This direction finder is so simple, just about anyone can use it to determine North and South!
You need a traditional watch with actual hands or if you only have a digital watch, you need to switch it to the format that lets you see digital hands.
Hold a watch with 12 o'clock left. Move your arm so the hour hand points at the sun. The spot halfway is south.
In the southern hemisphere, split the difference for north. For daylight saving time, subtract one hour from the hour hand.
Pretty simple huh?
After you have determined North and South, determining East and West is easy: Face South and to your left is East and to your right is West (or reverse it if you face north.)
Using a tool like this allows you to do a lot of things: Obviously, figure out a transportation strategy, but also tell the direction weather will most likely travel, estimate how much daylight you have based on landmarks to navigate, decide what direction is the easiest to navigate, etc.
To learn more about how to find your way around the woods, check out Life Hacker.
Featured Image via Scouting Magazine
this is kinda old it was in my dykes motor manual from 1922
I first saw that on Sea hunt, with Lloyd Bridges, when I was a young un. he he.
Sun always rises in the East, so when you get up, stretch out your right arm to the mornings Sun, and your left to the west if you have a good idea as to were it will set, the you are faceing North, and your back to the South; you can do the same with sticks in the ground if you are staying in one place for a few days, one in the morning’s Sun rise, and the next at Sun set about a few inch’s apart, then in a 90% angle you set North and South… Boyscouts eat your hearts out.
thats good but by 4.30 up here it is dark already and a bit fearther north it stays dark
Shouldn’t that illustration be corrected so that the ‘N’ is really ‘S’?
Micah Feser
I can actually say that it is true and I actually tested it out when I was on the prime meridian on June 21st in the English Channel at 8 am the suns bearing was exactly at 080 I have to admit it was a crazy experience
the picture is ok if you are in south pole,in north pole your ansver is corect. (i am not good in english,i hope i write corect)
makes sense….