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Improvising A Compass

Introduction
This article was sourced from Learn2.com on June 1996. The link to the original doesn't work anymore as Learn2.com has become a commercial service. Visit their website This article is obtained from CHSSCOUT.NET in their Scouting Resources section of their site.

"North? That's UP, right?"

Whether climbing at Annapurna Sanctuary or wandering in the local park, it's a good idea to know your direction. Knowing that the sun sets in the west doesn't do the trick. But even if celestial navigation is more reliable, how does it help on a day hike?

This 2torial will cover three different methods, two by day and one by night: Use your Watch, Use a Stick, and By the Stars. Each of these methods will enable you to better understand your locale--there is actually a basis for navigation, you know.

Before You Begin

If you have become lost, don't panic. Relax, sit down, and come up with a solution to the problem, or at least a plan. If it is Daylight Savings Time, turn your watch back an hour before you calculate your direction.

Method 1: Using Your Watch (Daytime)

Tools needed:

• Bright, direct sunlight (for the day methods)
• A traditional (not digital) watch with rotating hands
• A straight, stiff, very thin stick, approximately 1/8" wide and at couple of inches long. A pencil or pen will do in a pinch.

Step by Step:

1. Prepare your watch: Hold your watch flat, with the face towards the sky.
   
   
2. Position the stick: Place the stick upright (towards the sky) at the tip of the hour hand (the little hand).
   
   
3. Adjust your watch: Turn the watch until the hour hand points to the sun. The shadow of the stick should fall exactly over the hour hand.

Method 2: Use a Stick (Daytime)

Tools needed:

• A stick! A straight, somewhat sturdy stick, about eight inches in length.
• Bright, direct sunlight

Step by Step:

1. Position your stick: Find your stick, then find a sunny patch of level ground. Poke your stick into the ground, tilted so it points into the sun (and casts no shadow).
   
   
2. Be patient: Wait at least 15 minutes until the stick casts a shadow around 6 inches long
   
   
3. Add the finishing touch: Draw a line straight across (perpendicular to) the shadow line.
   
   
4. Read the results: Voila! You've got your compass. The stick is your west point and the end of the shadow is the east. The cross-line goes from north (on the right) to south (on the left).

Method 3: By the Stars (Night - Northern Hemisphere Only)

Tools needed:

• More sticks! Fortunately, they're always around when you need them. You'll need two straight sticks of uneven length, somewhere around a foot in length.
  
  

1. Find the North Star: The North Star can be found by following up the outside edge of the bail ("scoop") of the Big Dipper. Follow the line through the sky. The biggest shiniest star in that direction is the North Star. (The North Star is the first star in the handle of the Little Dipper.)
   
   
2. Plot the placement of the sticks: Draw an imaginary line from the North Star to the ground. Stand facing the "point" where the line touches the ground. Poke holes into the ground for the sticks, a couple of feet apart, along the line between you and the "point.
   
   
3. Order the sticks: Place the sticks in the ground so you see the tip of the shorter one first, then the tip of the longer one, then the North Star.
   
   
4. Finish it off: Draw a line in the dirt between the two sticks. The stick closest to you is South, the one farthest is North.

Method 4: Noon Time Sun

Need quick and easy compassing? At 12 o'clock noon, place a stick straight in the ground. The shadow it throws points North, in the Northern Hemisphere, and South, in the Southern Hemisphere.

If you are lost on a foggy or overcast day, make safety and shelter your first concern. Fog will often clear off by late morning. But dark, thick, heavy clouds indicate precipitation, so it's more important that you remain dry and warm.

Wait for the weather to break before attempting to determine the sun's position.