Using a compass in the outdoors is central to a lot of activities from hill walking, cycling and camping ground.

They are light weight and take up footling infinite, yet are very dependable and when used in conjunction with and Ordnance Survey map, volition ensure you find your way to your destination. With the information on this page, nosotros aim to bear witness you how to correctly utilize a compass. The first thing we'll starting time with is identifying the various parts on a compass.


Compass
All compasses include many common features.

  1. Baseplate – the plastic rectangular transparent base.
  2. Compass housing or wheel, degrees covering 360 degrees, and N-Southward-East-W or central points for North, South, East and West.
  3. Magnetic needle – crimson finish for north, black cease for south.
  4. Compass lines or orienteering lines – on the lesser of the compass housing.
  5. Orienting arrow (two green lines on this compass) – fixed and aligned to northward within the compass housing.
  6. Index line – the beginning of the direction of travel pointer.
  7. Management of travel arrow – the arrow at the end of the baseplate.
  8. Map scales 1:25 000, 1:fifty 000 and metric measurer or Romer scales.

How to use a compass is a technique which is quick to learn and can be put to apply no affair where y'all are.

A Compass can be used for the following

A compass can assist you lot to locate where you lot are and how to go to another point. While many believe a Saturday Nav or Smart Phone app will do this job for them, it must be borne in mind that electronic instruments can fail, intermission or run out of power.

  1. Aligning the map with the compass so that your location matches what you run across on the ground, and that you're heading in the correct direction.
  2. Taking a bearing (direction) from the map and walking.
  3. Using a bearing to identify features coincident on the ground and map.
  4. Use 'back bearings' to identify where you lot are from two or more afar known objects.

Magnetic N and Truthful Northward

Magnetic north is different to map filigree n because magnetic due north (where the compass needle points) changes in different places of the world and changes over time. The longer your trip the greater the variance betwixt the two.

Yous accept to arrange the bearing on the compass to take account of the divergence between map grid north and magnetic north. The difference in degrees is marked on printed Ordnance Survey Ireland maps but as a rule of thumb, adjust past 5 degrees by turning the compass housing anticlockwise.

Which way do I get?

To figure out which way you need to get to reach your destination, y'all will demand to know where you are and where that is on the map. And so place on the map your destination. Following that…

  1. Place the edge of the compass base of operations plate along the line connecting A. where yous are and B. your destination.
  2. Rotate the compass housing so that the parallel lines independent within, line upward with southward/north grid lines on the map.
  3. Take the compass and identify close to your body and rotate yourself where you stand until the north stop of the compass needle aligns with N in the compass housing.
  4. Follow the directional arrow which will exist pointing abroad from you and identify a indicate in the altitude
  5. Travel to the point identified and repeat the process when you get in that location.

How to use a Map and compass 1

How to use a Map and compass 2

How to use a Map_and_compass 2

How to use a Map and compass 4

Watch the 3 other videos in this prepare.

How to use Map Scales and Grids

Rubber in the Outdoors

Maps and Heritage