Navigation
NavigationNavigation broken down into simple steps enables anyone to find
their way anywhere. You don't need rocket science. Find some simple navigation tips here. All the books say to let someone know where you are going and how long you will be there and when you are coming back. The simple truth is many folks just say something like “I’m going to Yellowstone to do some hiking“ or “I’m going to check out Glacier National Park for a couple of weeks”. Often it isn’t as glamorous a scenario as that. They are just going cross country in hopes of finding a job or to visit friends or relatives, often on a whim. The more remote your location, the more important your navigation skills become. If and when you run into problems away from civilization and you know nobody is likely to be searching for you, then it is important to your survival to have some rudimentary navigation skills. As a general rule of thumb, stick to the road you came in on. Heading off-road with limited navigation skills is very risky for the inexperienced. A Garmin eTrex Summit HC Hand Held Receiver with Built in GPS Patch Antenna Navigation using a quality compass  is good, but the time to start using it is before you get lost or disoriented and refer to it often. It is extremely easy to meander aimlessly in a chaotic fashion without even being aware that you are doing so. This is the fundamental reason folks get lost without realizing how it happened. If you know that the needle of a compass always points to magnetic north and you have been traveling north east, then it is a simple matter to retrace your steps to the southwest. If you don’t know which way you are headed, it is more difficult to know which direction to go to get back. Basic navigation skills can help keep you from getting lost. Any kind of map, whether it is a road map or a topographical map, is an important tool of navigation. A road atlas  is an excellent starting point. covers the entire U.S. If all you have is a road map, you can still use it to find the nearest route to get help. Bear in mind that some obstacles may not be noted on a road map. By looking around, it is usually just a matter of getting yourself oriented then you can figure out your position and just do what you need to do to walk out using your skills in trail marking and navigation. Back to Lost In The Woods
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