Re: [Paddlewise] Currarong to Guerilla Bay, seasonal padding and a navigation question

Looking back through my collection of emails I discovered this one; an email
to which I did not respond. And, Peter, you are exactly correct on all your
definitions (heading, bearing, course, etc.).

As far as ferry-gliding (a term I've never thought was very descriptive but
we seem to be stuck with it) goes, "heading" is still the direction your bow
is pointed but "course" is the route the boat follows as it is moving along
the ground and affected by wind, currents, etc.

The compass heading for a kayak is often very approximate due to yaw, heave
(acceleration affects a magnetic compass in ways many people are not aware
of) and magnetic anomalies. It is pretty approximate even for fairly large
boats. Ships like gyro compasses because the acceleration and magnetic
deviation problems are eliminated plus they generally read in true north
rather than magnetic north. Gyros are also not affected by the earth's
magnetic forces so the compass card remains level all the time.

As GPS units get smaller and use less power we are likely to see their use
replace the compass in all but the most luddite of adventurers. I suspect
that the majority of Paddlewise readers use a GPS on every paddle and a fair
number of those make virtual diaries of their trips in the "cloud". With
expected advances in solar power we might see all sorts of changes on the
horizon.

Regards,
Craig Jungers
Moses Lake, WA
www.nwkayaking.net
www.bigboxbikes.com

On Thu, Apr 28, 2011 at 12:49 AM, PeterO <rebyl_kayak_at_energysustained.com>wrote:

> G'day Craig,
>
> Glad you enjoyed the report. Our seasons do change the paddling activity
> slightly but it's usually good paddling weather all year round, which I
> suspect means that kayaks here may not be as well maintained on average as
> in the northern parts of the US, and Canada!
>
> Summertime tends to bring warm northerly winds and the occasional cold
> fierce southerly buster, meaning there's more focus on in water skills,
> rescues and protracted rolling sessions. Autumn is perfect for trips in New
> South Wales with the water at its warmest. Winter more consistently brings
> cold southerlies and endurance training with rolls for those that can
> endure
> the harsh 16 degree Celsius water! (OK so we can't imagine what harsh
> really
> is:~) Some head north to Queensland though pity them this year as it's done
> nothing but rain up there. At the start of spring the 110km Hawkesbury
> Classic makes an ideal endurance training goal, after which some of us go
> crazy again for in-water training.
>
> And when it rains we might repair the boats and their gear. We had a
> drought
> for about ten years and now we're experiencing floods everywhere and my
> boats and gear are starting to look quite respectable again!
>
> The trip last week took us into unexplored territory and some significant
> open crossings so we decided to learn how to use GPS to supplement our
> meagre knowledge. It led me to a question concerning the marine definitions
> and usage of the terms 'heading' and 'course'.
>
> The following summarises my understanding of the definitions
>
>        Heading - the direction the boat is pointing to
>        Bearing  - direction from the boat to a landmark, but GPS
> manufacturers often use bearing to mean the direction to a waypoint
>        Course - the direction to a destination
>        Track - the path taken to a destination
>
>        Heading, bearing and course can each be qualified as either a
> compass (magnetic) or true heading, bearing or course.
>
>        To deal with currents or tacking one can refer to either course
> through the water (doesn't compensate for current or tacking) or
> course over ground (the average direction in which the boat moves after
> allowing for currents and tacking)
>
> However, I've started to wonder whether my understanding of heading is
> correct particularly in the case of ferry gliding. In this case is the
> heading the direction in which the kayak is pointing or the direction in
> which it is moving?
>
> I'd be very glad of any corrections and explanations.
>
> All the best, PeterO
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