Have you ever been navigationally challenged?
Even the most experienced hillgoers can occasionally go wrong and find themselves temporarily misplaced.
Outdoor brand Brunton commissioned a study by Strong Roots Training to find out the most common mistakes made when navigating.
The organisation asked a group of outdoor professionals where they went wrong when finding their way in the outdoors.
Brunton will be hosting a demonstration of its TruArc compass at the Telegraph Outdoor and Adventure show, starting tomorrow in London’s Docklands.
Meanwhile, here is the company’s top five of navigation goofs likely to happen when route finding with your compass:
- Having the map 180 degrees incorrect when taking a bearing ie getting north and south mixed up
- Using a compass near metal objects, or near electronic items, causing the magnetic needle to be inaccurate
- Looking at the map all of the time and not looking at visual clues in the real world
- Losing concentration and walking too far when you get to your point, falling victim to confirmation bias – the tendency to see things that confirm you are right, but miss things that show you are wrong
- Only carrying one compass with you. If one breaks you are stuck.
You can share your own navigation errors in our comments boxes below, to help other outdoor enthusiasts avoid making the same mistakes.
More details of the Brunton TruArc are on the company’s website.
Ian Winterburn of Everythingoutdoors
11 February 2015Another common mistake is making the map fit where you are...if you see a stream you assume it's the one you are looking for even if it's in the wrong place.
Tony B
11 February 2015I've had my Silva compass for thirty years and its never broken!
mick
11 February 2015Compas reversed on me one day in Mournes. Suspect it spent too much time near phones etc
Madcarew
11 February 2015I will confess to doing 1 & 4.
I have never seen a compass break, but a chap I was walking with did drop his compass in a boulder field. He just about managed to contort his arm amongst the gaps in the rocks to recover it. He was a bit embarressed as we were on ML training at PYB...at least it wasn't on assessment!
Gave the instructor a good teaching point!
Taught me two things, always clip compass lanyard on to rucksack, and carry a spare compass in my emergency kit.
Ghost
11 February 2015I don't use a compass I use a protractor and map plotting I've never been lost on the hills Mountains in 20, od years but theres still time lol
Richard
11 February 2015Didn't realise my compass had reversed polarity and then the lights went out. Near miss kind of scenario that night. Bought a new one next day and discovered a few months later the same thing had happened to it. Almost certainly due being in occasional close proximity to the magnetic catch on a camera case.
Now I know what not to do!
Trevorc
11 February 2015Not believing the compass because you think you know better!!!!!!!!!!!
Tim Smith
12 February 2015People who try and show off and they haven't got any idea of how to use a compass
Lee Barfoot
12 February 2015Compass reversed on me once, contacted Trail mag whose kit man gave me detailed instructions on how to repolarise with a magnet but I failed dismally. Eventually he allowed me to send it to him and he arranged for it to be done by Silva...service above and beyond anything I expected. Greatful thanks for helping me out.
Tess
12 February 2015We foolishly bought a quantity of budget compass's for a NNAS navigation training course. After 4 courses they started to fall apart and a few reversed polarity. It happens.
We replaced them all with Silva Expedition 4's. You get what you pay for, we learnt the hard way.
chris
12 February 2015And a magnetic compass is totally a waste of time at the Poles and in Iceland / Greenland.
Much prefer my wrist watch and the sun
Niall
12 February 2015Nearly and would have walked 180* in wrong direction over in snowdonia, only my companions corrected mistake, due to not thumbing the map and keeping track of route/location. Duh.
Gerry
13 February 2015How about reading contours as going up rather than down .....?
Harry
16 February 2015Another non-compass related error - getting eastings and northings confused in a grid reference.