Freehand Drawing

Freehand drawing lets you sketch a route directly on the map with your mouse (desktop) or finger (mobile). It is ideal when you want to capture a path that does not follow roads: trails, park loops, scenic detours, or any custom line.

What you get

When you finish drawing, TrailNote automatically:

Creates a new route in your current project
Calculates total distance
Applies your default route styling (color, width, opacity)

Step-by-step

1) Enter drawing mode

Open the map editor
Click the Freehand Draw control (brush icon)

2) Draw your route

Press and hold (mouse button or touch)
Drag to sketch your path
Release to finish

3) Confirm the result

After you release, TrailNote saves the route and you will see it appear in the project.

Tips for better results

Zoom in when you need precision near intersections or switchbacks
Draw smoothly at a steady speed for cleaner geometry
Avoid extremely short strokes: routes need at least 2 points

Route styling (color, width, opacity)

You can set your defaults in Settings -> Map Settings. New routes inherit these defaults automatically, and you can still adjust the style per route later.

Managing freehand routes

Once created, a freehand route behaves like any other route:

Rename it
Add a description
Adjust styling
Export via GPX
Share as part of a project

FAQ

Does freehand work on mobile? Yes. Press and hold to draw with your finger.

Why does my line look jagged? Zoom in and draw more slowly for cleaner geometry.

Freehand Route Drawing: Sketch Trails on the Map