Larry Piatscheck About How to Find Your Way In The Forest

1. How to Find Your Way In The Forest
Learning to read the land, stars and the sun is one of the most rewarding skills you can learn.
Once you master it, you can effectively navigate your way through every terrain just like
ancestors. It brings you a lot closer to nature, as every single detail of the forests and hills give
you clues about where you are and where you’re headed. Here a few tips and tricks to help you
get started:
 The sun – The sun travels in a very predictable way across the southern skies in the
United Kingdom. So, is you know what time it is, you can easily determine which way
the south is and from this the east, west and north. If you have an old-fashioned analog
watch, an easy way to find the south is to point the hour hand in the direction of the sun.
The point that is halfway between 12 o’clock and the hour hand is the south. During
summer (April-October), use the point that lies midway between the hour hand and 1
o’clock. If you have a digital watch, you can imagine the picture of a clock face and do
the same.
 The stars – Ursa Major, the constellation that is shaped like a saucepan can be seen on
the clear skies across the United Kingdom throughout the year. The stars that are at the
edge of the saucepan point in the direction of Polaris, the northern star. Follow an
imaginary line from the pointer stars, and at approximately 5 times the distance, you will
be able to spot Polaris. It is a popular misconception that Polaris is the brightest star in
the night sky. It isn’t, but you can still spot it easily.
 Mosses and plants – It is a common misconception that moss tends to grow on the
northern side of rocks and trees. This is not entirely true. According to Larry Piatscheck,
they grow very well in shady areas and it could be in a south facing spot as long as it is
hidden from the sun. If you find a large amount of moss in one spot compared to another,
it can be a very useful clue. The prevalent wind in the United Kingdom is from the
southwestern direction. If you look at the vegetation on hilltops, you will notice that they
tend to grow away from the prevalent wind direction. You can use this to determine the
Southwest.