Thank you for sharing this.

I have been using gps for years but still always carry a compass -- whenever you actually need technology to work for you is when it won't.

Absolutely use one. Heck, my wife just got herself one today.

I used to do very well on compass courses in scouts

I have always had Silva but have had 3 with bubbles now , I get a good number of years but you know I want more years.

I like to carry 2 , I end up loaning my second out , I haven't ever needed it myself

I carry my primary on a string around my neck backup in a zippered pocket it has a string also

batteries seem to be my nemesis

I wear a watch I know another relic, start at a road go east 45 then north 45 and west 45 or something to that effect then 45 south back along the road and it is time for lunch at the truck

watch the time going in towards sunset , having looked at the season close chart and plan to be out a half hour before close.
go in from the road for about half the time then move over a couple hundred yards and head back to the road

I carry a GPS , I have 2 spare sets of batteries in a ziplock bag in a zippered pocket
I have my head lamp with batteries I should have a spare set .

if I am trying to walk parallels to someone we try and keep a pace and wait to get back together any time we can see each other. chasing after that hare I shot I got a bit turned around , I knew we had been heading north but I had no idea where my hunting partner was so I just yelled where are you , he yelled back over here then I had a direction.

I might go 50 yards look at my compass then 50 more when it is that thick and everything looks the same you can get turned easily.

If I had to reduce my library to 10 books, “Be expert with Map and Compass” would most likely be on the short list.

that looks like a very nice compass for shooting property lines or sighting a bearing on something far away

when I use a compass the most I can see about as far as my shotgun pattern is useful.

I find my most used compass is actually the simple little silva Polaris which they don't make anymore

I think I am going to get the suunto 30 because it has the little night dots and otherwise looks like a simple enough basic design.

I am glad to hear it is a good brand.

I keep one in my get home bags. I probably have 3 or 4. I need to use them more often but not much need around home. I’m always home seems like

I don’t use a map for a mere couple miles….but you can be sure I I use a compass…otherwise it will be more than a couple miles!! Snow helps too😀

This was my compass of choice. Hand Bearing Compass

You’re NOT alone!

I teach a survival course here in Montana and map reading/compass use is high on the agenda. Students learn quickly that they can find themselves on a map even when they had no idea where they were. A compass alone is a valuable piece of gear. A compass with a map is a real life saver.

Suunto makes fantastic compasses. There’s no need for the big and bulky aluminum frames, most notably a Cammenga. I have a few and they’re just large and heavy. A baseplate compass is a great tool.

The Suunto MC-2 is what I recommend

it's actually pretty useful in the thick stuff, too. once you have your azimuth, pick an object along that. walk to it and repeat. can quickly stay on a straight line, even in the nasty stuff.

I keep one on the boat for when heavy fog rolls in, first rule of using a compass ,, is to believe the compass!!! you mind will play tricks on you, lol

But...that mini chart plotter app on the phone sure is handy,....

this is TRUE! there have been several times where I was absolutely CONVINCED I needed to go a different way than what the compass said. It's very difficult to overcome your own mind.

(btw...the compass was right!)

I've always been told the first thing a lost person does is start doubting the compass. I've had it happen to me a few times. The compass was always right, I was not.

I think the new technology is more than useful- it's a game changer, I love it and use it daily. With that said- it shouldn't be a replacement for orienteering knowledge for an outdoorsman, knowing how to use a compass with a map is a critical skill. Or else, it becomes another skill that falls by the wayside, same as a what the calculator did to math skills.

which is why you have to have a good compass you tested while you can see so that you know you can trust it when you can't see.


not going to lie in fog the radar on dads boat is great , dad has all the nav electronics well most of them anyway.

trolling just give me a bearing or I will pick one and I am watching the big boat compass how I started so it just works for me

anything you can see trolling is also moving at a troll , can't see shore much of the time

in my boat I have Garmin auto draw on my small sonar gps unit which is great for finding my way right back into the launch or down the channel. I am also always able to see shore as it is a small boat I don't go to big water some long water but not really big water.


I like to have a map of the lake I am going too , the fishing hots spots maps are not perfect but good enough in most cases.

batteries, my Friend. Batteries.

and no signal...

I never go into the bush without my Silva.