MAP AND COMPASS - map-compass.pdf. Distance-calculation.pdf. Learn the art of natural navigation. In this excerpt from Lonely Planet Magazine, natural navigation expert Tristan Gooley shows you how to ditch the compass and GPS and find your way using only the signposts that are all around us.
These tips are written from a northern hemisphere perspective - many directions can be reversed for the southern hemisphere - eg, when the sun is at its highest in the southern hemisphere sky it's due north. These tips are just for interest. Please navigate responsibly! Sun When the sun is at its highest in the sky, it is due south – in simple terms, the sun is south at lunchtime. Rocks Even on a completely overcast day, the sun's light and heat still reach us. Puddles In nature, things get wet, then dry again, all the time. Trees Wind direction is not random: there are patterns. Satellite dishes These point to geostationary satellites which stay over the same point on the Earth's surface.
Moon. How to use a Compass - Compass and Map interaction. Kjetil Kjernsmo's illustrated guide on Using the compass in interaction with a map This is the important lesson, and you should learn it well. It's when you use both compass and map the compass is really good, and you will be able to navigate safely and accurately in terrain you've never been before without following trails. But it'll take some training and experience, though. I am not covering map reading here, guess you would have to consult other sources for that, but the lesson will be useful if you have a sense of what a map says. First, a quick summary of what you will learn in this lesson: Align the edge of the compass with the starting and finishing point. Here is our compass again: The principles are much the same as in lesson 1 but this time, you are using the map to tell you which way is correct instead of your intuition.
Take a map. You want to go from the trail-crossing at A, to the rock at B. Time to be careful again! How to Read a Compass. Navigation by way of compass may seem daunting at first to a beginner, but this trepidation shouldn’t stand in the way of learning to use one.
In fact, once you learn how to read a compass, it will be a valued friend in the back-country — one you can always count on to help guide your steps. This guide is meant to be a general overview of the basics of learning how to read a compass, with or without a map. There are only a few key things to keep in mind, and once you have grasped these fundamentals, the realm of compass navigation will be open to you forever. Compass Basics First of all, what exactly does a compass do? In addition to the floating compass needle, a compass may have a myriad of other features, but only a few are really relevant to basic orienteering. Let’s say for example that you know your home base is in a southeasterly direction, ~120 degrees of azimuth. Magnetic north or Geographic north? There is one catch, though. How To Use a Compass - when you have no compass.... Kjetil Kjernsmo's illustrated guide on Finding the directions without a compass You are lost.
I mean really lost. Standing in the middle of nowhere, and you have no idea where to go. If you are really in trouble, remember two things first of all: stay calm, think rationally, and you can survive a long time without food. Further thoughts about extreme survival skills is beyond the scope of this page, seek advice elsewhere beyond this introduction. This page is mainly about the northern hemisphere of the earth, actually north of 23.5 °, because I have never been to the southern hemisphere myself (would like to go there of course!).
For a start, it may be a good idea to climb a hill, and get a good look around. Let us start with the most accurate method. In the morning, at least before noon, the trick starts.