I've always been a swamp man
 

Here I am in Fort Stewart Georgia as an infantry soldier.. I was always the point man.{Man in front on maneuvers} Compass skills are a must. I need to get a good compass. Last Sat. I was doubting my cheap Walmart compass and it almost cost me.:(

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

Nice pic Chuck!

I also am in the hunt for a good compass. I have a nice Garmin hanheld GPS, but would like a nice compass to include in my pack just in case. The GPS has been useful in scouting Green Swamp I am able to take waypoints and enter the lat/long on google earth, and vice versa and get lat/long from GE for GPS on interesting looking areas. It helps in scouting everynight on the couch from the computer.

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

i usually have a couple of cheapy compasses with me, even out of season, lol....the first thing i was taught was to always trust your compass......but i rarely use them, i try to use the sun as much as possible, but theres always those times when theres no sun, lol.....it's always good for the peace of mind it gives you, at least it does me.....lol...look like my area, went out to bring there today to bring my climber, it is wet.......but thats good, might keep other hunters out of there.....my first hunt is thurs. , i'm so excited.....:D

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

i actually got lost in greenswamp west last year for a few hours. classic overcast day and no compass:eek:. that is probably one of the worst feelings i've ever felt

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

Compasses are a must in my book. I sometimes carry two. I like my GPS but they fail and batteries go bad. The Compass never fails. If all else keep and eye on the compass and trust it.

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

In the military all the terrain was new so you had no choice but to trust your compass..plus we had the best compasses money could buy.They didn't shake..they were steady..

The problem I had Sat. was the compass shook too much..and I was a little usedto the area so I doubted the compass to where it was nearly useless. I plan to get a good compass ...off of ebay.

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

Would it better to use UTM Coordiantes on GPS than Lat/Long? That way you can set it to meters/feet for checking locations on maps and better guide yourself in areas you do not know

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

What we did n the military was..

Shoot an asthmus...example 240 degrees on your compass.

If you were to walk 400 yds you would have a shoe string tied to a belt loop.EVery 100 yds you tie a knot. When you have 4 knots tied you should be at your dissignation...The problem with cheap compasses ..they shake too much and all the numbers are not there. For new places I use Goggle Earth...you can fine point it when you get there using a compass. Goggle has a built in measurement tool.

My problem last Sat..cheap compass...and I felt pressured to hurry up and get there .thus losing my tacks...you don't want to be in a hurry getting to your stand.

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

Chuck,

Get a good orienteering compass, they are worth gold in my opinion. Thanks for sharing the shoe string trick. I like that. I like Googe Earth Too. I under if use it too much and we all end up hunting the same type of areas that we can identify on google earth?
Here is the compass I use and recommend:

http://www.amazon.com/Silva-2801149-Guide-426-Compass/dp/B000EQ81SS/ref=pd_bbs_8/103-6505031-1671864?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1190739545&sr=8-8

I also like the compasses that glow like this one too:

http://www.amazon.com/Suunto-A-30L-Compass-Northern-Hemisphere/dp/B000L0F68U/ref=pd_bbs_sr_6/103-6505031-1671864?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1190739545&sr=8-6


Midsouth,

GPS are great and I love them and use them. But I use and trust my compass the most. A compass never fails. I like to cross check my GPS to the compass. Getting lost in the swamp is no place I want to be. Keep thinking what you will do if you GPS breaks.

Cheers,
CB

RE: I've always been a swamp man
 

Thanks Chris,
The ones we had in the military ..we would put in front of a jeep headlight for 5 minutes and they would glow all night.Most manuevers in the military were done at night time.