How to Group Waypoints into Color-Coded Overlays on iPhone

TL;DR

An overlay is a named, coloured group of waypoints. New marks go into the active overlay. Switch overlays on and off to declutter the map, and zoom to fit a whole overlay in one tap.

The problem

After a few outings you have 80 pins on one map: camps, water, hazards, a rescue rally point, last year’s search. The map is unreadable and finding “that one waypoint” means scrolling through everything.

How overlays solve it

An overlay is a named, coloured group. You decide what goes in it (by mission, by day, by team, by type), and you choose which ones are visible.

Steps

  1. Open Points, tap the layers button at the top left, and create an overlay. Give it a name and a colour.
  2. Make it the active overlay. Everything you mark from now on is filed there (”· active” appears next to it).
  3. Add waypoints as normal. To move an existing one, edit it and change the Overlay picker.
  4. Toggle overlays on or off to show only what matters.
  5. Open an overlay to see its waypoints and the count; ask the map to frame it to see everything in the group at once.

Ideas for structure

  • One overlay per trip or exercise, so you can hide old ones.
  • One overlay per type: Water, Hazards, Rally points.
  • A short-lived “Today” overlay you clear at the end.

Remember

Deleting an overlay isn’t the same as hiding it. If you only want a tidy map, toggle it off instead.

FAQ

What is the active overlay? The one new marks are saved into. It is labelled ”· active” in the list.

Can a waypoint be in no overlay? Yes. The picker has a “None” option.

Can I hide an overlay? Yes. Overlays can be toggled so their waypoints leave the map without being deleted.

Can I fit the map to one overlay? Yes. Choosing an overlay’s extent asks the map to zoom out to fit all its points.

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