Navigation: Giving your Survival Chances some Direction

These days, the chances are you’ll have a compass for navigation and possibly even some kind of portable GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) system. But what can you do if you haven't got either, or they are both inoperable for one reason or another. What are the options? Half of an effective navigation system is a map. The other one is working out where you are and which direction to go, in order to get help or reach safety.

So how can you navigate without a compass? What different methods can you use to find the right direction?

Nature offers many direction finders. Flowers give an indication of direction. They will face the sun, even when it is overcast. They track the sun, and always remember where it is. Trees indicate direction by the way they grow. The bark will be thicker and the cracks will be closer together and deeper on the north and west sides, the branches will be thicker on the south and east sides. The wood on the north and west sides are noticeably harder than the other sides. This can be tested using a knife or pointed stick. Lastly, more trees tend to lean to the southeast than any other direction.

Growth is lusher on the side of the tree facing the south in the Northern Hemisphere. If there are several felled trees around for comparison, growth is stronger on the side towards the equator and the tree growth rings will be more widely spaced. On the other hand, the tree growth rings will be closer together on the side toward the north.

Recognizing the differences between vegetation and moisture patterns on north- and south-facing slopes can aid in determining direction. North-facing slopes receive less sun than south-facing slopes and are therefore cooler and damper. In the summer, north-facing slopes retain patches of snow. In the winter, the trees and open areas on south-facing slopes are the first to lose their snow, and ground snow depth is shallower.

There are several methods by which you can determine direction by using the sun and the stars. These methods of navigation, however, will give you only a general direction. You can come up with a more nearly-true direction if you know the terrain of the territory or country. This is where local knowledge is so important. It pays to research the area beforehand, if possible. This way any prominent features or landmarks can be used to help navigation.

The earth's relationship to the sun can help to determine direction on earth. The sun always rises in the east and sets in the west, but not exactly due east or due west; there are some seasonal differences. The sun will be due south when at its highest point in the sky, or when an object casts no appreciable shadow, although either side of midday the shadows will move clockwise. With practice, you can use shadows to determine both direction and time of day.

Because the moon has no light of its own, it can only be seen when it reflects the sun's light. As it orbits the earth on its 28-day circuit, the shape of the reflected light varies according to its position. We say there is a new moon or no moon when it is on the opposite side of the earth from the sun. Then, as it moves away from the earth's shadow, it begins to reflect light from its right side and waxes to become a full moon before waning, or losing shape, to appear as a sliver on the left side. You can use this information to identify direction. If the moon rises before the sun has set, the illuminated side will be the west. If the moon rises after midnight, the illuminated side will be the east. This provides us with a rough east-west reference during darkness hours.

When being guided by the stars, the main constellations to learn are the Ursa Major, also known as the Plough, and Cassiopeia. Neither of these constellations ever sets, they are always visible on a clear night. They are used to locate Polaris, also known as the polestar or the North Star. The North Star forms part of the Plough. To prevent confusion it is normal to use both the Plough and Cassiopeia together. The Plough and Cassiopeia are always directly opposite each other and rotate counterclockwise around Polaris, with Polaris in the center. The two stars forming the outer lip of this plough are the "pointer stars" because they point to the North Star. Mentally draw a line from the outer bottom star to the outer top star of the Ploughs blade. Extend this line about five times the distance between the pointer stars. You will find the North Star along this line. Cassiopeia has five stars that form a shape like a "W" on its side. The North Star is straight out from Cassiopeia's center star. After locating the North Star, locate the North Pole or true north by drawing an imaginary line directly to the earth.

Given all of these require some considerable expertise in recognising the signs, there must be an easier way to find direction. Well, yes there is…

Enter the magnetic compass. For centuries this has been the primary form of direction finding. During the Qin dynasty (221-206 BC) in China, primitive magnetic compasses were used in fortune telling. Eventually somebody realized that the lodestones (minerals composed of an iron oxide) were better at pointing in a direction that was half way between sunrise and sunset (north.) This discovery led to the first compasses based on stone slabs. Since then they have been refined into the little glass objects that we see today.

In a compass, a magnetized needle is balanced on a pinpoint free to swing around. When the needle comes to rest, it points in one direction because of a force in the earth that pulls at the needle. The earth acts as a magnet with one pole in the North and the other in the South. It is this magnetism that makes one end of the compass needle point toward Magnetic North. This end is marked as the North end by being painted red or black, shaped like an arrowhead or marked with the initial N.

A more advanced compass uses a bowl is filled with a liquid, usually a mixture of alcohol and water. The liquid helps to support a graduated card, which pivots about its center and floats in the liquid. Fundamentally a compass allows you to do two things: it allows you to travel in a known direction, and secondly it can tell you what direction an unknown direction is.

A compass, when used properly, is almost always right. Most wrong bearings are caused by fatigue, confusion, hunger, dehydration, or lack of time. So if you are sure you did it right, trust it. Compasses are potentially the easiest method of direction finding when allied to a map. They are familiar enough for anybody to use and using a compass isn't hard but it does take practice. You can't learn by just reading about it and practice will benefit even the most hardened outdoor pursuiter.