A good day out with chums can be had with a map, compass, and pace beads.
One of you works out a route and provides instructions. Things like, 'Face bearing 245 degrees and walk on this heading for 750 metres. At the junction you arrive at follow the path that heads roughly eastward for 500 metres. Then turn to face directly north and walk for 1200 metres. From here make for map coordinate AA123456...' etc.
You can leave them to it and arrange to meet them at certain points - a good way of ensuring that no one's got lost.
We found pace beads are surprisingly accurate. They do say allow a margin of error of about 10 per cent but my experience is that they are a lot more accurate than that. I remember a walk across Ashdown Forest, with various bearing changes during our trek, and my foot come down on the road we were heading for directly opposite the junction we wanted at exactly the right count. That is the exception, mind you. But it is a remarkably accurate system.
It's also a very liberating feeling being able to get yourself any where on a map with just a compass and a few beads.
Navigation exercises with friends is great fun and the results are empowering. You have a real sense of achievement when it works and a feeling you have learnt a truly great and useful skill. It's also something new and interesting to do in a patch of woods you are otherwise very familiar with.
Stick with it.
), here's a link to the videos I mentioned by The Bushcraft Padawan (Craig Taylor), lots of good info, well explained and easy to follow , link takes you to his Navagation play list.
