Natures signposts

Anyone setting off on a walking tour which will take him to isolated areas should be equipped with a compass and good maps. The Ordnance Survey maps, for instance, are excellent for this purpose. However, should you be unfortunate enough to get lost without a compass or a map, there are ways of finding your way by using nature's own signposts. We shall tell you how later in this article. But in the meantime let's see how to use a compass.

The dial is marked out to a total of 360°. North is at 0°, south at 180°, West at 270° and east at 90°. If you want to go east, turn the movable hand until it points at 90°; hold the compass absolutely flat in your hand and turn it until the point of the magnetized needle points precisely towards the magnetic north (a little to the west of the geographic north); east is where the indicator is now pointing.

Watches as an emergency compass
If you get lost and haven't got a compass, it is possible to convert an ordinary watch to work as one. Hold the watch absolutely flat in your hand in such a way that the hour hand is pointing precisely at the sun. Put a matchstick across the face of the watch, exactly half way between the hour hand and the figure 12 on the watch face; where the match point is full south. At midday, the hour hand and the figure 12 will point in the same direction — the south. In the morning you will find your matchstick lies between the hour hand and the figure 12; in the afternoon it will lie between the figure 12 and the hour hand.

If you think you are lost, then don't go on; the chances are that you will simply walk around in circles. Try to remember at which spot you still knew that you were on the right road. Mark the spot where you are now and try to retrace your steps. If you are walking in a part of the country which is not familiar to you, it is a good idea to leave some marks which you will recognize on your way back. You could put chalk marks on the trees, or leave a trail of stones or branches.

Nature points the way
Nature has its own clues which will help you to know where you are heading. Here are just a few natural "signposts".

1 At 6 am the sun is in the east, at midday in the south, and at 6 pm in the west.

2 At night the North Star points the way to the north.

3 Rivers and streams flow away from woods, mountains and hills. Man has settled along rivers since early days, so you have only to follow one to come upon some form of human habitation.

4 Even if you are not aware of being near water, if you can see animal tracks, follow them; most of the time they lead to water.

5 The trunk of a tree will often indicate which is west, or North West; this side of the trunk is often covered with a layer of moss as there is more rain from this direction.

6 The annual rings on a tree trunk are more developed on the south side than on the north side.

7 Ant heaps are usually found on the south side of trees, as ants seek protection against the rain and look for maximum sunshine.

8 Plants need light and grow towards it, so you will see them turned towards the south. Trees tend to be leafier on the south-facing side and have fuller blossom and more fruit. These are only some ways of reading nature. As you learn to look carefully you will discover other ways in which it acts as a compass.

Why the compass needle points to the north
The compass needle points in the direction of the magnetic North Pole. The needle is a small magnet. If the earth's magnetic poles coincided with the geographic poles (north and south) there would be no problem and the compass needle would point precisely to the geographic north. But as the magnetic poles are actually several hundreds of miles away from the geographic poles there is a deviation or so-called compass error. There may also be temporary fluctuations in the magnetic field of the earth. Interference may also occur if there are other magnetic metals — such as a wrist watch — nearby.