Ben C. needs help converting offshore and deep-sea fishing spots from an Excel spreadsheet into GPS coordinates he can convert to a .USR data file for his Lowrance GPS. Here's how to import and download Excel data to your GPS using ExpertGPS:

Ben contacted me because ExpertGPS wouldn't accept the latitudes and longitudes in his Excel spreadsheet. They are in a non-standard format, with two decimal points. Looking carefully, you can tell that these are actually degrees and minutes of lat/long, with a decimal point used between the degrees and minutes, rather than a space, or a degrees symbol. ExpertGPS can extract coordinates out of just about any format, but I had to modify ExpertGPS to accept this data. Download version 3.09 (or later) of ExpertGPS mapping software to convert this data.

Before copying and pasting the coordinate data from Excel into ExpertGPs, I followed these instructions for adding a new coordinate format to ExpertGPS, and selected degrees and minutes (hddd mm.mmmmm) and the WGS84 datum.

Importing the Excel fishing waypoints

I copied the three columns of data from Excel, starting on the second line since the first line contained a title that spanned all three columns. ExpertGPS wants to see actual data (or a header row) on the first line of the pasted data. I selected degrees and minutes, WGS84 datum.

On the second page of the ExpertGPS Import Text Wizard, I matched up the columns of data from Excel with the columns in ExpertGPS. Click Next, then Finish, and ExpertGPS displays a map of your GPS fishing spots, as shown below.

Sending Fishing Waypoints to your Lowrance GPS

To transfer your fishing spots to your GPS receiver, click Send to GPS on the GPS menu. If you haven't yet told ExpertGPS which GPS receiver you're using, click Preferences on the Edit menu, and add your Lowrance GPS, as shown here. Because this GPS uses a MMC/SD data card, you'll be prompted to save a .USR file to your GPS memory card containing all of your fishing hotspots and waypoints.

Learn More about Fishing and Boating with ExpertGPS

To learn more about using ExpertGPS to map out fishing spots or to upload and download data from your Lowrance or Garmin chartplotter or GPS, read the Fishing and Boating tutorials on this site, or Ask the GPS Expert if you need help transferring waypoints, tracks, or routes to and from your boat's GPS.

Jani asks:
If we are using e.g. Lowrance LCX series plotters, can we export depth data as well as coordinates? Or is this something we can do (to a text file) with Lowrance's own software?

Your Lowrance LCX-series GPS chartplotter records depth data along with GPS coordinates, and ExpertGPS can extract the depth information from your chartplotter and display it, or convert it to text, CSV, KML, or other formats, so you can use it in any program you like.

Lowrance GPS receivers and chartplotters store user data (waypoints, routes, and tracklogs with depth info) in .USR files. You'll need a USB card reader attached to your computer. Remove the data card from your chartplotter, place it in the card reader, and then click Receive from GPS in ExpertGPS. ExpertGPS will prompt you for the location of the .USR file you'd like to download from your GPS receiver's data card.

To view the depth or elevation data associated with your chartplotter's recorded tracks, switch to the Track List in ExpertGPS. Select a track, and click Show Elevation Profile on the View menu.

Exporting Lowrance GPS Depth and Elevation to an Excel Spreadsheet

If you'd like to export the depth information to Excel or another program in text or CSV format, select a track, and click Show Trackpoint List on the View menu. This will bring up a list of every data point in the recorded GPS track, showing the exact coordinates of each point, and other columns of information. The Depth column is hidden by default. To enable it, click Select Columns on the View menu, and place a check mark next to the Depth column. You can now select the entire Trackpoint List, Copy, and Paste directly into a spreadsheet.

Viewing the GPS Track from your Lowrance Chartplotter in Google Earth

Another useful tool is the View in Google Earth command on the View menu. Simply click the command or press F7 to view your recorded GPS tracks and waypoints over the aerial imagery and underwater contours of Google Earth.

Nicole asks:
I'm trying to take info off one gps and put it on another. How do I do that?

Because ExpertGPS supports GPS backup and transfer for almost 500 different GPS receivers from Garmin, Magellan, Lowrance, Eagle, and Brunton, you can use ExpertGPS to transfer your GPS data from an older GPS to a newly-purchased GPS. Start by clicking Preferences on the Edit menu, and switch to the My GPS Receivers tab.

Click the Add GPS button, and select your old GPS receiver. ExpertGPS can connect to your GPS over a serial cable, USB cable, or by reading data off a memory card, depending on how your old GPS was designed.

Once you've added your GPS to ExpertGPS, and connected it to your computer (or inserted its memory card), click Receive from GPS on the GPS menu. ExpertGPS will retrieve all of the waypoints, routes, and tracks from your GPS and display them over a map. Click Save on the File menu, so that you have a backup copy of your GPS data.

Adding your New GPS Receiver

Click Edit, Preferences, My GPS Receivers again, and now add your new GPS receiver. You can add as many GPS receivers as you own to the list in My GPS Receivers, and ExpertGPS will let you switch between them when you Send or Receive GPS data to and from your computer.

If you are tranferring GPS waypoints between GPS receivers from two different manufacturers, you should edit your waypoints in ExpertGPS to change the waypoint symbols (icons) to match the ones available on your new GPS. Just select a waypoint, click Edit on the Edit menu, and choose a new waypoint symbol from the list displayed.

Once you've made changes to your data, click Send to GPS, and make sure your new GPS receiver is shown as the GPS to which data will be sent. Click OK, and ExpertGPS will transfer your GPS waypoints and tracks to your new GPS.

Related Topics How to Safely Backup Your GPS Data Complete list of supported GPS receivers in ExpertGPS

An ExpertGPS user asks:
I have an older GPS that uses a serial cable, but my new laptop only has USB ports. How can I connect my GPS to my computer?

How do I Use a USB to Serial Adapter with ExpertGPS?

If you have an older GPS receiver with a serial cable interface, and a newer Windows desktop or laptop computer that only has USB ports, you will need to use a USB to Serial Adapter to connect your GPS to ExpertGPS. A USB to Serial Adapter is a small piece of hardware, usually just an inline cable, with a USB plug on one end, and a 9-pin serial plug on the other. The USB to Serial Adapter that I use, the U209-000-R from TrippLite, is shown below. Many companies sell identical products - I have a feeling they all come from the same overseas source and differ only in the model name sticker and the name on the little CD driver that comes with the package.

The first thing you need to do is to install the driver software that comes with the USB to Serial Adapter. If you don't have the driver, you can go to the manufacturer's Web site to download and install it. Without the driver software, the cable won't do anything. Here's a picture of a successful driver install on Windows Vista. Very Important: Notice that the driver has assigned COM4 to the USB to Serial Adapter!!!

Once the driver is installed successfully, you can plug the USB to Serial Adapter into your USB port, and Windows should display a pop-up message saying that a new Plug and Play device was found and recognized. If this doesn't happen, you need to address this problem before proceeding. Contact tech support at the USB to Serial Adapter's manufacturer (not me) for assistance.

Now connect your GPS receiver to the adapter and turn on the GPS. Don't launch ExpertGPS until the GPS is connected to the adapter, and the adapter is connected to your computer.

Waypoint, route, and track transfer

If you have a Garmin, Magellan, Lowrance, or Eagle GPS and want to transfer waypoints, routes, or tracks, run ExpertGPS, and click Preferences on the Edit menu. Click My GPS Receivers, click Add, and select your GPS from the list. When asked for the COM port, select the same COM number that Windows assigned to your USB to Serial Adapter when you installed the driver.

Real-time tracking on a laptop

To track your location in real-time while outdoors with a laptop, run ExpertGPS, and click Preferences on the Edit menu. Click Tracking, and select NMEA as the Protocol. When asked for the COM port, select the same COM number that Windows assigned to your USB to Serial Adapter when you installed the driver.

Click Enable Tracking on the Tracking menu, and ExpertGPS will begin listening to the NMEA data being sent from your GPS receiver, and updating your position on the map every second or two.