How to Find Your Way Without a Smartphone or GPSS

It hasn't been long since smartphones and GPS units have become the norm, but thankfully they're always there to help us find our way. Unless, of course, you lose internet access, run out of battery, or get lost in a place with no streets. When that happens, it helps to know how to find your way.

Navigation Tricks You Can Use Anywhere

Perhaps one of the easiest places to get lost is in places like the forest or desert. Away from roads and signs, everything can start to look the same. Fortunately, there are other ways to get your bearings and figure out where you're headed.

Guide Yourself with the Sun

How to Find Your Way Without a Smartphone or GPSS

Anyone who's ever had to reboot a computer in front of Samuel L. Jackson knows that navigating with the sun should be a first resort. While it's roughly simple to find an east-to-west line when the sun is up, it's also important to note that the line is not constant from season to season. It also changes based on where you are in the world:

The exact bearing of sunrise and sunset is determined by your latitude and the time of year. The greater your latitude and the closer you are to one of the solstices, the further from east and west the sun rises and sets. If you take it to the extreme, then in the Arctic Circle in June the sun rises so far north of east and sets so far north of west that these points actually overlap – in other words the sun doesn't set.

If you walk in the direction of sunrise in March or September and then turn around at the end of the day and head back towards sunset you stand a good chance of finding your way back to where you set out from (out east, back west). If you try the same thing in midsummer or midwinter you will get horribly lost. If you walk towards sunrise in midwinter you would need to walk with the sunset over your left shoulder to get back to the same spot at the end of the day (out southeast, back northwest).

You can read more about how to figure out what direction you're traveling based on the sun's position here. Once you've figured out the lines along which the sun travels in the sky in your area, you can use it reliably to figure out which direction you're heading by taking into account what time of year it is.

Use the Stars for Guidance at Night

How to Find Your Way Without a Smartphone or GPSS

The sun may be helpful during the day, but at night, the stars are your eyes. If you're a constellation nerd, you'll have a leg up on the rest of us, but everyone else can still pick out a few key lights that are almost always visible that can help guide you:

  • The North Star: The quickest, easiest way to get your bearings (if you're in the northern hemisphere anyway) is to locate the North Star, Polaris. From our earthly perspective, it doesn't seem to move and is always within one degree of true north. You can locate Polaris using the panhandle of the Big Dipper, one of the most easily identifiable constellations (more information on locating the North Star can be found here).
  • Orion: Another useful constellation is the easy-to-spot Orion. Its distinctive belt makes it simple to spot in a crowded sky. The belt runs roughly east to west (though, like with the sun, it's a little bit more complicated than that), and the hunter's sword points roughly South. The downside to Orion, though, is that you can't use it in the summer months. During this time, Orion is out during the day so it's not visible.
  • The rest of the 57 stars used for navigation: Most of you probably won't end up lost at sea, but if the Sun, Polaris, and Orion aren't enough for you to navigate, read up on the rest of 57 stars that sailors use for navigation.

Keep Track of Landmarks and Don't Walk Aimlessly

If you're lost, don't move until you know where you are. The more you move aimlessly, the farther you could end up from civilization. Start by identifying memorable landmarks. While it's generally bad form to cut into a tree or permanently mark it (if you're in a designated reserve or camping area, this can get you in trouble), tying a piece of fabric to a tree can help identify when you've gotten turned around, as well as aiding anyone who might be trying to find you.

Find Your Way in the City

How to Find Your Way Without a Smartphone or GPSS

The above tips are helpful for navigation any time you can see the sky, but let's be real. Most of us don't get lost in the woods nearly as often as we get turned around on ridiculously laid out and absurdly named city streets (can you tell I live in Atlanta?). Fortunately, there are some extra tricks you can remember to figure out where you're going in the city:

Navigate City Streets

There are roughly two main types of city streets. Grid and organic layouts. Grid layouts (like most of Manhattan) are relatively easy to navigate as all the roads point in one of two directions. Organic layouts occur when roads are built as a city needs them, rather than with a long-term structure plan. The downside to this is that you can be driving South, take a "slight right" and be going North. You'll need some other ways to get your bearings.

  • Look for satellite dishes: Satellite dishes work by pointing your dish towards a corresponding satellite in the sky. Because of this, most dishes in a city will be pointing in the same direction. You can use this site to figure out what direction that is for dishes in your area. Be sure to look for more than one, if you can, lest you get turned around because one was out of alignment.
  • Note religious buildings: While it's not a hard and fast rule (particularly among smaller congregations), many churches are built to face east, and can be used to get a rough gauge of which direction you're pointing. Like with the path of the sun, though, this isn't perfectly accurate, but it can get you in the ballpark. Additionally, mosques usually have a niche that points towards Mecca.
  • Carry a paper map (or download offline versions): It may be slightly cheating on the technology front, but no amount of reading the moss on trees is going to replace a good map when you need one. Keep a paper map in your car or backpack when traveling in case you lose access to your beloved internet (and know how to read it). Additionally, if you're only worried about losing internet access, download offline versions of maps of your area. For example, you can cache parts of Google Maps in both Android and iOS.

No matter where you are, finding your way around is an instinct anyone can build by simply being aware of what's around you, noting landmarks, and keeping yourself oriented. Be patient and figure out where you're headed first and only start moving when you have a sense of where you are. It's also worth avoiding the GPS on purpose to learn your way around your city so you'll know it better when you do get lost.

Photos by gr33n3gg, W. Tipton, and Garry Knight.