Wanted: Solid navigation training!

Have you found an instructor yet? I really enjoy compass use, and tend to have a compass out for watching even when I don't need it, but I also don't think it's critical in navigation. It's also fairly useless for anyone with no idea how to use it, which is why I get sceptical when I see people simply advising newbies to take a compass without suggesting actually knowing how to use it. If navigation is about retaining location awareness, though, or at least an awareness of how to get where you need to be, then a compass can be one of the tools for retaining that awareness. So is a map. So is a GPS. So is prior knowledge of where you're going. So are eyes and ears. The specific details of using a compass are really simple. The biggest problem I've had is arguing with others about which method's being used when comparing bearings. Once you've knowledge of cardinal directions, though, there are multiple ways that knowledge can be applied to other info in an environment to give you a clearer idea of where you are and where you're going. (eg. If you're spending hours walking up a creek, you can keep track of which direction you're walking at various times compared with a map to keep track of how far you've gone.) This is the sort of time when experience with other people who know what they're doing is really valuable, but chances are they'll be using much broader skills than simply compass use.

I always carry a compass on a lanyard, but I seldom have much use for it except to orient the map to the north. Which is no small thing in itself (back in the noob days, I got myself well and truly lost for a day and a half once, which simply would not have happened had I of had a compass along. School fees).

Izogi, I would mostly agree with much of what you say. However, if you haven't needed to use your compass or GPS, then you have never been caught out off track in dense fog. With low to very low visibility, the most obvious landmarks and features of the landscape won't help you, and you can get lost pretty quickly if you have no tools to reliably determine which direction exactly you're walking in. Been there, done that, and would definitely have spent an unplanned night above the treeline if I hadn't had a compass along with a good topo map of the area. Nowadays many people carry a GPS, or use their phone GPS. However, electronics can fail or - more commonly - run out of battery. A compass weighs very little, and can turn an entire day around into something pretty benign that could otherwise easily turn into disaster. For that reason, personally I still feel while you're likely not going to need the compass a lot, it's prudent to carry one. For the same reason I think it's not smart not to carry a paper map - which, other than the battery of your phone or possibly even GPS, will still work on the extra day that you didn't plan to spend out there, but were forced to for some reason or other. Of course, no tools will help you much without understanding how to use them. Navigation is a complex topic, but you've got to start learning somewhere, and getting a solid deliberate introduction into how to use these tools from someone who has a lot more knowledge than the beginner is a very good way to lay a foundation. That's what we're after here. Still in talks with a couple of potential people to learn from. It's a it difficult to find a day that works for everyone involved.

As in happens, izogi, it was walking up a river (in Aus, with absolutely no features visible above the ridges on either side) and missing the spur to take me up to the track out, that I finally decided I needed a GPS. It just wasn't possible (for me, at least) to judge the twists and turns of the river and match it with the map - the straight bits were infrequent and short. Map and compass just wasn't doing it. Since then, map, compass, GPS and loaded tracks (and PLB) go on every trip. The GPS has saved positional embarassment a few times but the map and reading the terrain is the most useful. The other useful navigation item I carry is an altimeter (a watch with barometer). Particularly useful in NZ, matching altitude to the map contours is a quick way to locate yourself.

Bad phrasing perhaps, @Mariku, and I pretty much agree with what you've said. There are definitely situations I'd not want to be in without a compass. On the other hand I don't think it's critical if following a major and well signposted track. (I still consider this navigation, but it's using different skills and techniques.) That statement's also tied with an obligation to understand the limitations of your current ability based on current skills and equipment. ie. Don't tear off an obvious track into the wilderness without having the ability to deal with it. I guess my intended point is that I don't see navigation as straightforward as 'map and compass', which is what I often see people claiming. There are a heap of skills and equipment. They're all useful in their various ways, often in conjunction with each other, for getting and retaining a reliable awareness of how to get to where you want to be. Also @bernieq, yes altimeters are awesome. My main barometric altimeter is tied to the GPS, so I have to force myself not to cheat when I'm trying to practice with it. I'm a bit out of practice with everything lately, though. (Real life's been intervening with tramping. :) )

Rogaining can be a good way to practice navigation, especially at night. It can require repeated navigation decisions every 5 minutes, as oppposed to every 5 hours sometimes when tramping...theres some events on in Chch currently: http://canterburyrogaine.com/ The simplest tool to taking accurate bearings is by drawing true north gridlines on your map at home, minimises chances for errors/faffing around when trying to take a bearing in abhorent conditions in nail-biting cold in a cyclone, which is when you normally need to.