Navigation

I'd like to get some feedback of this groups experience/lessons learned with dead reckoning navigation in the backcountry.

Kind of an open ended question don't you think?

Are you looking for lost stories? Found stories? Heroic self-rescue stories? Stories of me walking in circles until I died?

I want to hear that one

Learn to read a terrain map, how to do basic intersection and resection, plot coordinates, and keeping a pace count. Always use the map in conjunction with the compass and know what terrain you are on at any time.

To add to Montanero's post, estimating the distance travelled is the most difficult thing to do IME.

I have done a fair bit of navigating solely by map & compass before the GPS days, and I still do it occasionally just to stay in shape. It can be done with very good precision as long as you're absolutely familiar with the basic concepts of land navigation.

Even in difficult, unknown terrain with short lines of sight I have been able to keep track of my position pretty well, being able to find my way to some particular landmark or (even more importantly!) finding the car at the end of the trip, which is a very small target and missed easily. But it is not for the faint of heart and certainly not something that I would recommend to someone without at least a modicum of field experience.

In theory, land navigation by map & compass is not that complicated. But dead reckoning becomes difficult when you're tired or if something unexpected throws you off balance. Fatigue is a major factor IMO, it could temporarily degrade your mental faculties by a large margin without even realizing. On one particularly scary occasion (in hilly backcountry and deep snow on top of it all) I reached the point where I wasn't sure any longer if the red end of my compass needle was supposed to point north or south.

Stuff happens and if you find yourself in a situation like that you really need to STOP immediately and pull yourself together before things spin out of control.

From what I've learned on my treks, people almost always overestimate the distance covered in a given period of time. More so in hard terrain. Ranger beads can be very helpful. If you are with a group it's a good idea to have at least two people performing a pace count just in case the designated leader happens to lose track of the count for whatever reason. Also, check your current position regularly against known landmarks whenever possible.

I've not actually used pace counting for distance.
Have always used orienteering-style handrails and stop points.
Maybe I died out there and haven't figured it out yet?

The going in circles part is what I do at work.....

This sounds like The Sixth Sense to me.

Jeanette Isabelle

me too!!

Most of my navigating is done in either mountainous terrain or in deep, entrenched canyons (where you need to keep track of the number of bends you have traversed) and positioning yourself by landmarks is pretty straightforward. I have rarely used a compass....I still carry one, because when you need one, you really need it.

The comment on counting the number of bends reminds me of years past and another type of navigation. When I went through flight training decades back (way before GPS) I flew a few low level navigation flights in Utah/Nevada. In dead reckoning you turn based on time if you have no other input; there was so much to see and stay found in that rugged country that DR was not an issue; I had checkpoints that were used simply as confirmation that I was near my intended track and time. At the end was a "target" which had an intended overhead time. On one leg I counted ridge-lines and simply turned down the middle of the valley. Another trainee took the "turn-on-time" option and turned down the wrong valley - doh! That happened to be my check-ride and I overflew the target within seconds of my intended time.

But that's DR with a view from 500 ft up doing 300 KIAS, not 6 ft doing 2 mph -- slight difference. Still, the same principle applies, take a heading and speed, and with no other input, turn on time. At some point though, you need to get a fix and find out for sure where you are located.

The real question when doing back-country navigation is, are you seeing the sights while navigating, or are you navigating while seeing the sights. Which comes first? Do you find yourself after getting lost or do you simply stay found? Trust me, the guy that flew down the wrong valley stayed lost.

Pretty much the same for me. I always carry a compass, and practice with it regularly, but don't often need it.

I think it is paramount to develop really good map reading skills. In mountainous terrain, if you have a decent topo map, and pay attention to the terrain as you move over it, you can usually tell pretty closely where you are. If you are adept at reading contours, you can often infer a great deal from subtle changes in slope as you walk along. You can do a lot with good map and the old Mark I eyeball.

In my experience a compass comes more into play in flatter terrain, or when visibility of landmarks is poor due to forest, brush, bad weather or darkness. I've rarely if ever had to do a resection of three landmarks to find my position. More often I've used the intersection of a bearing to a single landmark with a linear feature such as a ridge or creek (sometimes called a "handrail" or "line of position"). I've also used the "angle off" method to find a spot on a linear feature. When I've used pace counting it is usually just to get around an obstacle and get back on course.

I am looking for some info on the practice and process of doing dead reckoning.

You are right. It is open ended so respond as you like.k

I always appreciate this forum's response.

Solid. Thanks TomL

Thank you all for the insight. Much appreciated.

Blake
www.outdoorquest.blogspot.com

As a skill set it is complex and requires a lot of practice. I would say the first step is to learn to read a terrain map. Learn to recognize the terrain on the ground and find your location on the map. The more dramatic the contour interval the easier the terrain association will be.

Then learn to plot coordinates and read coordinates on the map scale you plan to use. There are many different scales, so you have to pay attention to the detail.

Learn about the map itself, read the marginal data and understand it. Contour interval, scale, the declination diagram, map symbols and colors.

Learn to plot an azimuth on your map. You can go the other way and plot you desired line of march and then read the azimuth from that. However, you must learn to convert grid to magnetic, and the reverse, using the declination diagram.

Now you must know your compass. How to set a desired azimuth (some can be adjusted for declination) and then follow it. There are many difficulties to be faced when dead reckoning, such as limited visibility (low light, heavy brush, no recognizable terrain features to sight on like in a flat desert or in snow), tendencies to drift in one direction or the other, obstacles, etc. There are many techniques for overcoming these difficulties, find what works for you and practice it until it is habit.

Knowing the distance traveled is very important. Learn to do a pace count to measure distance. You can use other techniques, but I do recommend a pace count so you know when you have gone too far and need to stop and figure out what you did wrong, it happens to everyone. Handrails are a great technique, but not every situation will allow for that.

Between terrain association, pace count, and skill with a compass, you should be able to navigate by dead reckoning reasonably well. Always double check all of your steps, such as obtaining your azimuth, and setting you declination. It is easy to miss something, especially in bad weather, when you are tired, or in a hurry. Any stress can make you miss a step and end up a long way from where you want to be.

Tom L has some good insight, but a forum is a poor substitute for training and practice. There are some very good books on the subject, and the major compass manufacturers do make very good training kits. I have one from Silva and one from Brunton. They have some great learning material and even videos on line.

For practice you may consider joining a club for orienteering, if such things still exist. You can find some experienced people, have some fun, and learn valuable skills. People in such clubs are usually very helpful and friendly, not to mention enthusiastic about the subject.

If you need help finding the books, let me know. I can dig some up that I have used for teaching in the past.

One other point - learn to orient to North without using a compass.Be aware of the point where the sun rose, especially if it is mid-day and adjust for the season. At night, there is nothing better than the North Star. Know how to recognize the Big Dipper and the pointer stars. The NS is no more than one degree off true north,a negligible amount in most situations. Local terrain features can also help you orient, and, in some situations, even the wind direction - quite dependable in the Channel Islands where I have spent some time.

Years ago while climbing Orizaba, my companion was observing his compass and I was looking at the NS. His compass was skewed about 45 degrees by some sort of local variation (I have always thought it was probably the iron content in the local volcanic rocks) but the NS wasn't. If you really learn the night sky well, there are many other reliable markers shining in the firmament....

Natural navigation is a very good skill to have. You must be perceptive and learn a bit, but it works very well.