Northwest Woodsman
Explore the Unreachable
Finding North
without a compass
         



  • Clear a flat area of dirt or sand.  
  • Find a stick about 1 or 2 feet long and poke it into the ground so it stands up.
  • Get a pebble and place it exactly on the end of the shadow line. This will be West.
  • Wait for a half hour.
  • Place another pebble at the end of the new shadow. This will be East.  
  • Draw a line between the two pebbles. This is your East-West direction, with the first mark being
    West and the second being East.
  • Draw another line through the East-West line forming a cross. This is your North-South line with
    North heading away from the sun.  
             


  • Find the Big Dipper in the sky.
  • Follow the edge of the ladle, and measure 5 times its length .
  • The brightest star there is the North Star or Polaris.
  • Cassiopeia is a 'W' shaped constellation across the North Star from the Big Dipper. It's 'W' points
    right at the north star also.


  • Hold your wristwatch in front of you like a compass.
  • Point the hour hand at the sun. You can use the shadow of a stick to help
    you line up the hour hand.
  • Make a line between the hour hand and the 12 o'clock mark to get your
    north-south line.
  • North is heading away from the sun.



  • Find out what time it is (or if you have no watch make your best guess)
  • Draw a big circle in the dirt with a stick.
  • From the center of the circle, draw a line straight towards the sun, this is
    your hour hand.
  • Now, draw a line were 12 o'clock position would be in relation to the hour
    hand.
  • Draw a line between these two lines and you have your North-South line.
As the sun moves across the sky from east to west, its shadow gradually changes which is   
what makes this direction finding method work.   
This is my favorite and the easiest one to do.  All you need is a fairly clear night and
knowledge of a couple of constellations.
You can find North just by knowing what time it is.
Shadow Stick Method
Finding the North Star
Using a Watch