Navigation. Navigation. Navigator. The Driver can only do so much as he drives and we relied on the allotted mansions. The person sitting shotgun has, one of the most important ones: being the Navigator. I cannot praise Pietro enough on this (although he does have one curse) as he navigated the Lone Galloper Overland team through seven countries, all strings attached. Through isolated trails, road signs written in languages and alphabets we don't know and entire regions we (almost) always found our way around... with a pinch of ingenuity too.
I've always had a fascination with maps. Our world drawn up in detail, distances, ratios and names perfectly on a piece of paper that folded up, fits in your back pocket.
As we embarked on our first Overland Expedition we consciously decided we were not going to use a dedicated GPS Land Navigation System. Also... the one we had was useless (no maps on the regions we traversed). I had bought throughout other trips a couple of maps detailing Europe and Italy. However as we moved through each country, seven of them, we would have to acquire a local map. Reasoning behind that being that it would with all probability they would be written both in the local alphabet that in "ours", making our navigation efforts less of a chore.
Let me just throw in that even though we carried a compass we never had to break it out as the majority of our expedition was along the Adriatic coast so we had a constant bearing as we moved south....
I've always had a fascination with maps. Our world drawn up in detail, distances, ratios and names perfectly on a piece of paper that folded up, fits in your back pocket.
As we embarked on our first Overland Expedition we consciously decided we were not going to use a dedicated GPS Land Navigation System. Also... the one we had was useless (no maps on the regions we traversed). I had bought throughout other trips a couple of maps detailing Europe and Italy. However as we moved through each country, seven of them, we would have to acquire a local map. Reasoning behind that being that it would with all probability they would be written both in the local alphabet that in "ours", making our navigation efforts less of a chore.
Let me just throw in that even though we carried a compass we never had to break it out as the majority of our expedition was along the Adriatic coast so we had a constant bearing as we moved south....
"As long as the coast is on our right we're good to go."
Was our navigational mantra as we grinder mile after mile on sketchy paved roads in the search for a perfect beach on which to set up camp.
Let me break this idea down into three points:
Let me break this idea down into three points:
- GPS / Sat Imagery: pros & Cons
- Map Navigation: Pros and Cons
- Getting Lost & Multitasking
A) GPS SatImagery.
One of our super top secret weapons on locating and assaulting beaches was (shhhh) Satellite Imagery provided by old faithful Google Maps. Yeah, I know "But, but this article says Maps not the App!" Alright, alright folks here is what we use it for: Finding the beaches.
Our Adriatic Circle Expedition comprised some promises we made to ourselves. One of which was that we were going to "rough camp" on beaches and would do all we could to find the darn stretches of sand.
Pros:
SatImagery provided us with a bird-eye view of the coast in our pocket. As time came to stop and find a spot to set up camp we usually drive around, ask locals and look for a beach. That wasn't always possible due to varying factors such as no light, no direct view or lack of vantage points etc etc. In those cases we broke out our phone and pour over the tiny screen in search of what looked like a possible camp site.
Cons:
you need a Internet connection to do so. So either you're prepared to shell out $$$ for data roaming or you have reach a populated area, find a cafe with wifi, get coffee and what-not, find suitable beaches, compare with map and mark them; navigate to... we and probably you too, will not have this luxury on most occasions.
B) Map Navigation
Pros:
- much more fun! (getting lost is part of the fun)
- keeps the passenger busy
- makes you think and stay focused
- much more rewarding & satisfying
- feel like Sir. David Livingstone
Cons:
- makes you absolutely loose it and go on a monkey fit
- Mars, we're on Mars
- feel like Captain James Cook on his 'vacation' to Hawaii
- didn't enjoy Cast Away that much huh?
C) Getting Lost & Multitasking
I don't mind getting lost as long as we are within fuel range of more fuel and any team members or the vehicle have not been badly injured or compromised. If these factors do not come into play then getting lost is part of the game. In my book the best places, biggest lessons and best experiences came after I got lost.
Multitasking. I train myself to be able to multitask as much as possible. Not only does it come in handy whilst overlanding, it is a skill I use constantly working on movies. Talking to someone whilst listening to third party conversations of the radio, keeping count of events and timing along with planning steps ahead of the game all as cars are about to explode (I will forever admire SFX).
Then theres driving on a mountainous road, in Greece, whilst having to navigate because Pietro had one of his raptor nap attacks. A whole different story in itself. Multitasking is good. but if you can avoid it, please do.
* Guys and Gals if you have any more Pros & Cons and stories to add we love to read about them on our travels!! Feel free to use the comments section!
One of our super top secret weapons on locating and assaulting beaches was (shhhh) Satellite Imagery provided by old faithful Google Maps. Yeah, I know "But, but this article says Maps not the App!" Alright, alright folks here is what we use it for: Finding the beaches.
Our Adriatic Circle Expedition comprised some promises we made to ourselves. One of which was that we were going to "rough camp" on beaches and would do all we could to find the darn stretches of sand.
Pros:
SatImagery provided us with a bird-eye view of the coast in our pocket. As time came to stop and find a spot to set up camp we usually drive around, ask locals and look for a beach. That wasn't always possible due to varying factors such as no light, no direct view or lack of vantage points etc etc. In those cases we broke out our phone and pour over the tiny screen in search of what looked like a possible camp site.
Cons:
you need a Internet connection to do so. So either you're prepared to shell out $$$ for data roaming or you have reach a populated area, find a cafe with wifi, get coffee and what-not, find suitable beaches, compare with map and mark them; navigate to... we and probably you too, will not have this luxury on most occasions.
B) Map Navigation
Pros:
- much more fun! (getting lost is part of the fun)
- keeps the passenger busy
- makes you think and stay focused
- much more rewarding & satisfying
- feel like Sir. David Livingstone
Cons:
- makes you absolutely loose it and go on a monkey fit
- Mars, we're on Mars
- feel like Captain James Cook on his 'vacation' to Hawaii
- didn't enjoy Cast Away that much huh?
C) Getting Lost & Multitasking
I don't mind getting lost as long as we are within fuel range of more fuel and any team members or the vehicle have not been badly injured or compromised. If these factors do not come into play then getting lost is part of the game. In my book the best places, biggest lessons and best experiences came after I got lost.
Multitasking. I train myself to be able to multitask as much as possible. Not only does it come in handy whilst overlanding, it is a skill I use constantly working on movies. Talking to someone whilst listening to third party conversations of the radio, keeping count of events and timing along with planning steps ahead of the game all as cars are about to explode (I will forever admire SFX).
Then theres driving on a mountainous road, in Greece, whilst having to navigate because Pietro had one of his raptor nap attacks. A whole different story in itself. Multitasking is good. but if you can avoid it, please do.
* Guys and Gals if you have any more Pros & Cons and stories to add we love to read about them on our travels!! Feel free to use the comments section!
You probably caught my drift. I adore Maps and actually using them. I have learned a whole deal about how much of a difference little things make. I advise you, reader, to learn how to navigate using Map & Compass. To remember how precious a map is - (keep it dry)! and learn how to pick and choose a good and informative map along with a local travel guide, it will definitely make your adventure richer!
Beto
