Compass Skills

Name the parts of a compass

This skill is required to earn your bronze star for map and compass. Click Here for the list of all the requirements.

How to follow a bearing that you are given

(This skill is required to earn your bronze star for map and compass. Click Here for the list of all the requirements)

Let’s say we are given a bearing that says to stand at a certain spot and take 25 paces at 225 degrees.

Here are the steps to follow.

Hold the compass flat in your hand.
Turn the dial until the 225 degree marking on the dial matches up with the bearing marker.
Point the compass so that the direction-of-travel arrow points directly away from you.
Turn your entire body until the north end of the needle (colored red) rests inside the orienting arrow. Remember, “Red Fred In The Shed”.
You are now facing at 225 degrees. Take 25 paces forward and you are exactly where you want to go.

How to get a bearing on an object that you can see

(This skill is required to earn your bronze star for map and compass. Click Here for the list of all the requirements)

Let's say that are outdoors and you see a tall tower from where you are standing. You want to know the bearing so that you can use your compass to walk towards it. How do you get the bearing?

Here are the steps to follow.

Stand and turn to face the tall tower.
Hold the compass flat in your hand with the direction-of-travel arrow pointing to the tall tower.
Turn the dial until the north end of the needle (colored red) rests inside the orienting arrow. Remember, “Red Fred In The Shed”.
Read the degree marking on the dial that lines up with the bearing marker. You now have a bearing on the tall tower.

How to orient a map

(This skill is required to earn your bronze star for map and compass. Click Here for the list of all the requirements)

Orienting a map allows you to match what you see on the map with what you see around you.

Follow these steps to orient your map.

Place your compass on the map with the direction of travel arrow pointing toward the top of the map (north).
Turn the dial so that the N (or zero on some compasses) is lined up with the bearing marker.
Slide the entire compass so that the edge of the base plate lines up with the edge of your map.
Turn the entire map, without moving the compass, so that the north end of the needle (colored red) rests inside in the orienting arrow. Remember, “Red Fred In The Shed”.

How to use a compass with a map

(This skill is required to earn your bronze star for map and compass. Click Here for the list of all the requirements)

Using a compass and a map together lets you navigate safely and accurately. The best way to learn how to do this is by giving an example.

Let’s say you have a map and you know where you are on the map. We’ll call that Point A. You also know where you want to travel to. We’ll call that Point B. To travel from Point A to Point B on the map, follow these steps.

Draw a line between Point A and Point B.
Line up the edge of the base plate with the line you just drew. Make sure that the direction of travel arrow is pointing in the direction you will travel.
Turn the dial so that the orienting lines are aligned with the grid lines on the map. All you’re doing here is aligning the compass with the map.
Carefully lift the compass off the map and hold it flat in the palm of your hand.
Turn your body so that the north end of the needle (colored red) rests inside in the orienting arrow. Remember, “Red Fred In The Shed”.
Look at where the direction of travel arrow is pointing. That’s the direction you want to travel. You know this is true because you first aligned the compass with the map.

Here is a link to a very good Boy's Life video on this: https://youtu.be/NRegjmtXq3g

How to complete the 3-leg compass walk

(This skill is required to earn your bronze star for map and compass. Click Here for the list of all the requirements)

The 3-leg compass walk will help you improve your accuracy of taking bearings.

Here's how to do it.

Stand in a large open area where you can walk 25 paces in any direction.
Mark the location on the ground you are standing with a bright colored marker of some sort.
Next, turn the dial and set the bearing for 0° (or N) and point your body toward that direction.
Hold your compass up to your line of sight and locate a landmark off in the distance.
Follow this bearing for exactly 25 paces, always walking toward the landmark, and then stop.
Now, set a bearing of 120° on your compass and find another landmark that falls along it.
Travel along this bearing for another 25 paces, always walking toward the landmark, and then stop again.
Finally, set a bearing of 240° on your compass, sight a landmark, and follow this bearing for 25 paces again.

If you've done everything correctly, you should have returned to the spot where you set the bright colored marker. The closer you are to your marker, the more accurate your navigation. Do this three times and try to become more and more proficient.

Next, increase the challenge by doubling the number of paces to 50.

How to Following a general direction to get to a road, trail, stream, or river

Use this method to travel safely in unfamiliar terrain when you don't have a map. Let’s say you don't know exactly where you are but you know that there is a road, trail, stream, river or something long and big that you can't miss if you go in the right direction, and you know in what direction you must go to get there, at least approximately.

Let’s say you know that if you go East you will eventually get to the road, trail, stream, or river. Here are the five easy steps to follow:

Identify East on the dial. That would be the 90 degree mark on the dial.
Rotate the dial so that the 90 degree mark on the dial lines up with the direction of travel arrow.
Hold the compass in your hand very flat and turn your body until the red part of the compass needle is aligned with the 90 degree mark on the dial.
Look at where the direction of travel arrow is pointing. That’s the direction you want to walk.
Aim with your eyes on some point in the distance and start walking. If walking long distances, do the aim and walk method quite frequently, say every 50-100 ft.

How to use your compass while walking around obstacles

When you reach an obstacle while hiking with a compass, the best method for maintaining your course is to hike a rectangle around the object. Here's how to do it -

Set a new bearing 90 degrees from your original heading and walk that until you have cleared the obstacle along that axis. You can chose either left or right. Just turn 90 degreesFor example, if you original bearing was 30 degrees, hike a new bearing of 120 degrees (30 + 90). While walking, maintain a count of paces.
Go back onto your original bearing, parallel to your original course until you clear the obstacle along that axis.
Set a bearing 90 degrees back to your original bearing. 300. and walk the same number of paces.
Now turn back to your original bearing. You will be along your original line of travel.

How to measure your distance per pace

A good way to measure ground distance is by using the pace count. A pace is equal to two natural steps, but can very according to your height and stride. The idea is to know the distance of your pace so that you can accurately determine distance while walking. For example, if you walk 10 paces and know that your pace distance is 3 feet, you can safely assume that you have traveled 30 feet, or at least close to it.

This can come in handy when completing an orienteering course. To complete the course you may be provided with a series of bearings along with a distance. You can determine the direction of travel by using your compass but would have no idea how long to keep walking unless you knew your pace distance.

Here is how to calculate your pace distance.

Materials you will need:

Notepad
Pencil
A small calculator would help

Choose a level area where you can walk straight between two markers.
Measure a set distance from one marker to the other. Using a measuring tape is good for this. It doesn't matter what distance you measure out but keep in mind that the longer the distance, the more accurate your pace distance will be. A suggested distance is 50 feet.
While standing at one marker, step out with your left foot then walk in a straight line toward the other marker.
Each time your right foot hits the ground, count that as 1 pace. (That means you'll take two steps to count one pace).
Keep counting paces until you reach the farther marker.
Now, divide the distance you measured by the number of paces that you counted to come up with your pace distance. For example, if you’ve measured out 50 feet and you've taken 25 paces, your pace distance is 2 feet.

My pace distance: ______________

Tip: Remember that the longer the distance, the more accurate your pace measurement will be. If you want a much more accurate pace measurement, walk the distance two more times then add the numbers together and divide by three. That will average out some of the variances in your steps.

Now that you know your pace distance, you can estimate how far you walk. All you need to do is keep track of the number of paces that you travel and multiply that number by your calculated pace distance.

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