid this, it can be useful to import only the track without the route points (waypoints).
Two types of GPX file are provided and their use depends on the capacity and functions of your GPS receiver. Some older devices can store several tracks, but each track must contain a maximum of around 500 points. More recent devices, on the other hand, can manage trails with a higher number of points. You therefore have ZIP files containing either GPXs with all the points available, or GPXs limited to 500 points. All you have to do is choose the type that suits your needs. For use on a computer with mapping software, there is no need to limit the number of points to 500.
For the most recent routes, multiple files are now also available. With this option, the main route is one file and the options (round trips, additional loops) are separate files. This means that, once loaded onto a GPS, the different parts can be distinguished by different colours. To use this version with several files per route, simply select "GPX multiple".
GPX files are available compressed in a ZIP file. Once downloaded, GPX files must be extracted from their ZIP file. Computers with recent operating systems are able to open a ZIP file directly as if it were a folder from which you can extract the files contained. Otherwise, you can always use compression and decompression software, such as 7ZIP (free).