Hiking Accident Prevention: Why You Should Use A Compass and Map

A Map & Compass Are Hiking Survival Tools

Why should you learn to use a compass and map, when all you need is your GPS device?

The reason is battery failure. It’s ok to bring your GPS and cell phone, but don’t rely on them. In many wilderness areas, cell phone signals are weak or don’t exist.

If you’re not familiar with reading a map and compass, learn how to use them before your next trip. And then, put them in your pack for your next hike, even if it’s only for a day.

A compass and map applies to all skill levels, and is one of the 10 Essentials of Hiking.

Hikers sometimes get lost, or injured. If your device fails, or you aren’t carrying one, a map and compass could save you from hypothermia, or heat exhaustion.

Trail maps for U.S. national parks and U.S. forests can be ordered online from the U.S. Forest Service, and National Geographic, Click this link for State trail maps.

Where to buy a trail compass; Sporting goods stores, REI.com, Amazon.

____________________

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO: Trip Planning Resources For Hikers and Backpackers

___________________

Irene Pastore, is a Certified Personal Trainer, fitness blogger, health educator, and speaker. She has 24 years experience teaching exercise in New York City.  For her complete bio, visit the About Page.  


Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s