Re: [Paddlewise] Routes: quilts, carpets and songs

Regarding the book described by Patrick:

Any sea kayaker interested in navigation with charts and compass 
should read this book. It is terrific!  They would watch the flight 
of certain species of birds at dusk because they knew the birds 
returned to land for the night. They recognized reflected wave 
patterns that were generated by islands far over the horizon. They 
noted changes in currents in the Pacific by observing changes in the 
way waves lay down or rose up as they crossed in and out of currents.

These navigators knew the prevailing wave patterns so that day or 
night under overcast, they could still maintain correct bearings to 
islands hundreds of miles apart. They knew the zenith stars that were 
over the latitude of the islands they were trying to reach.

Most importantly, before Europeans had compasses, these traditional 
mariners used the "sideral" compass- orientation of the stars at 
night. They knew the bearings of successive stars rising and setting 
to set their courses to islands scattered all over the Pacific.

These people knew how to navigate in this manner for a couple 
thousand years- but they were considered primitives by europeans 
right up to the early 20th century.

This book is still in print; it costs about $25., and is worth every 
penny of it.  I have read it several times, and wrote a book review on 
a few years ago.

Chuck Sutherland  




Subject:       Re: [Paddlewise] Routes: quilts, carpets and songs
Reply-to:      patrick_at_patrickmaun.com
Cc:            "'Paddlewise'" <Paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net>
Date:          Wed, 27 Feb 2002 10:21:28 +0100

I had an interesting book a few years back (which I gave away as 
a gift so can't reference it) that was an interesting look at navigation 
by various Pacific Islanders. As I recall, they used birds and flight 
patterns quite a bit. I checked and it looks like the book is:

"We, the Navigators : The Ancient Art of Landfinding in the Pacific"
by David Lewis, Derek, Sir Oulton (Editor)

-Patrick

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