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August 2-6, 2012 - Great Lakes Traditional Arts Gathering

Briar Patch Outdoors

Land Navigation - Part Five

by Keith A. "Bootlegger" Williams

Transfer declination to a compass.

Though it may sound complicated, to make the transition between the two, it is really quite simple. If you are taking a bearing from a map, and the declination is on the left side, you ADD that number to your bearing number on the bezel ring. If it is on the right side, you SUBTRACT it from the number on the bezel ring.

The acronym that the Marine Corps uses to remember this is LARS (Left-Add- Right-Subtract). Another way to look at it is that if the declination number is on the left, you simply turn the dial left. If it is on the right, then you turn the dial to the right. Although this may sound complicated, it is really quite simple. To illustrate this, let's try an example:

Establish bearings from one point to another on a map.

In this example, if our desired route were straight down this road toward Craven Correctional Institution, the compass would tell us that we needed to go 36 degrees.

With this bearing dialed onto the compass we can see how far off it is, pointing instead, into the woods. While this may not be that obvious, or even that big of a deal in the beginning, as you can see, the problem increases more and more, as range increases. Since the declination must be compensated for, first the declination diagram must be located on the map.

According to this diagram, the declination is depicted as 8 degrees West, which means that the compass needle actually points 8 degrees West (or left) of True North. Notice that if someone attempted to use this bearing as it is, their actual direction of travel would be 8 degrees off to the left of their intended line of travel.

Transfer declination to a compass.

To correct this, since the declination in this example is 8 degrees West (or left); that 8 degrees must be added to the number on the Bezel Ring. The number now reads 44 degrees, and that automatically moved the ring to the left, thereby shifting the direction of travel in the correct direction.

Although this is a pretty quick and dirty overview, you should now have at least a basic knowledge of the principles of land navigation. I wish that I had had the time to provide you with more detailed instructions, but hopefully, this will have sparked an interest in some of you- so that you might go forth from here and pursue the more detailed points of the fine arts of Orienteering. I thank you for the opportunity to introduce you to this fun and valuable skill.

>> Book recommendations for further reading/training in land navigation <<

- Woodsrunner Tips -

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Briar Patch Outdoors
219 Holmes Street
Durand MI 48429
(989) 288-0168

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