Orienteering: Finding True North

There are many ways to find true north if you get disoriented while hiking. Though it may sound easy to walk in a straight line, it’s actually simple to get off-course. There are many ways to getting back on track, that is back to true north. Here are some simple methods, have a look below:

First method is to get a needle and cork, or something to make the needle float. Rub the needle on your clothes to magnetize it and then stick the needle through the cork or rest it on top of a leaf that floats, and place it in a puddle or cup of water. The needle will turn and point to true north.

Sticks
Another way to find direction without a compass requires the use of sticks. There are two ways to do this, one way during the day and one way at night. The first way, which you do during the day, is to put a stick in the ground so that it is sticking vertically up, and mark where the shadow is with a pebble or a rock. Wait 10-15 minutes, then mark where the shadow has moved. The original shadow indicates west and the direction the shadow moves is east.

The second way to get yourself directionally aligned can only be done at night. Get two large sticks, one bigger than the other. Stick the shorter one in the ground, and then just beyond it, jam the taller stick into the ground. Then bend over behind the smaller stick, and in your mind, make a line that goes from the top of the two sticks to a star in the sky. Watch the star for several minutes and the stars will change location (they aren’t moving, the Earth is, of course). If the star moves up that means you are facing east; down is west; if it moves right, then you’re facing south and finally, if it moves left, that is north.

What other ways have you used to get back on track?

Source: WikiHow