Navigation

(in the 21^st century)

A thru-hiker in this day and age has a few options when it comes to route finding. Here are the key components of my navigational setup:

1. Maps and Compass

Map section of SoCal grabbed from Halfmile's website.

Yup, I’m a believer in ye olde map and compass. Really, I found that if I’m following a trail I rarely even need to use a compass. If I have a good sense of where the trail should go and what time of day it is and am paying attention (most important) I get along fine. It’s risky to put all my eggs in one gps-capable technological basket, so I will not rely solely on my fickle smartphone battery to hold out on me when I really need to know where I am. I’m carrying a small thermometer-compass combo on a keyring and Halfmile’s maps.

 “Who is Halfmile,” you may wonder? Only my personal hero for accurately and thoroughly creating a whole heap of maps for the Pacific Crest Trail. And he does it FOR FREE. Only thing I had to pay for was printing services through Yogi’s Books, where I bought my guidebook. Halfmile says that he does it to give back to the PCT, which gave him so much, and I say THANK YOU, Halfmile! Your generosity is inspiring. Check him out here: http://www.pctmap.net

2. Smartphone

I did it. I got a smartphone after carrying the same red flippy for eight years. And I did it mostly because I wanted a gps, phone, method for blogging, and access to my email all in one device. Since none of these things are critical to survival, I figure the most efficient use of space and weight would be to finally see what all the fuss is about and get one for my hike. And I’m digging it, can’t even lie.

A variety of PCT-related apps are available for free, so I went ahead and downloaded a couple. I’ll try using both of them and give a review of each once I’ve had a chance to test them out. They are Halfmile’s PCT and PCTHYOH (translation: Pacific Crest Trail Hike Your Own Hike)

3. SPOT Messenger

Not so much for me trying to locate the trail but for search and rescue to locate me. This handy little device takes four AAAs and offers me and my family peace of mind--it's one of the newer versions that allows me to send a plea for help to search and rescue in basically any location, even out of cell range, as well as send an "I'm okay" email to my family when I reach camp every night. It's one of those things that I hope doesn't come in handy TOO much but that makes me feel better carrying.