Most sailors join SailTies with years of sailing already behind them. You do not have to leave that history out of your logbook. Whatever you have to hand, a GPX track, a paper logbook, or just a rough memory of the season, there is a way to get it in.
Everything you add counts towards your sailor stats and your SailTies Resume, exactly like a voyage you recorded live.
Where to start
Open the My Sailing tab and tap the + button, then choose Add Voyage Manually. You will see three options.
You can also get there from the Record tab, or from the Add Past Voyages button on your voyages list.
Which method should you use?
| You have | Use | You get |
|---|---|---|
| A GPX file from a plotter, Navionics, a Garmin device or another app | Import GPX | Full track, distance, weather and speed, calculated automatically |
| No file, but you remember roughly where you went | Draw Manually | A track you draw yourself, with the same automatic stats |
| Only the numbers: dates, miles, days at sea | Basic Form Entry | A logbook entry with the stats you type in, no map |
If you have a GPX file, use it. It is the fastest route and it gives you the richest voyage.
Import a GPX file
- My Sailing, +, Add Voyage Manually, Import GPX.
- Pick the file from Files, iCloud, or wherever you saved it.
- Trim the track if it starts in the marina or runs on after you tied up. Tap any point to trim, move, delete or insert.
- Check the start and end dates, then save.
Good to know:
- The GPX needs timestamps. If the file has none, SailTies will ask you to add start and end times before it can work out the duration.
- A voyage cannot be zero minutes long, and the end must be after the start.
- You cannot import a GPX while you are recording a voyage. Finish the recording first.
Where GPX files come from: most chart plotters export to a USB stick, Navionics Boating exports tracks from the app, and Garmin devices export activities from Garmin Connect.
Draw the voyage manually
No file, but you know the route. Choose Draw Manually and plot the track on the chart. It is a two step flow: Track Points, then Dates.
- Drag the map so the red crosshair sits where you want your first point, then tap Add Point. The crosshair stays in the middle of the screen, so you move the chart under it rather than tapping the spot.
- Repeat along your route. The distance total at the top of the map updates as you go.
- Tap any point you have placed to trim the track, or to move, delete or insert a point. Undo steps back if it goes wrong.
- Tap Next to set the start and end dates, then save.
You do not need to be precise. A few points along the coast is enough for the distance to come out sensibly, and it looks far better on your profile than a form entry with no map.
Basic form entry
For everything else. This is a plain form, no map, and it is the quickest way to get old paper logbook miles onto your resume.
Choose Basic Form Entry, then pick the type of entry:
- Single entry: one unbroken trip between two dates. For example a Day Skipper course, or a delivery.
- Bulk entry: a longer period summarised into one line. For example a whole season, titled something like "Logbook Summary 2019".
Then fill in:
- Title and location description, for example "The Solent, UK". Both are required.
- Countries sailed in.
- Dates, each with a time and a timezone. For a bulk entry you also set days at sea, which has to fit inside the date range you chose.
- Resume stats: miles sailed and night hours (both required), plus toggles for whether you were skipper and whether it was tidal waters.
- Vessel: add the boat you sailed on and build up a library of every boat you have sailed.
These stats feed your sailor stats and your SailTies Resume, so it is worth being honest and roughly accurate rather than generous.
Note that a basic form entry has no map, photos, videos, crew or groups attached. If you want those, use GPX import or draw the voyage instead.
Two things that trip people up
"You are already on another voyage at this time." Your voyages cannot overlap, and neither can your crew's. If you get this, check the dates, or trim the entry that clashes.
Bulk entries and days at sea. Days at sea cannot be more than the number of days between your start and end dates.
Editing later
Everything you add can be edited or deleted afterwards. Open the voyage, tap edit, and change the dates, stats, vessel or track. Tracks stay editable, so you can tidy up an imported GPX any time.
Coming soon: backfill from Garmin
Today, connecting your Garmin account imports sailing activities recorded after you connect. Anything already sitting in Garmin Connect from previous seasons stays there.
We are working on backfill, so that connecting Garmin brings your existing sailing activity history across as well. Until then, export those older activities from Garmin Connect as GPX files and use Import GPX above.
To connect Garmin now: My Sailing, the settings cog, Devices and Partners, Garmin, Connect. Once connected, you can choose which activity types come across: sailing, boating and other.
Still stuck?
Email us at hello@sailties.net. If a GPX file will not import, attach it to the email and we will take a look.