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Willderness Way
VOLUME 4, ISSUE 2.
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(continued)

A night version of the stick and shadow (Northern Hemisphere)
I recalled that stars, located away from the Celestial Poles, generally moved from east to west. I thought, “Maybe I can use this information in the same manner I had the sun.”
I selected a star and then went out and found a straight five-foot stick. In the nearby open meadow, I pushed the stick at a slight angle into the soft ground. Next, I tied my parachute line to the tip of the stick ensuring that it was long enough to reach the ground with lots to spare. Lying on my back, I positioned myself so that I could pull the cord tautly and hold it next to my temple. I moved my body around until the line pointed directly at the selected, non-circumpolar, star or planet.
At this point, the parachute cord represented the star’s shadow and, I placed a rock at the point where it touched the ground. I repeated this process two more times, waiting ten minutes between each. Similar to the stick and shadow, I realized that my first marking was west and my second mark was east. A perpendicular line helped me determine north and south. Once I established a northern heading, I used the moon as my guide since, similar to the sun, it travels approximately 15° an hour toward the western horizon.
However, before I began my night trek, I searched for and found a sturdy seven-foot long walking stick. I kept its low end in front of me, using it to ensure that the ground was there. I had heard stories of night travelers walking off cliffs and didn’t want to become another statistic.
Finally exhausted, I found a natural shelter, piled duff above and below me and hunkered down for the night. I should have made a fire, but I was just too exhausted. At four AM, I realized my error in judgement and it took me over 30 minutes to get a fire going. The metal match was cold, and it was hard to hold it steady while trying to strike a spark into the tinder. As I stared at the fire, I felt its warmth reaching for me, and like so many times before I reached back. I awoke to a spectacular stage. The glistening ground and sparkling trees provided a perfect setting for the birds that serenaded me. I was tempted to just stay there forever but the thought of my family kept me focused on returning home. Taking time to get up, I started to think of alternatives for the stick and shadow. I was tired of stopping every hour to re-orient. Since the sun was out, I decided to use my watch.

Navigating with a Watch
During my survival training, I had been the only student with a watch that had an hour hand. Even the instructor didn’t have one. In fact, he used my watch, along with the midday sun, to demonstrate how it could help someone find his or her cardinal directions.
I remembered how fascinated I was when he used a compass to verify the accuracy of his heading. At that time I thought, “I could navigate like that!” Now I wondered if I really could.
I pointed my watch’s hour hand towards the sun and holding it in this position, I drew an imaginary line midway between the hour hand and 1200-hour. This imaginary line represented a southern heading. Another line drawn perpendicular to this one made it possible to determine N/S/E/W. Using landmarks to stay on my heading, I spent most of the day walking and basting in the sun.
Taking a break during the midday sun, I thought about how I could use my watch if I was in the Southern Hemisphere (see illustration). There, I would point the watch’s 1200-hour symbol towards the sun and holding the watch in this position, I would draw an imaginary line midway between the 1200-hour symbol and the hour hand. This imaginary line provides an approximate northern heading. Another line drawn perpendicular to the original one makes it possible to determine N/S/E/W.
While taking my break, I noticed hundreds of ants on a nearby log. I killed as many as I could and immediately ate them. They tasted like lemon drops. Wanting more, I broke the log open and to my surprise, I saw a thick, wormlike larva. I was hungry, but could I eat this? As I bit into it, I could feel it moving and I quickly chewed and swallowed it. I thought, “Not bad but not something I’d want to do everyday.”


I washed my lunch down with the water from a nearby stream and continued on my northern heading. As nightfall advanced, I noticed the sky was clear. Tonight I could use Polaris (North Star) to determine my direction of travel.

Constellations
It was a spectacular evening. The moon, stars, and planets all glistened as if to say, “We’re here to help.” Since I was in the Northern Hemisphere, my eyes searched for Cassiopeia or the Big Dipper. I knew that these constellations would help me find my northern heading.
Finally, I spotted the Big Dipper. It was to my right, partially upside down, and with the cup end higher than its ladle. As I looked at it, I remembered how when I was a kid my Dad would say, “If the cup’s upside down, it’s fixing to rain.” I paused and prayed for sun.
To my left was Cassiopeia. Cassiopeia’s five stars formed a large W with its opening facing the Big Dipper. Half way between these constellations, I saw Polaris (the North Star). It was at the very end of the Little Dipper’s handle. I’d always thought it would be the brightest star in the sky, but instead, it was dull and uninviting. I kept it directly in front of me as I continued my trek, and when the trees obscured the star from view, I used the moon in the same way I had the sun.
As I traveled, I thought about what I would have done if south of the equator. Since Polaris wouldn’t be visible, I would need to use the Southern Cross (four stars forming a cross) and the Pointer Stars.
I wondered if I would be able to identify the Southern Cross or if I would mix it up with the False Cross that is close by, less bright, and with its stars more widely spaced. Knowing that the southern and eastern arms of the actual Southern Cross were two of the brightest stars in the sky made me feel confident that I would be able to recognize it.
The Pointer Stars would be easy to identify. They are simply two stars, side by side, and in close proximity to the Southern Cross. To establish a southern heading, I’d extend an imaginary line (from the top towards the bottom) out of the bottom of the cross. In addition, I’d draw an imaginary line perpendicular to the center of the Pointer stars. At the point where the lines intersect, I’d draw a third line straight down towards the ground and this line would represent a southern direction.
As the night wore on, I became tired and decided to establish a camp. I found a nice root buttress that required very little modification. This time I gathered wood and started a fire before settling in for the evening. I paid close attention to my fire placement to insure it would not ignite any roots and to increase the benefit of the fire’s heat; I placed a reflector so the fire was between it and my shelter. I managed to sleep most of the night.

I awoke to the sound of rain pounding the ground around me. The sun was gone. I became nervous as the glum of the overcast sky seemed to engulf me. I felt sick, empty, and depressed. It was as if all my hopes were evaporating into the surrounding mist. I wasn’t suicidal but I did fear for my mortality. I sat up and under my breath I mumbled, “how will I get home now?” I realized the limits on my ability to navigate. In addition, how would I stay dry and warm during the day? I was still in rough mountainous terrain.
I pulled out the family photo that I had hidden away inside my wallet. There was Annie, my wife, and my two daughters Rebecca and Dawn. I remembered how I’d felt at having to get dressed up for that picture. I wanted to wear blue jeans and a t-shirt. I had told Annie, “It’s stupid to get dressed up and it’s not me!” We had a big fight about it. She won but I complained throughout the whole sitting. At this moment, I’d gladly wear a Tux for a week just to spend a minute with my family. I missed them!
As I held the picture, I felt a tingle go up my spine. The same tingle I would get before a football game when the National Anthem played. The thought of my family rejuvenated my will to press on, no matter what.
I grabbed the dry duff I used to sleep on and put it between the layers of my clothing. I knew it would provide additional insulation and help keep me warm. I then sat down and used the STOP acronym to help me work through my navigation dilemma. When done, I had decided to try using a magnetized needle.

Using a Magnetized Needle
Although I knew I could use a magnetized needle to tell a northern heading, how would I get my needle magnetized? I wasn’t wearing anything silk, and I didn’t have a magnet. Fortunately, I had magnetized my knife before I’d left by rubbing it on my stereo speaker magnet. Would this work? I decided I’d try it.
I stroked one end of the needle on my knife. Next, I looked for a stump with standing water in the center. I laid the needle on a maple leaf and placed it into the water. It took about 2 minutes for the leaf to stop moving and when it stopped, the needle was on a north south direction. Since I did not know which end of the magnet I had used, I could only ascertain that the needle pointed north and south but not which way was north. Knowing I was on a northern heading when I entered camp helped me determine which way to go. Although this method allowed me to continue traveling, I had to stop every 15 to 30 minutes to re-orient myself.
The rain was a real pain! I stopped at midday, built a big fire and began to dry myself out. I placed the fire next to a treewell that protected me from the downpour. In addition, the overhanging branches sheltered my fire from the rain.
I sat down, took my boots and socks off, and began massaging my feet. While doing this, I saw a big black slug on the ground. I had eaten a grub already, but a slug? Slugs were something I used to pour salt on and watch as they melted into the ground. I was so hungry!
When I picked it up my stomach started to tighten as if someone had just hit me while I wasn’t looking. As I bit into it, a liquid paste squirted into my mouth causing waves of nausea like I’d only had when stricken with a bad stomach flu. It took all my willpower to continue chewing on the film-coated meal. I swallowed the slug as fast as I could and tried to get the taste out of my mouth by drinking lots of water. Unfortunately, No matter how much I drank, I couldn’t get that glue-like substance to go away. I got dressed and pressed on.
After another hour of travel, the sun came out and it felt so good! It reached down and touched my wet shoulders, creating a mist of hope. The accompanying rainbow was spectacular and its myriad of colors crescendoed over the mountain tops. It was as if it pointed towards my very own pot of gold, my home.
As my spirits lifted, I began to whistle and for the first time since my fall in the creek, I knew I would make it. I scrambled up a scree patch and into a saddle where I decided to stop, rest, and dry myself out. While lying next to the newly built fire, I decided to eat pine needles and inner bark from the Lodge Pole Pine tree that I was sitting under. The needles tasted tart and reminded me of oranges but the inner bark was bitter, as I envisioned turpentine would be.
Since the sun was out, I went back to using my watch to navigate. I figured I had at least one more day of travel before I would hit the road I was looking for. You can imagine my surprise as I crested the next hill and saw a paved road less then one-kilometer away. I felt like a kid who had just found a five-dollar bill in front of the candy store.
I picked up my pace and began whistling and singing stupid songs, which I made up and could never remember, as I headed down the hill. I thought about how good it would be to see my family again.

 

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