dblust

My name is Dick Blust. I'm a geocacher living in Rock Springs, Wyoming, where I serve with the Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office. I've trained hundreds of people, including law enforcement officers, rural firefighters, search & rescue volunteers, backpackers, hunters, geocachers, and other outdoor recreationists of all sorts in back country navigation. My approach focuses on a simple, hands-on, practical, problem-solving system that emphasizes using the combined, interwoven resources of map, compass, and GPS. My approach to maps is grounded in using USGS topographic maps generated by a program called MapTech "Terrain Navigator" that reduces the standard 7 1/2-minute map down to an 8 ½' x 11" sheet and grids it for the UTM coordinate system, enabling accurate, quick position-plotting. The same approach, slightly modified, works equally well for the 1:63,360 scale Alaskan topos. My entire training course is presently being posted on the Internet on the Kifaru, International website at http://www.kifaru.net/navigate1.htm . The "Map" Section of the training is already posted, with the rest - compass, GPS, and "Putting It All Together" - soon to follow. Access to the course is free. Check it out; those who like working with maps in particular may find the material interesting; I'll be happy to handle any questions or comments that arise. Dick

Good point, Bushwhacker. I'll give it a try. Something else I've found useful, though it applies more to compass triangulations. When working with a standard 7 1/2-" quad sheet, any landmarks you can take a bearing on to do a triangulation are often off the quad. To solve this, I print out the area (gridded for UTM) on the 1-100,000 scale maps, but I replicate a 1-150-000 scale. That way, the landmarks are visible and I can do a triangulation. With that done, I can determine the UTM coordinate for the position (using either the grid on the map or a 1-150,000 romer scale), then apply that coordinate to the larger-scale map I also produce with MapTech. With a very high-quality compass like one of the British prismatics, I always have better results "zeroing in" with the compass rather than trying to follow the GPS. Take care, Dick

For geocaching, I use the same combination of map/compass/GPS techniques I’ve long used for backpacking and other back-country travel and navigation. (I also train law enforcement, search & rescue, firefighters, and outdoor recreationists generally in land navigation.) I tend to go with magnetic bearings, as my first choice I a compass is a British M73 prismatic, which is not adjustable for declination; nor is the Brunton/Silva 54 baseplate, which is also excellent. I use a good protractor to plot bearings and simply do the math in making the conversions. Instead of the standard large-sheet 7½ - minute topographic quadrangles, though, I use MapTech Terrain Navigator to produce what I call “MiniTopos,” which are the same quadrangles reduced in size to 8½” x 11" at a military scale of 1-50,000 instead of the standard 1-24,000. I print these out on either water-resistant paper or water-proof synthetic sheets and set the program to grid them for UTM. Thus no romer scale or other device is necessary to plot a GPS coordinate on the map; you can make your plot with a pencil point, your fingertip or even just a glance. (Because the scale is a precise 1-50,000, you can still use a romer scale if you choose to do so.) Scaled down, the maps are much smaller and easier to deal with then the original, large-sheet topos - though they have identical detail - and they’re much more durable in bad weather. An added plus is that the good, sharp lines provided by the UTM grid make for excellent compass triangulation plotting. With a good compass and attention to detail, it’s not difficult to get good old-fashioned compass triangulation accuracy in map plotting down to one tenth of one percent of the map scale.

Sorry for the faux pas in posting. Have now posted my initial message appropriately. Checked your profile - didn't know Al Capone was still alive; I won't tell if you won't.

For geocaching, I use the same combination of map/compass/GPS techniques I’ve long used for backpacking and other back-country travel and navigation. (I also train law enforcement, search & rescue, firefighters, and outdoor recreationists generally in land navigation.) Instead of the standard large-sheet 7½ - minute topographic quadrangles, though, I use MapTech Terrain Navigator to produce what I call “MiniTopos,” which are the same quadrangles reduced in size to 8½” x 11" at a military scale of 1-50,000 instead of the standard 1-24,000. I print these out on either water-resistant paper or water-proof synthetic sheets and grid them for UTM. Thus no romer scale or other device is necessary to plot a GPS coordinate on the map; you can make your plot with your fingertip or even just a glance. Scaled down, the maps are much smaller and easier to deal with then the original, large-sheet topos - though they have identical detail - and they’re much more durable in bad weather. An added plus is that the good, sharp lines provided by the UTM grid make for excellent compass triangulation plotting. In a compass I favor a British Francis Barker prismatic (also called an M73 or M88), Brunton Eclipse 8099, or Brunton/Silva Model 54. All three offer outstanding accuracy and precision not only in plotting map triangulations, but in plotting courses of travel (‘lines of march,’ as the Brits say), as well. In addition, due to its tritium lamps, the Francis Barker is 100% functional under even the darkest conditions. A basic model Magellan or Garmin has always provided anything I need in the way of a GPS. Far and away, regardless of conditions, I’ve had the best results in obtaining a bearing to the cache - or whatever the navigational target is - with the GPS, then following that bearing to the ‘target’ with a good compass, with map consultation part of the process from beginning to end. With a good compass and attention to detail, it’s not difficult to get good old-fashioned compass triangulation accuracy in map plotting down to one tenth of one percent of the map scale This is my first time in a geocaching forum, and look forward to exchanging ideas.

You're dead right - Pyser-SGI manufactures the prismatic I called the "Francis Barker" (that's how one outfit in the UK markets them). The M73 is a bit heavier; the M88 is the same compass, but mostly aluminum for the sake of weight. They can be very hard to get here stateside (it would take a Recon unit to get mine away from me!), but I'm setting up a venture combined with the map system I described, plus other equipment, and will be making them available. Their accuracy is unbelievable and they're 100% functional, even in pitch darkness. They're the modern version of the the Mark III prismatic the Brits used during WWII - the only thing that's really different is the tritium. (If it ain't busted, don't fix it, right?) Looking forward to hearing from you on the maps.

I agree heartily with those who prefer UTM. For geocaching, I use the same combination of map/compass/GPS techniques I’ve long used for backpacking and other back-country travel and navigation. Instead of the standard large-sheet 7½ - minute topographic quadrangles, though, I use MapTech Terrain Navigator to produce what I call “MiniTopos,” which are the same quadrangles reduced in size to 8½” x 11" at a military scale of 1-50,000 instead of the standard 1-24,000. I print these out on either water-resistant paper or water-proof synthetic sheets and grid them for UTM. Thus no romer scale or other device is necessary to plot a GPS coordinate on the map; you can make your plot with your fingertip or even just a glance. Scaled down, the maps are much smaller and easier to deal with then the original, large-sheet topos - though they have identical detail - and they’re much more durable in bad weather. An added plus is that the good, sharp lines provided by the UTM grid make for excellent compass triangulation plotting. In a compass I favor a British Francis Barker prismatic, Brunton Eclipse, or Brunton/Silva Model 54. All three offer outstanding accuracy and precision not only in plotting map triangulations, but in plotting courses of travel (‘lines of march,’ as the Brits say), as well. In addition, due to its tritium lamps, the Francis Barker is 100% functional under even the darkest conditions. Far and away, regardless of conditions, I’ve had the best results in obtaining a bearing to the cache - or whatever the navigational target is - with the GPS, then following that bearing to the ‘target’ with a good compass, with map consultation part of the process from beginning to end. With a good compass and attention to detail, it’s not difficult to get good old-fashioned compass triangulation accuracy in map plotting down to one tenth of one percent of the map scale This is my first time in a geocaching forum, and look forward to exchanging ideas.

For geocaching, I use the same combination of map/compass/GPS techniques I’ve long used for backpacking and other back-country travel and navigation. Instead of the standard large-sheet 7½ - minute topographic quadrangles, though, I use MapTech Terrain Navigator to produce what I call “MiniTopos,” which are the same quadrangles reduced in size to 8½” x 11" at a military scale of 1-50,000 instead of the standard 1-24,000. I print these out on either water-resistant paper or water-proof synthetic sheets and grid them for UTM. Thus no romer scale or other device is necessary to plot a GPS coordinate on the map; you can make your plot with your fingertip or even just a glance. Scaled down, the maps are much smaller and easier to deal with then the original, large-sheet topos - though they have identical detail - and they’re much more durable in bad weather. An added plus is that the good, sharp lines provided by the UTM grid make for excellent compass triangulation plotting. In a compass I favor a British Francis Barker prismatic, Brunton Eclipse, or Brunton/Silva Model 54. All three offer outstanding accuracy and precision not only in plotting map triangulations, but in plotting courses of travel (‘lines of march,’ as the Brits say), as well. In addition, due to its tritium lamps, the Francis Barker is 100% functional under even the darkest conditions. Far and away, regardless of conditions, I’ve had the best results in obtaining a bearing to the cache - or whatever the navigational target is - with the GPS, then following that bearing to the ‘target’ with a good compass, with map consultation part of the process from beginning to end. This is my first time in a geocaching forum, and look forward to exchanging ideas.

For geocaching, I use the same combination of map/compass/GPS techniques I’ve long used for backpacking and other back-country travel and navigation. (I also train law enforcement, search & rescue, firefighters, and outdoor recreationists generally in land navigation.) Instead of the standard large-sheet 7½ - minute topographic quadrangles, though, I use MapTech Terrain Navigator to produce what I call “MiniTopos,” which are the same quadrangles reduced in size to 8½” x 11" at a military scale of 1-50,000 instead of the standard 1-24,000. I print these out on either water-resistant paper or water-proof synthetic sheets and grid them for UTM. Thus no romer scale or other device is necessary to plot a GPS coordinate on the map; you can make your plot with your fingertip or even just a glance. Scaled down, the maps are much smaller and easier to deal with then the original, large-sheet topos - though they have identical detail - and they’re much more durable in bad weather. An added plus is that the good, sharp lines provided by the UTM grid make for excellent compass triangulation plotting. In a compass I favor a British Francis Barker prismatic, Brunton Eclipse, or Brunton/Silva Model 54. All three offer outstanding accuracy and precision not only in plotting map triangulations, but in plotting courses of travel (‘lines of march,’ as the Brits say), as well. In addition, due to its tritium lamps, the Francis Barker is 100% functional under even the darkest conditions. Far and away, regardless of conditions, I’ve had the best results in obtaining a bearing to the cache - or whatever the navigational target is - with the GPS, then following that bearing to the ‘target’ with a good compass, with map consultation part of the process from beginning to end. This is my first time in a geocaching forum, and look forward to exchanging ideas.