Since 2008 I have been creating and modifying gpx files using afstandmeten.nl. A dutch website which has been around for ages, with an intuitive way of creating routes. It was one of the first route planners which can follow paths and roads instead of having to draw the lines yourself. And with a large (dutch) community uploading routes, also a source of inspiration for my local runs.

In 2015 I started using Komoot more intensively. I really got to like its interface. It provides detailed information on the created routes, such as road types and surfaces. Komoot is very strong in finding the most attractive routes, for hiking, cycling & (trail-)running. And, like afstandmeten.nl with an ever bigger (international) community to find inspiration for routes. Whenever I am in a new place, komoot’s suggestions still provide me with all my needs for hiking & cycling. For trailrunning, Komoot comes pretty close. However, there are a few irritating blockers, as I discussed in the previous article. These forced me to start looking for an alternative.

In 2024 I re-evaluated the best running route planners, comparing the popular top options. (Strava, Komoot, Garmin Connect, Footpath, AllTrails, MapMyRun and Plotaroute)

For what I wanted, Plotaroute was the clear winner, meeting all my requirements for trailrunning. It has an intuitive interface, is easy to use and has a strong set of route creation tools. So I decided to stick to komoot for hiking & cycling, and switch to Plotaroute for my trailrunning routes.

A short summary of the Plotaroute features.

• A wide range of map layouts, including the (openstreetmap based) trails map
• An extensive route editing toolbox
  • Change start point
  • Replot section
  • Snap-to-map
  • Follow footpaths & freehand
• Managing course points (both turns & waypoints) and POIs
• Route management
  • Tagging
• Advanced elevation profiles
  • Including climb categories
  • Including grade coloring
• Export to .fit files (for bypassing Garmin Connect)
• Export to Garmin Connect
• Terrain inspection (akin to komoot’s terrain features)
• Timing (similar to ultrapacer)
• Mobile app with navigation

I do not want to make this article into a Plotaroute manual. Still, let me show some examples of how I am using it to plan courses. I also use it to prepare for a race.

An example of an imported track in Plotaroute. To get correct turn-by-turn instructions it is important to align the track with the underlying paths. This is what the “snap-to-map” feature is meant for.

The same track after the “snap-to-map” action.

Another feature I often use is the “replot section”. This makes it very easy to apply small corrections or modify courses. You place the green & red dots and replot the section in between in the usual way.

Once the course has been created the elevation profile can be shown. This is the profile of my upcoming 50k race at the Swiss Alps 100. Plotaroute can visualize these profiles in different ways. This one is showing the climb categories (determined by length and gradient). Most of the climbing is in the first 10k of the race. The most difficult part is around km 4.

The course itself can also be visualized in different ways. In the above example the road types are shows. Blue = asphalt, Brown = trail

The same part of the course, now with gradient. The darker the red, the steeper. yellow is flat, green is downhill.

Plotaroute has a timer function, which predicts the time needed. This feature takes into account the hills, the aid station stops, the speed decline during the race and the flat pace. In the above image you can see that I arrive at the first aid station just before 8am, after having climbed for 2 hours. The timer expects me to be at the finish line at 7:45pm …

And finally a very easy and useful method to create new courses. The Make Me a Route feature will generate several routes for you. It uses a start point and a target distance to do this. Optionally you can add a “via” target as well to steer the route in a certain direction.

So let’s say I want to do a trailrun in Gulpen and I want to run about 20 km. The program suggests 10 different routes and I can select the preferred one based on elevation and the percentage off-road. Easy does it.

In the next article, I will explain how to add turn-by-turn instructions to a route in Plotaroute. I will also discuss why Garmin sucks at doing this.