Posted on 01/14/2023 2:27:04 PM PST by algore
With the advent of GPS technology, navigating by compass is a skill that seems to be rapidly falling by the wayside. Because a GPS unit is only as good as the battery or satellite signal that guides it, your ability to determine location and direction by compass is as important as it ever was. Even if you never need to use classic orienteering techniques, becoming proficient with a compass is a process that puts you into even closer contact with the outdoors. The basics can be broken down into three categories.
Setting the Declination
For the purpose of using a compass, there are two types of north: true north and magnetic north. True north is defined by the point at which the earth’s axis exits its surface, around which our globe rotates once each day. The north star, or Polaris, sits in the sky generally over this “north pole,” which is why you can always at least determine a northly direction if you can find Polaris in the night sky. Magnetic north, by contrast, is defined by the earth’s magnetic field. The needle of a compass always points in this direction, and the angle of difference between true north and magnetic north is called the declination. That angle changes depending upon where on earth you are standing. Suffice it to say that declination for any given location is printed on its corresponding topographic map, and you must set that angle on the compass before obtaining accurate bearings. Refer to your compass’s instruction manual on how to change the declination, as each compass is different.
From Map to Field
Let’s say you know where you are on a map (a trail intersection, for instance) and you want to find a specific destination in the field, such as a water source. Identify that feature on the map, then set your compass on the map with its edge forming a line between your known location (trail intersection) and your target destination (water source). Rotate the dial, or bezel, until the parallel orienting lines on the compass’s base plate are lined up with the north-south lines on your map.
Disregard the needle at this point; all you are doing is setting the bearing. Next, stand up and hold the compass away from your body to eliminate interference from belt buckles, knives, or other metallic objects. Rotate your entire body until the magnetic needle lines up with the red orienting arrow underneath. The direction of travel arrow at the head of the compass now points directly at your target destination. Follow that arrow, take repeated bearings, and you are home free! From Field to Map
If you need to find your current location on a map, the first criterion is to visually identify a landmark in the field that you can also locate on the map, such as a mountain peak, river bend, or radio tower. First, hold your compass in a level position with the direction of the travel arrow pointing precisely at your landmark. Then rotate the bezel so the magnetic needle and the red orienting arrow underneath are lined up. A compass with a sighting mirror is designed specifically for this task. Next, set your compass on the map with the edge of the baseplate intersecting the distant landmark and the direction-of-travel arrow pointing in that same direction. Keeping the edge on that point, pivot the entire compass on the map until the parallel orienting lines align with the north-south lines of the map. The north symbol on the compass bezel will also point due north on the map. Finally, draw a line along the edge of your compass, beginning at the landmark. You are standing somewhere along that line. Take another bearing from a second visual landmark, scribe that line, and you will be at the intersection of those two lines. A third bearing will produce a triangle, hence the term “triangulation.” The smaller the triangle, the more accurate your position.
It seems they can even work without batteries somehow!
apparently it is some kind of lost ancient tech that somehow can tap into the earth itself for power.
I heard once long ago people used paper things called maps, and even prayed for Thomas to guide them.
None of this stuff is useful today which is why it is not taught in school like maths and spellin
Do I need Viagra to use a sextant?
Definitely a lost art these days.
But even today, I insist that my cars have a compass so that I always know what direction I'm heading in. Once I know my bearing, I know I will never be lost.
I posted this here before but I was once in a life and death situation while hiking in the woods of New Hampshire when a snowstorm suddenly hit. All the trail markers were obliterated by heavy wet snow. I parked on a north/south road and knew the trailhead was to the east of me.
Using my compass, I was able to head east and finally stumble upon the road and find my car.
Something to tell people when doing a little car camping, and especially to tell children, is to remember to look back frequently when walking around the outdoors.
With their eyes focused on going out, they have no idea what the way back looks like.
1-sun comes up in the east
2-Sun sets in the west
Right turn is not your ring finger!!!
Hopefully you were not on Mount Washington...
Stuff a lot of kids learned 60 years ago in Boy Scouts.
So I went to our time share in Laconia and spend the week hiking. One day, a big snowstorm hit and I was caught by surprise. The storm was to hit that evening but instead it hit around 2PM.
Once I found my car and got back, I sat by the fire in the lobby for several hours until I thawed out. Then I went to my room and spend an hour or so in the hot tub. It was a memorable day for sure.
>1-sun comes up in the east
>2-Sun sets in the west
3 - moss grows on the north side of trees in the northern hemisphere.
A touch of fear heightens the senses, doesn’t it?
Felt alive, I bet.
4. Never hike alone.
A year or so ago I bought two army-issue compasses, one for Mr K (not the one on this forum) and one for me. I remember being shown how to use a grownup compass at some point in my life but I didn’t pay much attention then because I’m an a$$hole.
When I started looking up - for example - how to use a compass to measure distances when out in the wild, I started to realize there is a whole lot of stuff to learn.
One of Mr K’s friends told a story about going out to a huge reservoir in an adjoining state and rashly boating out to the middle of the water, where he could not see the banks or any sort of land at all, only water and sky, and got lost. He had a manual compass but realized within a couple of minutes that he would not really be able to use it to find his part of the shore again. He described a great deal of panic that began when the sun started to set. (In case you’re wondering, he survived, although he had to hike quite a bit in the dark to find his campsite.)
Electronic gadgets are a great thing. When they run out of go, it’s a terrible thing.
Intersection-resection and shooting a back-azimuth.
Compass skills without (topo) map skills are worthless.
RE your friend’s story…
Using a compass in a metal boat is problematic as well. Lol.
True words
All of our Go Bags have a quality compass in them
L
I heard that if you use one of these ancient devices with a “chart”?, you can find your way anywhere in an airplane, or use it in a boat and find your way around the world in the oceans.
The one really stressful moment was that when I finally got to the road, I did not know whether I should go north or south because I was not sure where my car was in relation to where I came onto the road.
I picked north and ended up being right. Though I almost walked right by my car as it was covered in snow and hard to spot. Then I had to shovel my way to the road.
That’s cool that everything worked out. You’ll clearly remember that one forever.
Sounds like a bunch of hooey to me. You conspiracy theory believers believe any ol' thing!
Oh, yes. Did I mention that you are a rayciss?
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