Backcountry Basics: Navigating With or Without Technology | Get Out: A Guide to Adventure

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·Nov 11, 2024

My name is Hillary O'Neal and I am a professional ski mountaineer and adventurer. Today, we are going to talk about backcountry navigation. There are a lot of uses in many different environments that would require some level of skill in backcountry navigation. It's incredibly important to understand the basics of backcountry navigation so that you can be self-sufficient in any adventure you choose to go on.

Map and compass, or orienteering, is almost a sport in and of itself. You start it before you even leave or pack your bag; you can essentially plot your route out before you get into the field. If for whatever reason you lose your place on the map, then it's incredibly important to understand how to read a map to place yourself on that map when you're in the backcountry.

When you're out and you're using sun navigation, you're basing your directions off of the time of day and where the sun is based on that time of day. A general rule of thumb with sun navigation is that the width of your hand equals about an hour. You can gauge what time it is based on how many hand leads you from your horizon to where the sun is in the sky.

The simplest, most straightforward modern way of navigating would be using electronics. I use a Gaia GPS app, and that allows you to download maps so that if you're out in the backcountry and you're out of service, you still have access to the map. The one thing with all electronic navigation is that they are battery-powered. So I always have a compass and a map in my backpack as backup.

It's important to practice these in an environment that you know and are familiar with, and then get outside, get lost, and use navigation to find your way back home. [Music]

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Backcountry Basics: Navigating With or Without Technology | Get Out: A Guide to Adventure

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