GL: Traditional Navigation (was: Compass calculations)

[KevinR]

> -----Original Message-----
> I think we all have gotten too dependent on GPS, either with paper charts
or
> with chartplotter, that we would be literally lost without it.


Jim is right that so many of today's boaters would be instantly lost when
(not "if") their GPS packs up.

A few years back I was doing a delivery of a GB49 from New Bedford to Palm
Beach. We were ten miles off the Delaware Capes  when I came to the wheel
house at 2 AM to check to see how the mate on duty was doing. When I looked
at the GPS, I noticed that it was showing the same Lat/Lon as was recorded
in the log for the position a half hour before. That was when we found out
that the main ship's GPS was out (water intrusion in the antenna).

Not to worry I thought, we just pulled out some of the three handheld GPS
units on board. It was a surprise to see that we could not get satellite
reception on any of the four units!  I just told the mate to start a DR plot
from the last fix, and then sat back to see if his navigation skills were up
to the task. 

After a few seconds to do the time-speed-distance calculation, he had a DR
plot on the paper chart (I ALWAYS have a paper chart out when offshore to
keep hourly fixes noted), and I knew I could go back to sleep with the boat
safe in his hands.

With navigation electronics, it is not a question of IF they will break, but
rather only a question of WHEN. In that case, there is no substitute for
knowing how to do time-speed-distance navigation with DR plots on a paper
chart. For any boater who can't do that without thinking hard about it,
taking out the navigation books for a brush up would be in order.

Regards,
Kevin
www.BoatMoves.com