Why Maps and Compasses Still Matter

Why Maps and Compasses Still Matter

 By Alison Hudson (http://www.theclymb.com/stories/out-there/maps-compasses-still-matter/)

As they con­tin­ue to grow in pop­u­lar­ity and shrink in cost, it seems that more peo­ple are over­look­ing the lim­i­ta­tions of consumer-grade GPS devices while trav­el­ing in the back­coun­try. While these devices should def­i­nitely be a part of the orienteer’s lineup, con­sider the GPS an essen­tial part of a larger set: map, com­pass, and GPS. Here are some rea­sons to brush up on basic nav­i­ga­tion skills.

Ben­e­fits of a GPS
A GPS is an easy option for nav­i­ga­tion: in addi­tion to stand-alone GPS units, these appli­ca­tions are now com­mon­place in phones and cars, which means that peo­ple are becom­ing increas­ingly famil­iar with them. On the other hand, using a com­pass can be com­pli­cated and com­pe­tence requires prac­tice. There’s a lot of room for error with a com­pass. For exam­ple, if you make a mis­take align­ing your map and com­pass, like fail­ing to adjust for dec­li­na­tion, your bear­ing could be dis­as­trously inaccurate.

Know the Lim­i­ta­tions of Your Equip­ment
Although they are easy to use, there are some def­i­nite lim­i­ta­tions to solely rely­ing on a GPS device for nav­i­ga­tion. One com­mon prob­lem in the East is try­ing to get a sig­nal in a densely-wooded area. Some units can’t con­nect to satel­lites when the tree cover is too dense, effec­tively ren­der­ing the unit use­less. The other obvi­ous weak­ness of GPS units is their bat­ter­ies. With­out bat­ter­ies, your GPS is no bet­ter than a chunk of plas­tic. While a tra­di­tional com­pass will never run out of power, they can be lost or crushed in the backcountry. 

Know Where You Are
I was once trav­el­ing with a group on unmarked cat­tle trails. While we weren’t truly lost because we knew exactly where we were from the fea­tures of the land, the trail was nowhere to be found. One mem­ber of our group pan­icked and demanded that we use the GPS to find out our loca­tion. All the GPS did was ver­ify what we already knew—our exact lat­i­tude and lon­gi­tude. This didn’t make it any eas­ier to find the trail because it wasn’t rec­og­nized by the GPS.

My friend’s reliance on the GPS points to the com­mon mis­con­cep­tion: that a GPS sup­plants basic nav­i­ga­tion skills. Deter­min­ing your loca­tion by read­ing the ter­rain is a skill you should develop with­out the crutch of a sig­nal and soft­ware depen­dent device. In clear con­di­tions, learn to trans­late fea­tures of the land, like dis­tinc­tive moun­tain ridges or drainages or bod­ies of water, onto your map. This is a reli­able and quick way to keep track of your loca­tion with­out a GPS. Pull out your GPS if you’re in low-visibility con­di­tions, like a bliz­zard or at night, when rec­og­niz­able fea­tures are impos­si­ble to distinguish.

If your map and com­pass skills aren’t up to par, con­sider tak­ing a short nav­i­ga­tion course, or check out one of the many books on the sub­ject. And next time you pack your GPS, make sure you grab the map and com­pass, too.

 

About the Author

Alison Hudson is a freelance writer and multimedia producer based in Maine and Wyoming. She recently completed a mountain instructor course for the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).