Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2017 3:13:20 GMT -8
It's good to understand declination, and for pinpointing your location on a map it's important, but for general navigation and off trail hiking, not essential. Very few of use can actually walk a bearing with greater than 10° accuracy in wooded areas and uneven terrain. Most of us use a compass to make sure we're heading in the right general direction, or to figure out which direction to go if we get lost. Yes, at least, that's my experience.
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texasbb
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Post by texasbb on Jan 10, 2017 8:12:58 GMT -8
It's good to understand declination, and for pinpointing your location on a map it's important, but for general navigation and off trail hiking, not essential. Very few of use can actually walk a bearing with greater than 10° accuracy in wooded areas and uneven terrain. Most of us use a compass to make sure we're heading in the right general direction, or to figure out which direction to go if we get lost. Yes, at least, that's my experience. That's probably truer in the midwest than out west. Most of my hiking is done where the declination is (currently) 16 to 17 degrees. Ignoring a 17-degree error can put you off by a quarter mile for each mile traveled, easily enough to miss a lake, hit the wrong side of a trail junction, etc. I want my 10-degree walking inaccuracy centered around the right general direction.
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ErnieW
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Post by ErnieW on Jan 10, 2017 9:46:12 GMT -8
Hence, travelling by Topo - rivers, ridges, and other land features in combo with your wits, the sun, shadows, plant life to help determine elevation/area, a GPS, and pace counting all come into play at least for me. A compass is just one component of my arsenal for off-trail travel. Very well put. Navigating is a complex topic. I would like to add that you have to have real world experience of any knowledge from books/classes. Practice, practice, practice if you want to be good. P.S. Another tip I would suggest is always question "gut" feelings about where you are or going. Can really screw you up if you don't.
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tigger
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Post by tigger on Jan 10, 2017 9:48:19 GMT -8
That's probably truer in the midwest than out west. Most of my hiking is done where the declination is (currently) 16 to 17 degrees. Ignoring a 17-degree error can put you off by a quarter mile for each mile traveled, easily enough to miss a lake, hit the wrong side of a trail junction, etc. I want my 10-degree walking inaccuracy centered around the right general direction. Same here (another PNW). Same goes for the sun setting in the west. Depending on the season, the arc of the sun is different and I have to pay attention to my shadow as it shifts during the day while using what I call "sun shoulder casting" for navigation.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2017 10:00:19 GMT -8
Thanks, got me thinking of my ONP coast trip. Three days of ocean on the left and mountains on the right. Then 3 days of ocean on the right and mountains on the left. My compass was buried deeply in my pack for that trip but the maps were kept handy.
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