WEBVTT - Ep. 275: This Country Life - Knowing Where North Is

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to This country Life. I'm your host, Brent Reeves

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<v Speaker 1>from coon hunting to trot lining and just general country living.

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<v Speaker 1>I want you to stay a while as I share

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<v Speaker 1>my experiences and life lessons. This Country Life is presented

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<v Speaker 1>by Case Knives on Meat Eaters Podcast Network, bringing you

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<v Speaker 1>the best outdoor podcast the airways had off. All right, friends,

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<v Speaker 1>grab a chair or drop that tailgate. I've got some

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<v Speaker 1>stories to share. Knowing where north is finding your way

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<v Speaker 1>around the woods can be a challenge, especially when you

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<v Speaker 1>don't know what you're doing. Now, I want to talk

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<v Speaker 1>to you about the importance of using the basics to

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<v Speaker 1>get you where you want to go, and I will,

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<v Speaker 1>But first I'm going to tell you a story. It

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<v Speaker 1>was over twenty years ago. It was cold and a

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<v Speaker 1>long walk back to the truck, and I was tired.

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<v Speaker 1>It was the last split of duck season, and Tim

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<v Speaker 1>and I had been guiding every day since thanksgiving up

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<v Speaker 1>at three thirty am and getting to bed sometimes at midnight.

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<v Speaker 1>It takes a toll after a while, and I was beat.

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<v Speaker 1>We were hunting the public shooting grounds and the weather

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<v Speaker 1>was getting cold and slowly locking up all the open

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<v Speaker 1>water that didn't have any current. We had four or

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<v Speaker 1>five hunters with us, and Tim took his ducks and

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<v Speaker 1>left early to go back to the camp and start

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<v Speaker 1>cooking a big, hot breakfast we'd all be wanting once

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<v Speaker 1>we knocked out the last few remaining ducks to finish

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<v Speaker 1>out our limits. That morning. There was no GPS's then

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<v Speaker 1>I didn't tote the compass, and I also didn't want

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<v Speaker 1>to tote all those decoys over the near mild trip

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<v Speaker 1>we had in front of us back to the parking lot,

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<v Speaker 1>over ice and waiters, and with three dozen decoys and weights,

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<v Speaker 1>I decided I'd just hide them. We were coming right

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<v Speaker 1>back to this spot the next morning, anyway, and it

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't that big of a no. No. The law said

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<v Speaker 1>you couldn't leave them out overnight, But did they really

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<v Speaker 1>mean left overnight in the hole you were hunting, or

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<v Speaker 1>would it be okay to leave them heading the sack

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<v Speaker 1>next to the hole you were hunting. Well, I knew

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<v Speaker 1>the answer, but I was willing to take the risk.

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<v Speaker 1>If I had a sleeping bag with me and could

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<v Speaker 1>have stayed warm, I'd have just laid down in it

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<v Speaker 1>and slept until Tim showed up. The next morning we

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<v Speaker 1>hunted the woods on clear days. That day had a

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<v Speaker 1>few clouds, but not enough to hide the moon, which

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<v Speaker 1>was how we navigated the last quarter of a mile

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<v Speaker 1>after veering off the trail that headed into the only

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<v Speaker 1>open water we could find, and we had it all

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<v Speaker 1>to ourselves. It was during the middle of the week.

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<v Speaker 1>The college kids were back at school and most folks

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<v Speaker 1>were back at work, and believe it or not, there

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<v Speaker 1>was four hundred acres of prime flooded Arkansas public timber

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<v Speaker 1>that we might as well have just owned ourselves. We

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<v Speaker 1>were the only folks hunting. Another reason I decided to

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<v Speaker 1>leave the decoys now. I hit them beside a tree

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<v Speaker 1>where I'd been standing, and I gathered up my charges

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<v Speaker 1>and we lit a shuck for the truck as soon

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<v Speaker 1>as the last duck was strapped into our limit. Once

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<v Speaker 1>back at the camp, I told Tim I hit the decoys,

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<v Speaker 1>and he looked at me like I'd seen him look

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<v Speaker 1>at me almost every time I did something stupid. It's

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<v Speaker 1>going to be cloudy in the morning, dummy, and it's

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<v Speaker 1>my turn to go in early. What if I can't

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<v Speaker 1>find them? I wanted to hit him with that iron

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<v Speaker 1>skillet he was using to turn a dead hog's belly

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<v Speaker 1>into savory strips of bypass surgery. Don't worry about it.

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<v Speaker 1>I'll go early again. I know where I'm going, I

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<v Speaker 1>know where I left him. Matter of fact, you ain't

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<v Speaker 1>even got to go sleep in and have the groceries ready.

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<v Speaker 1>We'll be back by ten. And that's how I left it,

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<v Speaker 1>and I didn't think about it again until we got

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<v Speaker 1>out of the truck The next morning. At the parking lot,

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<v Speaker 1>Arkansas was dark as four foot up of bulls behind

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<v Speaker 1>total cloud covered. Standing outside, you couldn't see your hand

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<v Speaker 1>in front of your face. We had a half a

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<v Speaker 1>mile of trail to walk, then we had to go

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<v Speaker 1>overland through the woods and a couple of thickets. I'll

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<v Speaker 1>find where we walked through the ice and trace our

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<v Speaker 1>steps backwards the way we came out. That should work,

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<v Speaker 1>but it didn't. Everything had refrozen during the night, and

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<v Speaker 1>about four inches of water had fallen out, and nothing

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<v Speaker 1>looked the same. Nothing. The small flashlight I had only

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<v Speaker 1>kept me from walking into trees. I had no idea

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<v Speaker 1>where I was or where I was going. After I

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<v Speaker 1>left that trail, headed to where I thought my decoys

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<v Speaker 1>and the whole we'd hunted the day before would be.

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<v Speaker 1>The hunters behind me didn't have a clue. I was lost,

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<v Speaker 1>mainly because I acted like I wasn't. They were paying

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<v Speaker 1>me money to know what I was doing, so even

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<v Speaker 1>if I didn't, I was going to act like we

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<v Speaker 1>should be there. But now I thought that the waterfall

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<v Speaker 1>out had changed everything so much, I wasn't sure what

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<v Speaker 1>planet I was on, much less what unmarked location I

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<v Speaker 1>was trying to find on a wildlife management area that

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<v Speaker 1>I was currently wandering around then with a group of

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<v Speaker 1>men who were following behind me like they were sold

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<v Speaker 1>to my breeches. Finally one of them spoke up, how

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<v Speaker 1>much further? Oh, it's right up here, We're not far.

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<v Speaker 1>I shared the light up in front of me, trying

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<v Speaker 1>to locate a gap in the timber big enough to

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<v Speaker 1>look similar to a hole that we could maybe coke

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<v Speaker 1>some ducks down into once it got light enough to

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<v Speaker 1>see there, right there, about forty yards away, was the

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<v Speaker 1>narrowest of holes in the timber. There was nothing closer.

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<v Speaker 1>Daylight was only a few minutes away. As we finally

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<v Speaker 1>begun to be able to see without the aid of

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<v Speaker 1>the only light we had. None of them had brought one,

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<v Speaker 1>but there was still one other hurdle to jump. All

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<v Speaker 1>the water in the hole I had lucked up on

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<v Speaker 1>was frozen almost solid. I placed my hunters around in

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<v Speaker 1>a semicircle where they were going to be standing once

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<v Speaker 1>the shooting started, if there was going to be any

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<v Speaker 1>and I began to monkey stomp that ice until oblivia

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<v Speaker 1>I broke through the to find the water below was

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<v Speaker 1>only deep enough to cover the toe of my boot.

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<v Speaker 1>With all the fallen leaves taking up the space and

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<v Speaker 1>the water between the bottom of the ice and the

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<v Speaker 1>top of the earth, I wanted to be someplace else.

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<v Speaker 1>If I hadn't hid them decoys and brought them out

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<v Speaker 1>like I was supposed to, I would be someplace else,

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<v Speaker 1>and Tim would be dealing with this fiasco right now

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<v Speaker 1>instead of laying in his warm bed sleeping the sleep

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<v Speaker 1>of the guiltless. I quickly prayed he'd went the bed.

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<v Speaker 1>Then I had the idea to kill all the wet

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<v Speaker 1>leaves of mud up on the ice, making it resemble open, dark,

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<v Speaker 1>muddy water in a sea of light colored iesed up

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<v Speaker 1>muddy water. I was feeling good about what I'd managed

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<v Speaker 1>to conjure up out of literally nothing, when one of

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<v Speaker 1>those cats asked, are we not going to use the decoys? Now?

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<v Speaker 1>With all the confidence I could muster, I told them, now,

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<v Speaker 1>we don't need them. I'm gonna put them right in

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<v Speaker 1>through that small hole in the trees, and by the

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<v Speaker 1>time they figure out that that ain't water, they'll be

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<v Speaker 1>close enough for us to shoot them in the lips.

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<v Speaker 1>They seemed excited and couldn't wait to see what was

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<v Speaker 1>about to happen. I couldn't either, but I knew one

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<v Speaker 1>thing for sure. What I told them was fixing to

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<v Speaker 1>happen was probably the furthest thing that was actually gonna happen.

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<v Speaker 1>As it grew lighter, I glanced around for the decoy

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<v Speaker 1>as I stood by my clients, I looked around for

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<v Speaker 1>anything that might actually tell me where we were. The

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<v Speaker 1>only thing I saw was my hunters. Though as inexperienced

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<v Speaker 1>as they were, I could tell they weren't exactly smelling

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<v Speaker 1>what I was stepping in. I heard a few whispers

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<v Speaker 1>back and forth as I stomped and kicked more muddy

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<v Speaker 1>leaves up on top of that thick ice. I couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>tell what they were saying, but I knew they wasn't

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<v Speaker 1>buying it. At least not yet. Ducks started flying and

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<v Speaker 1>I started calling, and I was more surprised. The ducks

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<v Speaker 1>looked like they were trying to find a spot to

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<v Speaker 1>light in the woods that they knew better than I

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<v Speaker 1>did was all frozen up, and yet there they were.

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<v Speaker 1>I told them to be stealing and get ready, and

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<v Speaker 1>I started calling at a group of ducks, and my

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<v Speaker 1>glimpsed passing overhead, and three mallards pitched in through the

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<v Speaker 1>top of the trees and hovered over the hole I'd

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<v Speaker 1>stomped out in the ice covered with wet, muddy leaves.

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<v Speaker 1>We got them all. Twenty minutes later we were high

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<v Speaker 1>fiving and picking up our last green head for a

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<v Speaker 1>full limit of big ducks over zero decoys with zero

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<v Speaker 1>open water. I celebrated with him, but was trying to

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<v Speaker 1>be like the great Chicago Bear Walter Payton. When he

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<v Speaker 1>scored a touchdown, he just hand the ball back to

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<v Speaker 1>the referee and trot off the field. He said, YOA,

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<v Speaker 1>act like you've been there before. Well, in my mind

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<v Speaker 1>I was moon walking back to the truck and doing backflips.

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<v Speaker 1>Those cats thought I was the greatest duck guy in

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<v Speaker 1>the world. Walking out from that whole about thirty yards

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<v Speaker 1>was the sack of decoys I'd hit the day before.

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<v Speaker 1>I didn't even break stride. I scooped him up and

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<v Speaker 1>kept walking like I knew right where they was, straight

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<v Speaker 1>back to the parking lot. My hunter's walking behind and

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<v Speaker 1>reliving the hunt shot by shot and talking about how

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<v Speaker 1>we did it without decoys and water. I wasn't the

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<v Speaker 1>greatest duck guy in the world, not by a long shot.

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<v Speaker 1>I wasn't even the greatest duck guy in our business.

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<v Speaker 1>But I was no doubt the luckiest. And that's just

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<v Speaker 1>how that happened. Getting lost, turned around, or temporarily disoriented

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<v Speaker 1>is something we all take a chance on each time

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<v Speaker 1>we leave the house and venture into parts of the unknown,

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<v Speaker 1>and knowing how to navigate around and through our surroundings.

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<v Speaker 1>It's something we've been doing since the first folks decided

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<v Speaker 1>to see what was on the other side of the hill.

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<v Speaker 1>Curiosity has done more than kill the cat, as the

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<v Speaker 1>old saying goes, on the positive side, it's fuelled uncountable discoveries,

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<v Speaker 1>territorial expansion beyond what was thought possible, And on the negative,

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<v Speaker 1>unscheduled sight seeing tours of the back forty I figured

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<v Speaker 1>there was a lot of that taking place back in

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<v Speaker 1>the days of exploring the West. How can you know

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<v Speaker 1>where you're going if there's no one there to tell

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<v Speaker 1>you where to go, if no one you know's ever

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<v Speaker 1>been there before. You can always mark a trail to

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<v Speaker 1>where you've been. It's where you're intending to go that

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<v Speaker 1>can cause the problems. And I've always been fascinated with

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<v Speaker 1>reading maps and using them with a compass to get

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<v Speaker 1>around in the woods. Knowing where I am in the

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<v Speaker 1>wilderness and being able to point it out on the

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<v Speaker 1>map has always been something that I take a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of satisfaction in. Being able to read a map is important.

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<v Speaker 1>In the days before GPS, it was the two Most

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<v Speaker 1>folks that were from where I grew up had their toolbox,

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<v Speaker 1>and it was learned in my case from a very

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<v Speaker 1>early age. When I was a little boy, my dad

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<v Speaker 1>and I would lay on the dog box in the

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<v Speaker 1>back of his truck, staring at a cloudless sky while

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<v Speaker 1>parked on a Timber company road, waiting on the dogs

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<v Speaker 1>to strike. Total darkness surrounded us, and the stars were

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<v Speaker 1>clear and bright. He pointed out the Big Dipper and

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<v Speaker 1>the Little Dipper and then the north star, which is

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<v Speaker 1>the last star in the little Dipper's handle. If you're

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<v Speaker 1>looking at that star, you're looking north. East is to

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<v Speaker 1>your right, West is to your left, and south is

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<v Speaker 1>one about face away. Years later, when my dad got sick,

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<v Speaker 1>he was admitted to the hospital and spending what would

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<v Speaker 1>be his final forty two days on earth. The value

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<v Speaker 1>and the importance to him of the lessons he taught

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<v Speaker 1>me way back then became apparent. Night and day kind

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<v Speaker 1>of blend into one when you're in and out of

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<v Speaker 1>consciousness in a windowless room or one with the shades

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<v Speaker 1>constantly closed. The nurses were always good about writing the

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<v Speaker 1>day and the day and whether it was am or

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<v Speaker 1>pm on a big board with colored markers next to

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<v Speaker 1>a clock that faced his bed, and he could see

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<v Speaker 1>it whenever he woke up and looked around. During one

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<v Speaker 1>of his lucid moments, he looked around the room at

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<v Speaker 1>me and my brother Tim, who were standing on each

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<v Speaker 1>side of his bed. I saw him look at that

0:12:50.240 --> 0:12:53.280
<v Speaker 1>board and then back at us, and he waved his

0:12:53.520 --> 0:12:57.320
<v Speaker 1>right index finger back and forth as his hand rested

0:12:57.400 --> 0:12:59.600
<v Speaker 1>on top of the covers, his eyes going back and

0:12:59.640 --> 0:13:01.480
<v Speaker 1>forth from Tim to me and We could tell he

0:13:01.520 --> 0:13:06.320
<v Speaker 1>wanted to know something, but he couldn't speak. We made suggestions,

0:13:06.360 --> 0:13:08.880
<v Speaker 1>asking him what it was. He wanted, both of us

0:13:08.920 --> 0:13:11.600
<v Speaker 1>trying to decipher what he was trying to say through.

0:13:11.800 --> 0:13:16.000
<v Speaker 1>So finally Tim said North is that way and pointed

0:13:16.040 --> 0:13:20.040
<v Speaker 1>out the window with his left hand. Dad nodded ever

0:13:20.240 --> 0:13:23.480
<v Speaker 1>so slightly, closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

0:13:24.240 --> 0:13:27.560
<v Speaker 1>And from then on, regardless of where he was in

0:13:27.640 --> 0:13:31.559
<v Speaker 1>that hospital, the nurses or one of us always included

0:13:31.600 --> 0:13:34.560
<v Speaker 1>the word north in an arrow pointed in that direction.

0:13:35.120 --> 0:13:38.760
<v Speaker 1>Besides the date and the time, I would take those

0:13:38.840 --> 0:13:41.079
<v Speaker 1>lessons he taught me as a kid, and expand on

0:13:41.160 --> 0:13:46.000
<v Speaker 1>him throughout my life even today. There was one time

0:13:46.040 --> 0:13:49.640
<v Speaker 1>in January of nineteen eighty eight when it was most important.

0:13:50.800 --> 0:13:54.720
<v Speaker 1>I was in a land navigation course at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

0:13:55.600 --> 0:13:57.839
<v Speaker 1>At that time of my life, I'd never been as

0:13:57.960 --> 0:14:01.840
<v Speaker 1>cold or seen the cold Oklahoma was beating me around

0:14:01.840 --> 0:14:04.080
<v Speaker 1>the head and shoulders with There were ten of us

0:14:04.080 --> 0:14:06.560
<v Speaker 1>in my group that started from the back of a

0:14:06.640 --> 0:14:09.160
<v Speaker 1>deuce and a half truck that we'd been freshly thrown

0:14:09.200 --> 0:14:12.080
<v Speaker 1>out of, with a compass and a map and a

0:14:12.160 --> 0:14:15.520
<v Speaker 1>list of individual points that we all had to find

0:14:15.559 --> 0:14:18.440
<v Speaker 1>on our own. There may have been ten of us

0:14:18.480 --> 0:14:20.520
<v Speaker 1>in the group, but we all had different points to

0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:24.080
<v Speaker 1>find and an unknown time in whish to complete the evolution.

0:14:25.240 --> 0:14:27.800
<v Speaker 1>The map had them pre marked as a dot in

0:14:27.920 --> 0:14:31.960
<v Speaker 1>a distance from where we stood. Here's how it worked.

0:14:32.120 --> 0:14:34.280
<v Speaker 1>We all had that you are here mark on a map.

0:14:34.360 --> 0:14:36.560
<v Speaker 1>This would be in the first of the field exercises.

0:14:36.640 --> 0:14:38.960
<v Speaker 1>They at least gave us that as a starting point.

0:14:39.760 --> 0:14:42.200
<v Speaker 1>Then from the maps they had us, we had to

0:14:42.240 --> 0:14:45.480
<v Speaker 1>find markers scattered over acres of woods in the order

0:14:45.560 --> 0:14:48.520
<v Speaker 1>that they were listed on the map. We all had

0:14:48.520 --> 0:14:51.760
<v Speaker 1>a different number of points to find that zigzagged across

0:14:51.800 --> 0:14:55.160
<v Speaker 1>the course that had followed correctly would have you end

0:14:55.320 --> 0:14:59.960
<v Speaker 1>at the corresponding endpoint marked on your map. At each

0:15:00.000 --> 0:15:02.200
<v Speaker 1>such reference point was a metal stob that had been

0:15:02.280 --> 0:15:04.400
<v Speaker 1>drove in the ground with a brass tag on it

0:15:04.400 --> 0:15:08.200
<v Speaker 1>that had an alpha numeric code stamped on it. You

0:15:08.240 --> 0:15:11.000
<v Speaker 1>had to write those down before shooting an asthma to

0:15:11.080 --> 0:15:14.320
<v Speaker 1>try and locate the next point. They were easy to

0:15:14.360 --> 0:15:17.240
<v Speaker 1>miss if you deviated the slightest on your path from

0:15:17.280 --> 0:15:22.120
<v Speaker 1>the previous point or miscalculated the distance, because they only

0:15:22.160 --> 0:15:25.440
<v Speaker 1>poked up about six inches out of the ground. The

0:15:25.560 --> 0:15:28.200
<v Speaker 1>terrain we were in went from open fields that were

0:15:28.240 --> 0:15:31.600
<v Speaker 1>grown up with waist high grass and briars to dense woods,

0:15:32.160 --> 0:15:36.040
<v Speaker 1>and compounding the problem was there wasn't only just the

0:15:36.080 --> 0:15:39.760
<v Speaker 1>markers you were looking for out there, but other markers

0:15:39.800 --> 0:15:44.120
<v Speaker 1>in close proximity that were marked differently. If you didn't

0:15:44.160 --> 0:15:47.280
<v Speaker 1>walk exactly along the proper asthmas counting the paces from

0:15:47.280 --> 0:15:50.120
<v Speaker 1>the previous spot to the next, you could write down

0:15:50.160 --> 0:15:53.200
<v Speaker 1>the wrong code when you reached that next point in

0:15:53.240 --> 0:15:57.200
<v Speaker 1>the series. You'd wind up back with everyone else eventually.

0:15:57.600 --> 0:16:00.480
<v Speaker 1>But if you mark down the incorrect code, you failed course.

0:16:01.240 --> 0:16:03.360
<v Speaker 1>If you failed the course, you had to recycle and

0:16:03.400 --> 0:16:06.720
<v Speaker 1>do that phase of training all over again. If you

0:16:06.760 --> 0:16:09.400
<v Speaker 1>failed the second time, I think that took you out

0:16:09.480 --> 0:16:13.080
<v Speaker 1>back and shot you, or worse, made you join the Navy.

0:16:13.280 --> 0:16:18.520
<v Speaker 1>I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I love the Navy. I'm kidding now.

0:16:18.520 --> 0:16:21.000
<v Speaker 1>I loved every minute of it, and it was a

0:16:21.040 --> 0:16:25.080
<v Speaker 1>great example of the difference between being close and being

0:16:25.160 --> 0:16:27.960
<v Speaker 1>right on the money. And it's good to know where

0:16:28.000 --> 0:16:30.440
<v Speaker 1>you are in relation to what you're asking other folks

0:16:30.520 --> 0:16:34.600
<v Speaker 1>to shoot at, if you know what I mean. There's

0:16:34.640 --> 0:16:38.400
<v Speaker 1>all kinds of GPS devices, apps and trackers that are

0:16:38.440 --> 0:16:42.480
<v Speaker 1>as common today as that computer camera, television telephone A

0:16:42.520 --> 0:16:45.680
<v Speaker 1>bunch of you are listening to me talk on right now,

0:16:46.800 --> 0:16:49.960
<v Speaker 1>But that hasn't always been the case. I love the

0:16:49.960 --> 0:16:52.720
<v Speaker 1>on X app on my phone. I use it literally

0:16:52.920 --> 0:16:56.080
<v Speaker 1>every day for something. I depend on it to help

0:16:56.080 --> 0:16:58.480
<v Speaker 1>me navigate. But there was a time, as my daughter

0:16:58.560 --> 0:17:02.960
<v Speaker 1>Bailey calls it back then, when those things didn't exist.

0:17:03.680 --> 0:17:06.640
<v Speaker 1>Those simple skills are not as common as they used

0:17:06.640 --> 0:17:09.639
<v Speaker 1>to be because of the great convenience of technology. But

0:17:09.960 --> 0:17:12.199
<v Speaker 1>we owe it to ourselves and our kids and the

0:17:12.240 --> 0:17:15.520
<v Speaker 1>new outdoor folks that we should be entering to pass

0:17:15.680 --> 0:17:18.359
<v Speaker 1>along the basic skills that will help you get around

0:17:18.400 --> 0:17:22.560
<v Speaker 1>in the woods when your computer, camera, television telephone battery dies.

0:17:24.240 --> 0:17:26.359
<v Speaker 1>Keep a compass in your pocket and no how it

0:17:26.400 --> 0:17:29.960
<v Speaker 1>works and how to use it. In its most simplistic form,

0:17:30.040 --> 0:17:32.879
<v Speaker 1>if you walk into an area you're unfamiliar with in

0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:36.760
<v Speaker 1>a northerly direction to get back in the vicinity of

0:17:36.760 --> 0:17:39.119
<v Speaker 1>where you left from, you know you're gonna have to

0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:42.280
<v Speaker 1>walk in a southerly direction. You don't even need a

0:17:42.359 --> 0:17:45.080
<v Speaker 1>compass to do that. If the sun is on your

0:17:45.160 --> 0:17:47.280
<v Speaker 1>right when you leave, it needs to be on your

0:17:47.320 --> 0:17:50.240
<v Speaker 1>left when you return if you're only gone for half

0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:53.560
<v Speaker 1>the day. Now, don't be jamming up my email with

0:17:53.920 --> 0:17:55.920
<v Speaker 1>what if you left at ten am and came back

0:17:55.920 --> 0:17:59.280
<v Speaker 1>at two pm, Galileo, I know the sun would have

0:17:59.400 --> 0:18:01.359
<v Speaker 1>to be on the right side. Again, I'm talking in

0:18:01.600 --> 0:18:06.880
<v Speaker 1>very general terms here, so take it easy. Look at

0:18:06.880 --> 0:18:09.400
<v Speaker 1>a map of the area you're in before you leave

0:18:09.440 --> 0:18:12.440
<v Speaker 1>the truck, and orient it with a complaice to where

0:18:12.480 --> 0:18:15.320
<v Speaker 1>you are and what direction you want to go. Better, yet,

0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:18.280
<v Speaker 1>look at it at home and familiarize yourself with it

0:18:18.320 --> 0:18:22.040
<v Speaker 1>before you ever leave the house. The degree of accuracy

0:18:22.040 --> 0:18:25.600
<v Speaker 1>of maps online is extremely detailed and manipula to the

0:18:25.600 --> 0:18:28.639
<v Speaker 1>point that you can just about see what you'll be

0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:32.920
<v Speaker 1>seeing before you load up and go. A physical map

0:18:32.960 --> 0:18:34.719
<v Speaker 1>of the area is good to tote in your pocket

0:18:34.720 --> 0:18:38.040
<v Speaker 1>as well. It's not that you're gonna need it. It's

0:18:38.160 --> 0:18:41.480
<v Speaker 1>all about if you suddenly find out you do you

0:18:41.600 --> 0:18:45.199
<v Speaker 1>vetteran backcountry folks know what I'm talking about. Sometimes a

0:18:45.320 --> 0:18:47.640
<v Speaker 1>day of hunting in the wilderness can turn into an

0:18:47.680 --> 0:18:51.280
<v Speaker 1>overnight stay because of weather or packing out an animal,

0:18:51.400 --> 0:18:55.520
<v Speaker 1>or maybe an injury, or, for heaven's sake, battery dies

0:18:55.560 --> 0:19:00.359
<v Speaker 1>on your computer, camera, television, telephone. Being prepared, it is

0:19:00.480 --> 0:19:04.720
<v Speaker 1>essential an extra pair of socks, a packable sleeping bag

0:19:04.760 --> 0:19:07.280
<v Speaker 1>and warm clothes jamming until a day pack doesn't take

0:19:07.359 --> 0:19:09.960
<v Speaker 1>up much room, and a compass hanging around your neck.

0:19:10.280 --> 0:19:14.679
<v Speaker 1>For sure. Dog, I go overboard when packing for a

0:19:14.720 --> 0:19:17.520
<v Speaker 1>trip and take way more than I'll ever need. But

0:19:17.560 --> 0:19:19.800
<v Speaker 1>regardless of where I'm going to what I'm doing that

0:19:19.960 --> 0:19:22.560
<v Speaker 1>requires me to take things into the field. I have

0:19:22.720 --> 0:19:27.399
<v Speaker 1>a minimum a compass in every day pack, backpack and

0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:30.679
<v Speaker 1>chest rig I on if I'm talking all three on

0:19:30.680 --> 0:19:34.040
<v Speaker 1>a trip, I have them all Three is two, two

0:19:34.119 --> 0:19:38.600
<v Speaker 1>is one, and one is none. I googled how to

0:19:38.600 --> 0:19:40.280
<v Speaker 1>read a map and added me to either in the

0:19:40.320 --> 0:19:43.760
<v Speaker 1>search bar. There were half a dozen great articles on

0:19:43.800 --> 0:19:47.040
<v Speaker 1>the media to the website explaining in detail how to do it.

0:19:47.840 --> 0:19:51.199
<v Speaker 1>The Bureau of Land Management has an entire free course

0:19:51.320 --> 0:19:54.399
<v Speaker 1>on map reading on their website that goes into the

0:19:54.440 --> 0:19:56.719
<v Speaker 1>weeds so deep you could plan a mission to Mars

0:19:56.760 --> 0:20:00.119
<v Speaker 1>with it. And of course there's always the universe. Thank

0:20:00.160 --> 0:20:04.840
<v Speaker 1>give you Tube for video instruction. The main thing is

0:20:04.920 --> 0:20:07.359
<v Speaker 1>it's a great tool to have in your toolbox should

0:20:07.400 --> 0:20:10.439
<v Speaker 1>you need it. It's also a skill that's being lost

0:20:10.480 --> 0:20:14.280
<v Speaker 1>to the convenience of modern technology. And maybe best of all,

0:20:14.840 --> 0:20:17.240
<v Speaker 1>it's an activity you can share with you young as

0:20:17.240 --> 0:20:23.280
<v Speaker 1>it gets you both outside doing things that doesn't require electricity, batteries, bait,

0:20:23.680 --> 0:20:27.680
<v Speaker 1>or even bullets, just a little time and a willingness

0:20:27.680 --> 0:20:34.800
<v Speaker 1>to learn. Knowing where north is it's the first step,

0:20:34.840 --> 0:20:39.280
<v Speaker 1>and knowing where to take your second. Thank y'all so

0:20:39.440 --> 0:20:41.359
<v Speaker 1>much for listening to all of us here on the

0:20:41.359 --> 0:20:44.640
<v Speaker 1>Bear Grease channel, as really is something for everyone here

0:20:44.640 --> 0:20:47.920
<v Speaker 1>at Mediator, from how to and trivia and music documentary,

0:20:48.160 --> 0:20:53.080
<v Speaker 1>kids and this calamity that drops every Friday morning until

0:20:53.119 --> 0:20:56.720
<v Speaker 1>next week. This is Brent Reeves. Sign it off, y'all,

0:20:56.800 --> 0:21:07.800
<v Speaker 1>be careful to be done. R.