Quote from GraniteView on 12.01.2026, 16:08

tune scenic routes to not deviate from m-xx

Now it gets interesting (but not sure correct - NEVER trust AI responses….)

Good question — this is exactly the right time to lock Scenic down so it cannot wander off M-xx

I’ll break this into (1) what actually causes deviation, (2) the exact Scenic settings to use, and (3) how I’ve tuned your routes (and what you can optionally add).

1️⃣ Why Scenic deviates from M-xx (when it does)

Scenic only deviates when one of these is true:

1. The route is defined with too few route points
2. Scenic is allowed to auto-recalculate
3. Scenic is allowed to optimize for curvy/scenic roads
4. You leave the route and Scenic tries to “help”

We eliminate all four.

2️⃣ REQUIRED Scenic settings (this matters more than GPX)

On iPad/iPhone → Scenic app:

Navigation & Tracking

Set exactly:

• Vehicle: Car
• Recalculate automatically: ❌ OFF
• Snap to road: ✅ ON
• Avoid unpaved roads: ✅ ON
• Avoid highways: ❌ OFF
• Curvy roads: ❌ OFF
• Scenic optimization: ❌ OFF

⚠️ “Curvy roads” is the #1 reason Scenic tries to pull you off M-28.

Navigation Menu

• Route preview before start: ✅ ON
  (this lets you visually confirm it stays on M-xx before you roll)

3️⃣ How your GPX is already tuned to force M-xx

Your M-xx day (aaa  → zzzz) is now constrained by hard route points, not suggestions.

These are 

route points

 (

<rtept>

), not POIs:

• aaa
• V1
• V2
• V3
• zzzz

Scenic must connect those in order.

Even if Scenic recalculates:

• It can only route between those points
• There is no legal path that dips south to I-yy  or US-x without violating the sequence

That’s the key difference between:

• ❌ “scenic pins”
• ✅ routing anchors

4️⃣ Optional: “belt-and-suspenders” lock (only if you want)

If you want absolute paranoia-level locking (usually unnecessary), we can add one extra shaping point:

• AAAAA (M-xx east of ZZZZ)

This prevents Scenic from:

• jumping to H-zz
• hugging Lake YYYY on secondary roads

I did not add it by default because:

• it slightly reduces flexibility if there’s construction
• M-xx is already strongly preferred by OSM routing

If you want it, say:

👉 “Add AAAAA  shaping point”

and I’ll regenerate only Day 02.

5️⃣ How to visually verify before driving (10 seconds)

Before tapping Start in Scenic:

1. Tap the route
2. Zoom out
3. Confirm:
   • You see M-xx labeled repeatedly
   • No dip south of V1
   • No other place

If it’s wrong → don’t start → tell me and I’ll fix the GPX.

6️⃣ What NOT to do

• ❌ Do not enable “curvy roads”
• ❌ Do not allow auto-recalculation
• ❌ Do not delete intermediate route points
• ❌ Do not convert the route to a “track” inside Scenic

Bottom line (confidence check)

• ✅ Routing engine: Scenic (OSM)
• ✅ Route constrained by hard anchors
• ✅ Settings prevent optimization drift
• ✅ M-xx is now the path of least resistance
• ✅ You will not be sent to <other>

If you want next:

• Add construction bypass alternates
• Add “fuel guaranteed” points on the UP
• Lock return leg mountain passes the same way

You’re doing this exactly the right way.

 

(Note; attempted to remove actually roads etc. may have missed some - not hard to tell where this is)

Quote from Guido on 12.01.2026, 16:51

OK. I'm not seeing a question , but I'll try to explain from a functional perspective.

First of all, nice to hear that ChatGPT recommends Scenic 🙂.

ChatGPT does not have access to map data at all. Not from Scenic, not from Google Maps, not from any map provider. ChatGPT gets its data, and recommendations from articles available on the internet. So, when you ask it to plan a route and generate a GPX file for it, this data comes from text. Any coordinates are coordinates that it found somewhere on the internet. Don't get me wrong. It's very smart about this, and will typically give you valid coordinates and valid routes.

Then, when you import this GPX into Scenic, Scenic calculates a route between the route points that ChatGPT placed in the GPX.

My recommendation if you want to go this way... use ChatGPT as a general route planner. Ask for advise about nice places to stop, etc. But ALWAYS check what it delivers and what Scenic makes of it.

Quote from GraniteView on 13.01.2026, 13:38

I made the post mostly for possible interest; I found scenic entirely through my planning process with chatgpt for the trip and eventually tried to use google maps but google restricts use on ipad; so I asked for alternatives (first asking about Garmin devices since I am familiar with them as well). Long story short, this is the recommendation put forth for scenic:

———————————————-

you want a

CarPlay-first

solution (non-Garmin)

If you decide you want maps on the CarPlay screen and GPX support:

• Scenic (excellent, GPX-native, CarPlay-ready)
• Gaia GPS (CarPlay support improving, very good for tracks)

These outperform Google Maps for road-trip GPX use — but they are not Garmin.

———————————————————

Note to eventually FIND scenic in the app store took another series of interactions as most of the data ChatGPT learned on was for EARLIER versions when it was called something different. I trust my interactions have now ‘taught’ it for future people looking for GPX solutions.