Navigate Without GPS

Navigate Without Gps Map Compass Glove Box

All Compasses are Not Created Equal
Every magnetic compass points to magnetic north, but that might be the only thing they have in common. You'll want a liquid-filled compass, which encases the needle in liquid and keeps it from bouncing all over the place. You'll also want a compass with a stationary base. Finally, you'll want to be able to turn the dial or bezel around the compass needle. The compass need not be expensive. The Brunton 9077 lensatic compass shown in this story cost less than $20. As it turned out, I could have gotten away with a more basic compass that had fewer features.

General Route-Finding
This might simply be called being observant. As you go along, pay attention to the overall lay of the land. Does it slope? Is it broken up by mountains, hills, forests, or a river? Are there familiar parts of civilization nearby? Is your destination on a mountaintop or near the mouth of a canyon, and if so do you see one nearby? While you're doing this, be safe! You might need to pull over every so often to look around.

Leave Mental Breadcrumbs
Every now and then, look back. A glance in the mirror is helpful, but it's best to stop and take a real look around. You want to see what your route looks like in reverse. Look for features you might also notice after dark. A trail can look completely different after the sun sets.

Chill!
If you have to know exactly where you are every second, you'll spend most of your time either obsessing or panicking. Author Harry Lewellyn, who wrote Backroad Trips and Tips: Glovebox Guide to Unpaved Southern California, says to "shrink the map." I think "zoom out" is also a fitting phrase. If you "shrink the map" or "zoom out," you'll realize that you know where you are in general, even if you don't know exactly and specifically. A little mystery is part of the adventure.

A Final Benefit
I've noticed that when I'm staring at a GPS, I don't connect as fully with my surroundings. Granted, it's easier and feels more secure to look at a GPS screen and see where I am in real time, but when I have to depend on recognizing a rock outcropping, a stand of trees, or the confluence of two creeks to know where I am, I feel more connected. Map and compass have their place, and so does GPS.

Now get out there and explore!

14. The Brunton 9077 is a lensatic compass and includes a set of sights that can be aimed at landmarks like a rifle.
14. The Brunton 9077 is a lensatic compass and includes a set of sights that can be aimed
15. The outer bezel ring can be rotated. Each click represents three degrees. Note the black line, which always points the same direction. The two yellow lines rotate with the bezel. We'll just be using the longer yellow line with the magnifier.
15. The outer bezel ring can be rotated. Each click represents three degrees. Note the bla
16. Before we can begin to really use a map, we need to orient the map to reality. This can be done without a compass if you can recognize your position and can also recognize some prominent features in reality that also appear on the map. There are two ways to orient a map using a compass. Here, the compass is set so the yellow line is above the black line. The compass is then set on the map mark showing the 13-degree declination. Next, the map and the compass are both rotated until the north arrow lines up with the overlaid yellow and black lines. Now we've got the map pointing correctly at both true north and magnetic north.
16. Before we can begin to really use a map, we need to orient the map to reality. This ca

17. Here's another way. We've rotated the bezel 13 degrees east. We've set the compass base parallel to true north. We then rotate the map until the compass needle lines up with the yellow line. The needle points to magnetic north and the compass base and the map both point to true north.
17. Here's another way. We've rotated the bezel 13 degrees east. We've set the compass bas
18. For our photo session, we went to Cajon Pass, which has a lot of natural features and a lot of human infrastructure. It's also enveloped by the San Bernardino National Forest. Our USFS map didn't show the magnetic declination, but it's 13 degrees east. As such, we oriented our map by setting the compass bezel 13 degrees east, and the edge of our compass along the north-south indicator lines on the map. When we turned the map and the compass so that the needle and the yellow line matched, our map was oriented. Now that the map is oriented, we can take directional bearings without worrying about the declination again because the readings will be correct relative to each other.
18. For our photo session, we went to Cajon Pass, which has a lot of natural features and
19. Now, we'll figure out our exact position on the map. We were near this rock outcropping earlier (not the same one shown in a previous photo) and now it's going to help us get our bearings.
19. Now, we'll figure out our exact position on the map. We were near this rock outcroppin

20. We take a bearing by sighting the outcropping and then turning the compass bezel so that the yellow line lines up with the compass needle.
20. We take a bearing by sighting the outcropping and then turning the compass bezel so th
21. Next, we find that point on the map. It's not shown here, but we can tell its location relative to the nearby railroad tracks, the highway, and the Mormon Rocks USFS ranger station.
21. Next, we find that point on the map. It's not shown here, but we can tell its location
22. Our map is still in position, still oriented. We lay the edge of the compass over our landmark and turn the compass (not the compass bezel) until the needle lines up with the yellow line. Our physical location is somewhere along the edge of the compass.
22. Our map is still in position, still oriented. We lay the edge of the compass over our

23. It would be nice to simply draw a line on the map, but do that too many times and the map will become useless. Instead, we used another map as a straightedge to mark the line.
23. It would be nice to simply draw a line on the map, but do that too many times and the
24. We can physically see Cajon Junction where the I-15 meets with State Highway 138. We can also see it on the map. The hill to the left isn't pointed out on the map, so Cajon Junction makes a better landmark for our purposes. As before, we sighted through our compass and turned the compass bezel until the needle and the yellow line were lined up.
24. We can physically see Cajon Junction where the I-15 meets with State Highway 138. We c
25. As before, we lined up the edge of the compass with our landmark on the map and turned the compass until the needle and the pre-established position of the yellow line were lined up. Our real-life physical position is where the edge of the compass and the edge of the folded map come together.
25. As before, we lined up the edge of the compass with our landmark on the map and turned

By Kevin Blumer

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