Navigating in the forest with a compass

I would suggest purchasing a compass with a declination screw. Set it to match your map or a measured line in the field. It Just Makes Life easier...

not my real name, post: 338944, member: 8199 wrote: What is the basic advice to someone wanting to use a compass to navigate in the forest?

http://www.idiotsguides.com/sports-and-fitness/hiking-and-camping/hiking-101-how-to-use-compass/&apos ;">How to use a compass

http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev7_015517.pdf&apos ;">A manual

Or the Boy Scout Orienteering Badge...

DDSM:beer:

Working in the mountains of Colorado, depending on the amount of magnetic rock, a compass is not always accurate. If I had trusted the compass a few years ago on a hunting trip I would still be lost. The Quad sheet saved me.

Even

vern, post: 338949, member: 3436 wrote: Working in the mountains of Colorado, depending on the amount of magnetic rock, a compass is not always accurate. If I had trusted the compass a few years ago on a hunting trip I would still be lost. The Quad sheet saved me.

Thank you. I almost forgot about local attraction. Even overhead electrical wires can interfere with the use of your compass.

Agree, and that pretty much means spending more than $20. Silva Ranger is the standard, other manufacturers now make similar models. They go for $40 -$50.

A watch, a ring, your belt buckle, cell phone, change in your pocket, a sidearm, etc. etc. will pull the needle. "Local Attraction" is often that local.

A barometric altimeter can be an essential tool to use in combination with the compass and quad map. It adds another dimension to your navigation.

If you know you are on a spur ridge or in the bottom of a draw and you have an approximate bearing to one or two known features, it is very easy to find yourself on a map if you know your elevation. Of course this only works if you are in terrain that has some relief. Knowing the names of prominent features (mountain peaks) ahead of time is also very helpful.

I have only relied upon a compass for cross country navigation once and that was for fun. I also used a scale stick, quad map, and GPS (again just to prove I could do it).

One of the biggest potential ways of getting disoriented in the mountains involve heading down a ridge from the top of a mountain. It is very easy to miss an intermediate ridge and end up miles from your intended destination. A compass is a simple way to avoid this.

It's not always possible to stay on a compass bearing while traveling through back country and forest because of the terrain and vegetation, especially in the mountains and around water bodies. Landmarks can be really tough in thick forest unless your willing to climb a tree to have a look around. My advice is keep good track of your route.

Here is an example of me getting slightly disoriented last weekend while hunting.

My daughter and I were sitting on a rock watching a clearing on the opposite ridge. I offered to hunt up above the clearing through some timber (possibly kick some deer out down the hill), then proceed down the backside of the ridge (again possibly kicking some deer her way).

Well, I went higher than I was originally anticipating due to heavy brush and ended up on top of the ridge. I walked the top of the ridge until I saw a small spur ridge taking off, which I assumed was the ridge I wanted to walk down.

I got about 1/4 of the way down the spur ridge before I noticed that the view across the river looked different.
I did kick some deer out her direction, but there was enough country between us that they probably didn't go far.

Just an example of how following a ridge down hill can lead you in the wrong direction. Had I not noticed it and was doing a very long downhill hunt, I could have ended up in a very different location.

Another caution using the magnetic declination shown on a usgs topo map: Often they are old and aren't close to the declination now, may vary several degrees. Best to site something with a known bearing or azimuth. Sometimes quads will indicate a photo revision date, but don't have anything to do with the date the mag dec is shown. Another alternative is calculate the current declination from the program in the ngs website toolbox, magdec, if a known line is not available. An adjustable compass is desirable, eliminating a potential source of error, but will probably cost more.

DON'T forget local attraction. I have a plate and screws in my right (dominant) wrist. It DOES affect the compass. I have to take my watch off my left wrist and use it for observation.

Andy

Some very good advice. I taught hunter and bow hunter ed for 10 years. If you want to see a room full of 12 year Olds go ADD, spend a half hour on declination. You have to be relevant.
I tried to impress on students that navigating to small targets was fun, but a really bad idea most of the time. Use your tools to find identifiable routes and borders certain to bring you to safety. If you aim for a forest service road or river you will find it. Aim for a cabin in thick forest and a small error may send you into the wilderness.
Whatever tools you use, practice with them. Learning new skills in a survival situation sucks...

Thank you for all the great advice. The local newspaper is interviewing me for a feature on navigating with a compass. I don't want to overwhelm them with complex ideas. Yet going with too little knowledge could also be dangerous.

Or glasses frames. I couldn't figure out why my K&E transit gave such screwy readings until I realized I was leaning very close and the glasses pulled the needle. Also, if you need to illuminate the compass at night, the metal case of the flashlight or the batteries inside may pull the needle.

imaudigger, post: 338956, member: 7286 wrote: One of the biggest potential ways of getting disoriented in the mountains involve heading down a ridge from the top of a mountain. It is very easy to miss an intermediate ridge and end up miles from your intended destination.

Been there early in my career, working on a USFS cadastral. The I-man and I packed up at the end of the day and started heading back to the truck, but followed a spur ridge that was subtle enough that we didn't notice the difference. When we got down to a creek an hour or so later I realized that it was not the one we wanted. I knew the area well enough by then to know where we really were and about where we wanted to be. The I-man was too worn out (he was an "old man": 53, as I recall) to make it back up the hill, so I left him chillin' by the creek while I set off to get the truck, which by now was probably 3 miles away. After awhile I found a dirt road heading in roughly the right direction, and when I was maybe a mile from the truck a USFS pickup came around a bend and I flagged him down. He didn't want to give me a ride at first -- it was against the rules to have non-USFS employees in the vehicle -- but I pleaded my case and he relented. I got the truck and picked up my I-man before sundown, and learned something about paying attention.

To plan where to hunt deer, look at a quad sheet and an google earth and find a path to hide in between food and water and shelter.

Recon the area and find the deer's pathway.

Sit somewhere along that path behind camo material or natural objects that will obstruct the deer's view of your moving hands and wait for their arrival.

Patience, they will come down their old trail again.

Any compass will work to casually wander thru the woods and find your way back if you have quad map or similar to follow.

I use a $3 compass from wally world for some adventures, my smart tools compass app, a 2in K&E or RR pocket compass for others.

My training came from the Boy Scout adventures our jungle proven Scout Master sent us on in the river bottoms in the colder months after all the vipers went into hiding. Then my education was honed in college surveying courses about compass surveying. The true test was running parallel lines across timber properties cruising timber old school. We never offset or meandered, it was straight ahead at all times no matter what we came across or had to swim. Worst job ever....at least the boss would by the beer afterwards and treat us to a generous trip to feast somewhere when the job was completed. It took days to recover from the beating we took from head to toe.

Finding a trail that generally heads in the direction you want to arrive at can be much easier than busting brush and taking a straight course. I worked under a PC who would often say "let's head down this way and see what we will find" and that never turned out that good. His view was that it all counts for billable hours.

Mostly it depends upon how far you want to travel and what you want to see along the way. My hiking days are down to very short and hopeful one way adventures and as little of uphill as possible, lol.

Study up on how to tell time by compass and shadows.......

One thing that’s helped me in dense woods is picking a distant “checkpoint” tree or rock along the bearing instead of staring at the compass every few seconds. Makes it way easier to stay on line.
I also sometimes double-check bearings on my phone before heading out using https://123compass.org/ just to practice or compare readings. Obviously not replacing a real compass in the field, but it’s surprisingly handy for quick checks.

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