Introducing Historical Line

May 30, 2025 • 3 min read

A better way to retrace your past.

Sometimes, precise navigation is essential, like when entering a shallow harbor, navigating a narrow strait, or maneuvering into a protected anchorage.

These moments demand focus at the helm and often a lookout at the bow. When it comes time to retrace your steps, having a way to visualize exactly how you came in can make all the difference. 

This week’s update introduces Historical Line – a smarter way to see where you’ve been, so you can make safer and more informed decisions.

This is Historical Line

Historical Line shows you exactly where your boat has been. It runs on your Orca Core and leverages the Core’s high-accuracy GPS and advanced motion detection to create a precise track of your boat’s movement.

Intelligent motion detection

Unlike tracks on traditional chartplotters, Historical Line is smart about how and when to log your journey. 

Because of Orca Core’s advanced motion detection, Historical Line knows when you’ve stopped. Instead of showing noisy track lines at your destination, it marks the stop with a circle, giving you a clear track that shows your approach and departure, without clutter or confusion.

An overnight anchorage. Historical Line marks the stop without any clutter, making it effortless to see the precise arrival and departure track.

View from anywhere

One of the great advantages of Historical Line is that it syncs via the internet. That means you can view your past track from any of your devices. The track updates in real-time even when you are off the boat, making it a great tool if you’re lending your boat to someone else. Not only can you see where your boat is via Remote Access, but you’ll also be able to see exactly where it’s been with the Historical Line.

Historical Line synchronizes via the Internet and via Orca Core, making it readily available on all your devices.

See what matters

Most navigation systems offer some form of tracking, but they come with a major drawback: screen clutter. Traditional plotters offer limited controls over tracks, and when enabled, these traditional tracks accumulate quickly and often become more distracting than useful. 

With Historical Line, you’re in control. You can easily adjust how much of your past journey you want to see, highlighting only what is relevant to your current navigation, and in turn avoid chart clutter. To adjust your Historical Line preferences, open the Control Center in the top right corner of the map and press Historical Line.

Full control at anchor

Historical Line also works seamlessly with Guard Mode. When Anchor Watch is active, Orca displays swing information using arrows instead of a line, so you get a complete picture of your boat’s heading and position.

Combined with Historical Line’s time controls, you can now easily view how your boat has moved while at anchor, helping you understand swing patterns and giving you peace of mind overnight, even if you are off the boat.

Historical Line lets you easily see your boat's swing pattern while anchored.

Historical Line replaces the older Breadcrumbs functionality in Orca, offering a far more flexible and accurate experience.

For detailed instructions on using Historical Line, see the User Guide.

Upgrade to a smarter navigation experience

Historical Line, with its flexible controls and cloud synchronization, is only part of what makes Orca a truly modern navigation system. Orca gives you weather-based routing, advanced boat integration with autopilot control, and radar on your phone, tablet, Mac, and Orca Display.

Orca Core 2 delivers high-end chartplotter functionality to your phone, tablet, computer, and watch.

Want a better way to plan and navigate for this boating season? Upgrade with an Orca Core to get Historical Line and advanced boat integration. Get your Orca with a 30-day satisfaction guarantee and free express shipping via the Orca Store.