GPXFIT

View 3D

The View 3D tool creates an interactive 3D visualization of your GPS route. Explore your route from any angle by rotating, zooming, and panning the view.

3D route view 3D route view
3D route visualization colored by elevation

How to Use

  1. Load a GPX or FIT file
  2. Click the View 3D button in the Tools section
  3. The 3D view will open showing your route in 3D space
  4. Use mouse/touch controls to explore the route

Controls

Mouse Controls

  • Left-click + drag: Rotate the view
  • Right-click + drag: Pan the view
  • Scroll wheel: Zoom in/out

Touch Controls

  • One finger drag: Rotate the view
  • Two finger pinch: Zoom in/out
  • Two finger drag: Pan the view

Options

Color By

Choose how the route is colored:

  • Elevation: Blue (low) through green to red (high elevation)
  • Speed: Blue (slow) to red (fast) - requires time data
  • Heart Rate: Green (low) to red (high) - requires heart rate data
  • Solid: Single green color for the entire route

Vertical Exaggeration

GPS routes typically have much larger horizontal distances than vertical elevation changes. The vertical exaggeration slider amplifies the elevation to make climbs and descents more visible.

  • 1x: True scale (elevation may appear flat)
  • 3x: Default - good balance of accuracy and visibility
  • 10x: Maximum - emphasizes even small elevation changes

Reset View

Click the Reset View button to return the camera to its initial position, showing the entire route.

Understanding the View

The 3D view displays your route with:

  • X-axis: Longitude (east-west)
  • Y-axis: Elevation (up-down)
  • Z-axis: Latitude (north-south)

The route is centered in the view and scaled to fit comfortably within the viewing area.

Requirements

  • WebGL: Your browser must support WebGL (most modern browsers do)
  • Elevation data: Routes without elevation will appear as a flat line at ground level
  • Time data: Required for speed coloring
  • Heart rate data: Required for heart rate coloring (typically from FIT files)

Tips

  • Use elevation coloring to quickly identify high points on your route
  • Increase exaggeration for relatively flat routes to see subtle elevation changes
  • Speed coloring can help identify where you were pushing hard vs recovering
  • Rotate the view to see how the route follows terrain features