It is the weekend before rifle deer hunting season opens in Michigan. The mid-morning weather is bright, crisp, and clear. Leaves from the oak and maple trees completely cover the ground. Here and there you can spot a patch of snow clinging on, though it is unlikely to last as the temperature is creeping up to a high in the lower 50s. I am going for a day hike on the North Country Trail with several friends; we're walking a section of trail many of us have hiked before, though it has been a few years. We are all expecting to have a thoroughly enjoyable hike on trail that should pose no real problem during an autumn day that promises to be as close to perfect as one could wish.
Walking through the woods, we passed a charming little cabin that we knew was occupied, as a hint of wood smoke filled the air. We noticed that we were, unfortunately I thought, spending a fair bit of time walking into the sun. Then we came to the Big Sable River and the Vince Smith Memorial Bridge. This is a lovely clear river that has nice camping spots nearby. Our group slowly spread out as faster hikers took the lead and those of us who wanted to take photos or do other things, like gather detailed trail distance measurements, lagged behind. There was no need to rush, as the trail is fairly gentle the whole way, and we had well over five hours until sunset to hike the entire 13-mile section.
Time passed and I found myself hiking with one other person, also an experienced and knowledgable backpacker. We were having a grand time and were not too concerned that the rest of the group was out of sight and earshot. Perhaps we were having too much fun, because not long after cresting a gentle hill, we made a mistake: we stepped off the trail and onto a two-track. The NCT uses two-tracks now and again, but that wasn't the case this time. We followed the two-track until it reached a Forest Service road, a good third of a mile, before realizing our error. We thought we may have made a mistake, since we had not seen any blazes in a while, but coming to the road was the clincher. Oh well, things like that happen to everyone. Turn around, walk back, find a blue blaze and continue on. No harm done.
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" "Good" compasses get air bubbles?"
Not normally. However, I have had some really expensive compasses that got flexed or stepped on or otherwise abused, and the liquid capsule got torqued enough that an air bubble grew in there.
Currently, I don't use any compasses much while backpacking, but I carry one small one just to avoid the embarrassment of getting lost someday.
Remember, thirty years ago that compass skill was a big deal.
–B.G.–
I've encountered this on Ebay. Some sellers relate that compasses that get shipped via Airmail develop bubbles.All I can say is that stuff I bought on the ground in China eventually developed bubbles.I can't say for sure if it was after I flew home? There is also a tendency of wrist compasses on watchbands to tend to orient towards your watch. Very unnerving if you haven't tested things out in a known environment. Also look at Suunto totally dropping the Clipper which has at least 3 generic versions vs . their M-9 at a much higher price point. When in doubt maybe 2 compasses and isolate at least 1 away from your watch or anything metal camera etc? My current plan.
My "good" compass doesn't have liquid in it. Maybe liquid compasses are "not so good?"
:)
Probably , but then those who dive are in a much bigger fix? That being darkness and dwindling time?
Once in Colorado we found a compass that was perfectly backwards. The red end of the needle pointed south when it was supposed to point north. I kept it hidden when I was doing compass courses with kids. I was going to give it to some poor kid but I never felt mean enough. I think it was an error in the painting because it was always 180 degrees off.
I once had one of those 'broken' gps's showing me to be moving in the opposite direction of what I knew to be true…. As well as a fair share of maps with 'misprints'….
Ken,
Thank you for sharing your experience. Like some the of the others, I've also had this happen to me. :)
I've witnessed this happen before where people ignore their GPS, or the location of the sun, because they are certain they know which direction they're going. My husband was so sure on a trip last winter that he ignored me telling him we were headed North instead of South for a half hour, until he finally said to me, "We're going the wrong way, aren't we?". Haha. Myself, I have one of the worst senses of direction ever, so I use a GPS or compass always.
Thanks for sharing the story.
Just a month a go in Emigrant I tried to take a "Short cut" it was only a 1/4 mile or so off trail but took me over an hour to realize I was off course and find my way back to the trail.
So I totaly agree with Cameron
“Short cuts make for long delays.”
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