Overview

The Garmin BlueChart g3 Vision HD VUS038R is a coastal electronic chart for compatible Garmin chartplotters covering New York to Chesapeake, from Raritan Bay down to Virginia Beach.

Coverage includes the Hudson River area around Tarrytown, Fire Island Inlet, the full New Jersey coastline, the C and D Canal, Delaware Bay, the Delaware River up to Trenton, and Chesapeake Bay including Baltimore and the Potomac River up to Washington, D.C., plus areas such as Chincoteague Bay, Cape Charles, Newport News, and Norfolk.

It adds premium chart layers such as high-resolution relief shading in supported areas, depth range shading with up to 10 selectable ranges, and detailed bottom contours down to 1 foot in many areas. You also get chart overlays such as satellite imagery, plus 3-D MarinerEye and FishEye views and harbor imagery on supported plotters for extra confidence when running inlets, rivers, and unfamiliar approaches.

Key features

• VUS038R region coverage from Raritan Bay to Virginia Beach, including New Jersey, Delaware Bay, and Chesapeake Bay waterways
• Auto Guidance route planning that factors in your selected draft and overhead clearance
• High-resolution relief shading in supported areas for a clearer read on bottom structure
• Depth range shading with up to 10 ranges to highlight a target depth quickly
• Up to 1-foot contour detail in many areas for tighter navigation and fishing detail
• Shallow water shading that can be set to a user-defined depth for quicker hazard awareness
• Satellite imagery overlays to help match chart data to real-world landmarks
• 3-D MarinerEye and FishEye perspectives for above-water and below-water visualization
• Raster-style charts and aerial harbor photography available on supported chartplotters

Variants

This chart is offered in two formats, depending on how you want to load the data to your Garmin system.

Both options cover the same VUS038R New York to Chesapeake region; the difference is the delivery method. Premium layers such as relief shading, raster-style charts, and 3-D views depend on your chartplotter model and its supported chart features.

• 010-C1004-00: Format microSD/SD. A preprogrammed memory card that installs by inserting it into the chartplotter’s card slot.
• 010-D0495-00: Format Download. An electronic delivery option that loads through the supported chart download and transfer workflow for your Garmin device.

Compatibility and setup

This is cartography, not hardware, so the key fit question is chart support. Your display needs to support BlueChart g3 Vision charting, and the microSD/SD option requires an available card slot that matches the card type used by your unit.

Some newer Garmin units are built around Garmin Navionics+ mapping and do not read BlueChart g3 or g3 Vision products, even if they have a card slot. If your plotter menu and chart options reference Navionics+ or Vision+ rather than BlueChart g3, confirm compatibility before ordering.

Use on board

This region works well for boats that regularly run the New York Harbor area, the New Jersey coast, Delaware Bay, and the Chesapeake, especially if your trips include inlets, river legs, and port entries where shaded depth and harbor imagery help with quick situational checks.

Auto Guidance is a planning tool and is best used the same way you would use any suggested route: review it against local conditions, notices, and what you are seeing on the water before you follow it.

Chart updates

BlueChart g3 chart updates are typically released about once per year, and not every region receives changes each cycle. Keeping your plotter software current helps ensure the premium layers and chart features display as expected.