GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

I own both, which would you use in the wildernessfor hunting, scouting, I like the GPS for finding area's that I hunt, but I learned on the compass, and enjoy using both. So, if you had to pick, which one?

Dr. Mike

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

I follow my nose...... where ever it leads me.:) Were I to travel to the far west or big unknown country I'd carry my compass since I don't have a GPS. Most of the time I forget it. I've only been to places I didn't want to go twice,:eek: and then only for an hour or two.:eek:[:-]

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

I use both depending on where I am hunting and how far I am going. Most of the time I just use my compass. I always reference my compass when I use my GPS. Where I hunt in the river bottoms it will often take a GPS a few minutes to update when I start to walk out. However, you can take the bearing from the GPS and use the compass to start out on that bearing and the GPS will then catch up and update. If not the GPS you will often send you in the wrong direction for a couple of minutes until it updates and then send you in the right direction. In my case if I go the wrong direction for a couple of minutes it may cause me to have to cross a slough that is too deep to cross or go way out of the way to get to somewhere that I can cross. So I always carry both.

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

I never go out in the Big woods/wilderness areas without my compass. Im on my second GPS and I enjoy using it as a way of storing information, preplaning routes and marking possible sites I find on the map and want to explore later.
I hunt out of state a lot and hunting many spots I only visit when I draw tags, having a waypoint list helps save time and refresh my memory.
Plus I like the technology, it's amazing what the average man has access to in this day and age.

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

Compass. Doesn't need batteries, doesn't have to be moving to work. A compass works the second you pull it out and doesn't have to connect to satellites. A compass is free of government intervention. It'll work in the thickest folaige and even under water. Most models weigh less and take up less space than a GPS. In conjunction with a topo map it will take you to desired locations.

I do use a GPS for blood trailing and marking new spots that I'd like to return to. They are good for finding the area on aerial photos and topo maps via the internet. They are not as accurate as they claim to be, however. They are IMO much more reliable in open terrain than they are in wooded areas.

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

I don't take my compass much since I got my GPS, but it always a good idea to have a back up. After I have been to an area once I really don't need either. I like to take my GPS in case I hit something big and have to go get help dragging it out. I'll mark it on the GPS and it makes it easier to get right back to.
B

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

GPS to mark potential stand locations, and other points of interest. Compass to make sure I will make it home.

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

If I'm in my own neck of the woods I usually only take a compass, and that's more or less just for stand orientation and wind direction check.

However, I have been hunting numerous times in some pretty wild country, where if you get lost you are most likely going to spend the night. When I hunt places with vast amounts of wilderness I always carry both and extra batteries too. In my opinion many people can't navigate very well in a wilderness setting with a compass only. Generally, some sort of orienteering training is required if you are planning on using map and compass only on a wilderness hunt. Many people cannot read a topo map to save their life, so in a situation like that the compass is not all that much help. However, if you save waypoints on your GPS (like the location of the truck, or main trail) it is a snap to navigate. When it's time to head out of the woods, turn on the GPS and select the go to function for the waypoint you want to navigate to. The GPS will give you the bearing and distance, then all you do is use your compass to maintain the bearing. Works every time.

With that said, it is still a good idea to learn how to use map and compass only. The GPS could always break... Jim

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

I use neither and haven't really ever had a problem. In a unfamilair swamp or prarie I could see a GOS being handy though

RE: GPS or Compass, which do you prefer?
 

For scouting stand locations, I like to use my GPS. But the problem with a GPS is you have to walk at a certain pace to get it to register your movement. Even though I use my GPS, I always carry my compass as well. It has never led me wrong.