Tracks4Africa
Tracks4Africa is a not-for-profit initiative started by a group of people with the intent to map Africa. Of course various maps of Africa exist but this is a very special map. All roads, tracks and other information are mapped using the recorded GPSr tracks and waypoints from members. The focus is on traveled roads outside of major cities and ecological awareness.
The nice thing about this project is that everyone can participate. All people with a GPSr and travel wherever in Africa can contribute their data to keep the map updated at all times. The result of this work is truly amazing.
On the official website is lots of info about this initiative and you can download a free demo map. Compare that demo map with any other map you have of that area and you will see how detailed and full of information the T4A map is (with the exception of areas with minimal travel activity such as f.i. the Democratic Republic of Congo).
The map does not only display roads, tracks and trails. Information on the state of the roads (potholes, dirt, asphalt etc.) is also displayed.
Information is the name of the game here. The mission is to inform the user. Fuel Stations, ATM’s, Lodges, Campings and a whole range of other information is marked on the map. As this info is very important for individual travelers spending from a few weeks to over a year exploring Africa, this Map is a must have to stay on track.
To get a bigger picture have a look at the T4A layer on Google Earth. How to do this is very well explained on T4A’s website.
If you want to travel Africa and respect the people and nature you should take this project to heart.
T4A can be used with Garmins Mapsource and uploaded to a mapping capable GPSr from Garmin.
T4A can be found at www.tracks4africa.com