Whether you’re living off the grid or just hiking, it’s important to know where you’re going. When Inclement weather happens (snow, rain, etc), it can be hard to keep track of these things. Terrains change and once familiar lands can become new again. Here are a few things you can do to remember the way.
Know The Area
With snow covering the ground, and rain shifting its surface, you can’t rely on what you see on the surface to keep track of where you are. Stone paths, protruding sticks, and rivers/streams can look drastically different with the changing weather. Use the sight of unchanging landmarks to know your location. This could be large scale things like mountains. and lakes. On a smaller scale, use unique looking trees or boulders to distinguish your place.
How Long It Takes
Its easy to under/over-shoot your destination if you don’t know how far away it is. Counting your steps between locations can be a good way to familiarize yourself with the distance between 2 points. Counting paces is a common way to track this without equipment, while others use time to track it better (walking at a normal pace takes # hours to go # miles). Whichever is better for you, keeping it in mind may help you from getting lost.
Of course, there is a fair number of tools that can make this easier. Whether its a GPS, a compass, or a pedometer, there might be instances where you won’t have access to these items and will need to rely on your mind.