How to Determine Direction at Outdoors

It’s wonderful to go hiking or camping at outdoors. It’s not only a way for you to relax but also a great chance for you to explore the unveiled wonders of nature. Before setting out for an exciting journey, you need to make yourself full prepared. You need to bring essential gears. And you also need to know what to do if there is any emergency. When hiking in an unfamiliar area, you may lose your way easily. There are several ways for you to tell directions outside.

The first way is to tell by the location of sunrise and sunset. This is a rough way to tell. But you can get a general idea of the east and west directions. Because of the location of the earth and its rotation track towards other stars in the space, we can find the sun generally moves from the east to the west. It varies a bit in different seasons. The basic direction can be roughly right. Thus you have enough time, observe the moving direction of the sun during the day.

The second way is to use your watch if there is any. To be able to do this, simply face the hands of the watch to the direction of the sun. Check the direction of hand after 30 minutes. Key point is to mind the space between the moved hand and the fixed 12 scale on the plate. The space between tells you where the south is. This is quite useful if you only have a watch with you.

The third way is to judge by the shadow cast by the sun. This is suitable for sunny days. Find a straight and long stick and insert or make it fixed to the ground. Then mark the tip of the shadow of the stick. Then after 30-60 minutes, mark the new top of the shadow of stick again. Then use your feet or other straight stick to connect the two marks; then you will find yourself face the north.

The fourth way is to use the Polaris at night to look for the directions. It’s another simple way to judge. All you need to do is to spot out the Big Dipper. Pay attention to the direction of the spoon of Big Dipper. The spoon is little above the Polaris. Polaris is pointing to the north.

The fifth way is to observe nature at outdoors. If you are lost in the woods in the wild, find an independent tree. Observe the different structure of the tree. Usually the side with lush leaves or branches is the south. If there is broken tree, observe its ring of the trunk. The side where the ring is sparse and thin is the south.

The sixth way is to bring a compass with you. It can be a cheap pocket compass or any other more complicated device based on your needs. Generally speaking, for daily outdoor use, a cheap pocket compass is enough to tell you about the directions. It’s usually highly portable and easy for operation. Make sure you start out with the right setting and then you will find its hand point to the north.

If you find yourself stand in the place of nowhere in the journey, stay calm and think rationally. There are always a number of ways for you to find your direction. The great outdoor can always provide you with miracles.

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