Compassing 101
Ahhh, the compass. It's a simple device, hardly more than a strip of magnetic steel swinging on a pivot, but—in the right hands—a compass can lead one across thousands of miles over land and sea virtually anywhere in the world. We won't be doing anything quite so ambitious as sailing around the world, but mastering the compass is a vital skill every letterboxer should have in their toolbox.
The focus of this tutorial is not, however, about using a map and compass. Map reading is certainly an important part of letterboxing, but in the world of letterboxing, a more accurate term might be 'map then compass.' Both are used in spades, but rarely at the same time. Maps are used to find the trailhead or a prominent landmark on a certain trail. Once found, maps are put away and the compass pulled out to actually find the letterbox. This tutorial will cover some basics on using maps with a compass—if for no other reason than you will know what else is out there and whether you'd like to pursue an 'Advanced Compassing' degree—but those details are not necessary for a long and prosperous letterboxing career.
This tutorial is divided into several lessons, each progressing to a higher level of skill and sophistication:
- Compasses & Terminology: This section will describe the parts of a compass, and what letterboxers should look for in a compass they are planning to purchase.
- Following & Finding Bearings: If there's one skill a serious letterboxer needs, following a bearing is it. But if you need to provide bearings for a clue of your own, we'll cover that too.
- Triangulation: For a more challenging compass experience, a clue might require you to triangulate the position of a letterbox. It takes a little extra work, but you're well on your way to mastering the compass with this technique.
- Declination: Rarely does a letterboxer need to worry to about declination—the difference between true north and magnetic north—but knowing it exists and when to account for it is a useful skill.
- Improvised Compasses: It happens to every letterboxer eventually. You're out on in the field, hunting down your prey, and then you realize: No compass. You forgot your darned compass. Don't give up hope just yet, though. Sometimes, you can improvise!
- What Now?: If you've made it this far, you should be quite an expert with the compass. Is that it? Not a chance!
Now, let's get started!