Susan B Johnson
PuraVida
- Time of past OR future Camino
- June (2016)
For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here. (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation) |
---|
I'm sorry, I didn't notice that you are walking the Camino Ingles, not the Frances. I have no experience with the Ingles, so I don't know if a compass would be useful and should not have weighed in!No. What camino pack list suggests one?!
On the other hand... you may be in a forest path and coming to a T intersection, on a cloudy/rainy day... you may benefit from knowing where is West and where is East... GPS and an iPad/iPhone app are great if you have a local sim card... if not, you may be walking in the wrong direction for kilometres... Just my humble opinion. Buen Camino!
Oh, I really, really like this answer MTtoCamino! The only thing I would add/change is the order of your question... 'una Cerveza por favor' and then, 'el Camino de Santiago por favor'?!!I have unfortunately been lost multiple times, only once on the Camno after too much afternoon beer. They make a great Lager called 1906....best on tap.
I always carry a compass never a phone. Just my view of the world. The places I have found it useful: Big cities, after dark in every type of geography, tubes or subways, & wilderness. Maps are helpful if you now how to orient them & use a compass with them. But a simple compass will give you a direction the road or trail is running & really that is basically all you need to determine if it is the way you need to be going. If on the Camino you have or should have the knowledge you will be walking west or on some routes north. After finding other humans just start asking the question Camino Santiago por favor? & then Cervasa por favor??
Buen Camino!!
Yes even my terrible Spanish got me along. Since the bars seem to feed most times there is no shortage of wine with every meal. It's the sharing of those meals with the other folks that helps make the Camino what it is.Oh, I really, really like this answer MTtoCamino! The only thing I would add/change is the order of your question... 'una Cerveza por favor' and then, 'el Camino de Santiago por favor'?!!
Actually, I thought about trying local wines more than beers in France and Spain, but... we'll see how I go in a few months!
Good idea, Mark. Perhaps something like this, since many folks have also inquired about the advisability of having a whistle. This one also has a C/F thermometer. http://www.basspro.com/Coghlans-4in1-Whistle/product/21029/. I've seen similar products at Walmart and other outdoor shops.I've never found the need for one.
But if it's a small compass and clips to your pack...sure, why not. Won't hurt to have.
That's exactly what I'm talking about. Something small, and clip-on. No need for large, military style ones for what little, simple compass work one might need on the Camino. Anything more and you need to break out the topo maps, ha ha, and if it's that much of a concern I would recommend hauling around an electronic GPS with the Camino route you are walking programmed in.Good idea, Mark. Perhaps something like this, since many folks have also inquired about the advisability of having a whistle. This one also has a C/F thermometer. http://www.basspro.com/Coghlans-4in1-Whistle/product/21029/. I've seen similar products at Walmart and other outdoor shops.
Do take a big survival knife because of the bears,n to kill boar for food)
And Bear Grylls to help you find the nearest 5 star hotel
Now I know how I went... Plenty of both!!!Oh, I really, really like this answer MTtoCamino! The only thing I would add/change is the order of your question... 'una Cerveza por favor' and then, 'el Camino de Santiago por favor'?!!
Actually, I thought about trying local wines more than beers in France and Spain, but... we'll see how I go in a few months!
NoI've read a few different suggested pack lists, and noticed that a compass is suggested. I thought the Camino was well-marked. Do I really need a compass for the Camino Ingles and to Finsterra?
Susan
If you have a smart phone with you use the gps.If you do use a smartphone compass app then please check its reliability and calibration beforehand. Last year on the Via Francigena I walked quite a few extra kilometres on a very damp and totally overcast day when my phone decided to display precisely 180 degrees out (ie. 'North' was actually South). Took some time before I understood why my navigation skills had suddenly deserted me.
Lay off the junk! Some people eat the stuffIt is this kind of rationalizing that fills ones pack with useless junk.
Yep, I just starting reading another thread about clotheslines, before I realized the date.I think that this question was asked and answered back in 2016.
That's what happens when you get lost.I think that this question was asked and answered back in 2016.
Could have used one yesterday. After going for an eye test in a town I'm quite familiar with just along the coast from me I thought it would be pleasant go and sit by the seashore and have a picnic lunch (fish and chips - don't judge me!).That's what happens when you get lost.
We have to have something to do to while away the time between siestas!Yep, I just starting reading another thread about clotheslines, before I realized the date.
Why??(Bet this thread gets shut down soon as well)
Just what I thought
I understand, we are all bored and going crazy at the moment but to remind everyone again that we do not allow serious threads or questions to go down the silly route and that is out of respect for the OP, none of us would like a genuine post, thread or question of ours to be made fun of even if the replies are funny and witty. We lost at least two new members last year because of this and its not nice. I also have to bite my tongue pretty much every day to not throw in a smart comment but I have to resist.
And discussed in depth yesterday on another old compass thread.I think that this question was asked and answered back in 2016.
I would have been lost a few times on my Caminos in Spain if my son had not been with and walking ahead of me. On the Le Puy Camino with two girlfriends we got lost a "few" times.Anyone who says it is impossible to get lost on the Camino, even the CF is incorrect. Many walkers over the years,on this site, have indicated that they got lost, or at least temporarily lost...having missed a marker or arrow and gone the wrong way on a trail or road. This happened to me once as well. Sometimes signs are obscured by overgrowth, missed due to poor visibility due to fog, darkness or snow/blizzard conditions, etc, or to the occasional pranksters changing the direction of a sign. If you are on a road or trail and get lost the easiest and usually safest thing to do is to retrace your steps. Try not to complicate the mistake by trying a short cut that might complicate your situation...unless you have been given explicit instructions by a local that you perceive as highly reliable. There is no harm carrying a small lightweight compass, if you know how to use it.
Sorry, @wayfarer, I will try harder.I hope this explains the situation.... so back on topic please.
I had regional maps downloaded on my phone by Hubby before I left on the Le Puy, but when with my girlfriends, I totally had forgotten about them until we were lost beyond hope...then my memory finally kicked in and I was so thankful to have them.Best of all, the regional maps can be downloaded and used when needed.
I just learned something new, that a map used alongside a compass is the perfect combination to know exactly where you are...no sun needed. I've never used a compass before.It would allow you return to the path you wish to take and get you back to the way.
(Bet this thread gets shut down soon as well)
Yes, we do have to do something. But let's make it something constructive and cooperative. There are many opportunities here on the forum to make contributions and write posts that will help members learn about the camino, Spain, architecture, how to train, preparation, equipment, emotional preparation, etc., etc. Even learning about the subject of this thread - compasses. (However, we did not need two resuscitated threads on compasses, both of which were trending into silly banter.)We have to have something to do to while away the time between siestas!
I still carry my old paper map For St J to Roncesvalles. It sits quietly, folded away in a corner of the ruck. We know each other. just like my compass. They are old friends and I will not abandon them!Under normal conditions you don't NEED a compass the route is well marked however in fog or other bad weather it could save your life. Personally I always have a map, a compass a whistle and torch and hope never to need any of them.
Great info Rick...I'll get me the toy version probably.The difference between magnetic and true north in Spain isn't that much. If you know how to use a compass then get a toy, thumbnail-sized compass; it won't set you back much in weight or size. Or download a free compass app for your phone.
Unfortunately, it won't tell you where you are. But if you know where you are, it will tell you how to get where you want to go!I just learned something new, that a map used alongside a compass is the perfect combination to know exactly where you are...no sun needed.
It sometimes can if you know how to use them. A simple example: You are on a trail headed NW. At your right you see a twin peaked mountain. You take a sighting and the notch is 45 degrees east of north (exactly NE). You find the mountain on the map (it is easy, it has two peaks) and draw a line running exactly SW of the notch. The line may cross several trails but, let's say, at only one is the trail at the intersection with the line running in a NW/SE direction. Your position on the map is at that intersection.Unfortunately, it [map and compass alone] won't tell you where you are.
Well, if you have three good features that you can positively identify you can do a triangulation so yes, it will. But I agree a GPS position is a lot simpler.Unfortunately, it won't tell you where you are. But if you know where you are, it will tell you how to get where you want to go!
I agree. I like the Buen Camino app. It shows me where I am on the Camino and how far the next town is. If I'm not on the Camino it's easy to see how to get on it.Well, if you have three good features that you can positively identify you can do a triangulation so yes, it will. But I agree a GPS position is a lot simpler.
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?