Re: [Paddlewise] A good read suggestion

On 7/23/07, Will Jennings <will_at_bigwoodenradio.com> wrote:
>
>
> SAR people familiar with going after lost hikers know that many
> become lost precisely because they are so convinced in the
> infallibility of their navigational 'instincts' or even actual map
> reading skills.  Once on a solo hike off trail north of Jasper,
> I was convinced I'd found a specific high lake in thick mist and
> fog.  I would have bet the ranch on it. .......
>
> .....Ooops.  I was one drainage over and at a smaller, similarly shaped
> pond of a lake.



Anyone who navigates must surely have had a similar experience. At a small
airport (now closed) north of Seattle we named a nearby body of water "Lake
WTF" (you can feel free to provide your own words for the initials) because
it was so similar to the lake just south of the airport. The name came from
an exclamation, "WTF happened to the airport?" uttered by a close friend on
what should have been final approach. The problem of actually finding the
airport was created by nearby Paine Field and the necessity to stay low and
outside their traffic zones. This airstrip (Martha Lake for those who are
interested) was placed off-limits by all local aircraft rental businesses
(FBOs) because it was short (1500 feet), difficult to find and had an
approach hampered by one very tall tree; which was why we liked it,
actually.

Over the years I've visited "WTF Mountain", "WTF Island" and "WTF Bay" plus,
no doubt, more  similar places graciously erased from my memory by the
intervening decades. None were fatal but some of them could have been.

A close friend, returning from the Mexican mainland to La Paz (near the tip
of the Baja) at night (and before GPS) turned into a by he was sure had La
Paz at its end. Unfortunately for him and his boat (and his cruising
lifestyle) he was one bay south and sailed up onto a sandy beach while on a
course that should have taken him safely on to the anchorage in La Paz.

GPS has done wonders for the art of navigation; mostly elminating the "art"
portion. But you can still get mixed up. One time in the Wasp Islets of the
San Juan Islands I found Crane Island while looking for Deer Harbor on
Orcas. My GPS was set to "north up" and I just got confused for about 15
minutes. Meanwhile, of course, the marina at Deer Harbor (with all its
boats) was clearly visible off to my left.

I once sold my airplane and bought a boat using the excuse, "in a boat you
can at least stop and think it over". This is only true if you actually stop
and think.

It pays to be a little skeptical about your navigational abilities. Even if
you have a GPS sitting right there on your spray skirt.


Craig Jungers
Royal City, WA
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