Ninja Land Navigation
Ninja Land Navigation Skills
Well before the advent of a GPS device or even a very good compass, the ninja of ancient Japan navigated across the countryside, day or night, all with low tech skills. Shocking!!! Well of course there have been great technological developments that allow us to start and end a few feet from where we plan, but what if you had to navigate without a GPS or good compass, could you do it?? Over the years, I have learned from Scouting, primitive survival training and practice, several methods to navigate without a compass but here is one of the easiest and most practical to learn and implement in your training.
Watch Method (Northern Hemisphere)
1) Hold a watch (one that contains hands) face parallel to the ground
2) Point the hour handoff the present time in the direction of the sun
3) Take the point halfway between the hour hand and 12. This position indicates South.
4) To find north rotate 180 degrees
- Ex) It is 6:00, point the hour hand at the sun, and the halfway point would be 3:00 which would be south.
Watch Method (Southern Hemisphere)
1) Hold a watch (one that contains hands) face parallel to the ground
2) Point the watches 12:00 position in the direction of the sun
3) Take the point halfway between the 12:00 and the hour hand. This position indicates North.
4) To find south rotate 180 degrees
- Ex) It is 6:00, point the 12:00 position at the sun, and the halfway point would be 3:00 which would be north.
Now, I have taught this to my students, Scouts etc. and they are all pretty amazed at how easy it is and surprisingly accurate as well. So find a place you can’t get easily lost in and practice this skill! For those of you who where a digital watch….it is time to buy a new watch!!
Bufu Ikkan!
