With no luck moose hunting last week, decided to head south on the week end to the great sand hills in Saskatchewan.

Friday afternoon was sunny and with the wind in my face, spot and stalked the various ravines, and you know how it goes! After chasing many deer and running around many hills, it doesn't take long to get 4-5 miles away from my car.

Well, decided to turn around on go back before it got dark.

On my way back spotted 7 deer feeding. Did the usual running back, then around them, then up the hill above them, crawling on my belly as you get to the top and hope they are still there as you peak over the hill. Well, success!

Natural light gave me just enough to field dress and miners light for deboning and bagging.

Then time to leave.

To get to the point, spending the night and the next day lost in the sand hills is no fun!

Will never go into those hills again without a GPS.

Anybody recommend a GPS? Can a good one be had for $200.00?

BTW, mule deer hunting is the BEST! Even if you get lost!

Dressing and deboning those deer results in a very fresh aromatic meat, very alkaline and mineral rich. They must eat lots of cedar brush because that is what they smell like. Premium quality meat.

Corey,

Lowrance makes one caled the iFinder-go. It's a low end unit, costs about $60. But... it gets 48 hours out of a set of regular alkaline AAs, has a SIRF III chip and gets 16 sats instead of 12. The antenna is great and you get good reception even under trees.

The screen is small, the maps are very rudimentary. But it will get you home and it is small enough to be unnoticed in your pocket.

I use a garmin e-trex. We also use garmin rino 120 gps radios. The E-Trex is very resonably priced and easy to use.

I have a couple cheap ones. A older Magellan and a Garmin e-trex. I had them both out at elk camp last week and in the trees the Magellan worked where the etrex never picked up enough sat's to get going. Not sure the whys or why nots but.......

The Magellan Triton 400 is $190 and one of the best new units available. The Magellan Triton 500 is only $220. These units use the National Geographic TOPO! Explorer series maps. Tiger GPS has buy one get one free offer on the maps.

I really like my Garmin Rino 120 it will get you back home or back to downed game every time.




Cal30

A GPS can crap out on you a TOPO map, a compass and the ABILITY to use them never fails. If you get my drift.

I have an older Magellan 310 that works fine, but prefer my Garmin Etrex.

One thing about a GPS, the more you spend the more complicated to use. I like simple and reliable, the Etrex was my answer.

Good Luck

Reloader

quote:

Originally posted by stillbeeman:
A GPS can crap out on you a TOPO map, a compass and the ABILITY to use them never fails. If you get my drift.

I agree with this but having done it in the real world I also find that it doesn't take you long to get well and truly lost, especially in country such as that shown in the photo Ar Corey posted. You take your eye off the ball for a little while as you chase a few deer and all of a sudden one bit of sand looks like the next bit of sand. I'm willing to bet that anyone who hasn't already done it is going to do it some day soon.

So, while doing all the map reading is fine in the classroom we all know that in the real world mistakes happen and that is where the GPS comes into action. For me (I tend to walk a lot of flat, featureless bogland) a GPS is an absolute gift when combined with the ability to use a map and compass. I would recommend one with good maps in it if you can get one but for years I used a unit that had no mapping facility at all. What the GPS does do is put a big "YOU ARE HERE" arrow on your map for you and if you've taken your eye off the ball for even 10 minutes that can be what you need to save you from an uncomfortable night.

The other big plus with the GPS for those of us who tend to spend their time out there alone is that you have a 2nd point of reference. We all know how reassuring it is to turn to a friend and confirm that they think the same as you do. Well, the GPS allows you to turn it on and get confirmation of what you believe to be the case and that is very worthwhile.

For what it is worth I have a very old Garmin GPS12XL and a Garmin GPS 60CS which has the maps in it for the areas I walk/fish/hunt. They have never let me down but I'm sure other units work just as well, or better. I would say that it is worth spending the extra to get a unit that does what you in North America refer to as Topo maps.

Once you have used the GPS in anger you realise that it is an ideal addition to your map and compass and that it allows you to navigate better and to get more enjoyment out of your days on the ground.

quote:

Originally posted by stillbeeman:
A GPS can crap out on you a TOPO map, a compass and the ABILITY to use them never fails. If you get my drift.

I use a Garmin E-Trex High Sensitivity. It works in dense deep forest cover and hilly terrain. But carry spare batteries of the high-energy type. It doesn't work worth a damn without batteries!

i too use a garmin etrex, and have for maybe 9 years in montana, colorado, and new mexico. i always carry a couple extra batteries.

that said, i trust a usgs map and the compass more. i used them in the army in sw asia and europe for most of my career. believe what you will regarding open spaces and the difficulty of land nav, but if you'll learn how to orient you map, and trust the compass, you won't get lost again. just my opinion.

quote:

Originally posted by stillbeeman:
A GPS can crap out on you a TOPO map, a compass and the ABILITY to use them never fails. If you get my drift.

I agree with you. Electronic equipment like handheld GPS units can crap out on you for any number of reasons. Cold temperatures, low batteries, drop the darn thing on a rock, the government jams the signal , etc. I love my GPS (Garmin Vista) and I’ve used the hell out of it for years, fishing, hunting, and exploring. But I never travel in the mountains with my GPS without one of my good compasses as backup.

My point, I guess, about the topo map and the compass is the need to learn how to use them and to have them at hand even tho you have all of the latest whistles and bells.
I have noticed a trend of "hunters" and outdoorsmen in general heading for the rough and remote each year with less and less skills and more and more beliefs in the Madison Avenue hype for the toys they do take with them. A case in point was a post by a forest ranger that the calls by sports wanting to be gotten unstuck and such had gotten so out of hand that they were referring the calls to a tow company that charged big bucks for their service calls. The ranger's logic was that if the sports could remember to take a cell phone, they could remember to take a shovel and they (the rangers) were needed for real emergencies.
I think the fellow that was "bewildered" in the sand hills for an overnight stay was wise to have the foresight to take the where-with-all to spend the night.

A map and compass are good old fashioned technology, indeed for most of the time one can hunt on the big yellow compass in the sky. One should not abandon old skills, on sunny days I still hunt on the sun, but just now and then a gps is invaluable. There was a time, not too long ago, when I was bushed and thought I might have to spend a night out, but the gps saved the day, with a hour of daylight left I was about 5 miles further south than I thought I was, in some of the most unforgiving scrub. My Garmin Csx guided my back to the car and fresh brew of tea, I was happy to have had the gps that day, and a cup of tea never tasted better. As I packed away the cup and kettle the sun went down. Without the gps I would have been snuggled under a log in the bush waiting for the sun to come up again

Further with the Csx I'm able to work out to three decimal places the area for my paddocks and from flow charts travel at the right speed when spraying fertiliser. Bloody marvelous. Try doing that with a map and compass.

I have Magellan Explorer 100. It is the low end model they offer. Saw them on sale for $50, so I bought two. It doesn't have a lot of features or a fancy color screen, but it is easy to use. It'll still do a lot more than I use it for, which is finding my deer stands in the dark or marking fishing holes, but I haven't read up on all of it.

quote:

Originally posted by TJAY:
I use a garmin e-trex. We also use garmin rino 120 gps radios. The E-Trex is very resonably priced and easy to use.

+1
Easy to carry too. I have an e-trix and a Garmin 76CS, which is too big for carrying hunting.
I bought the 76CS first, then realized the errors of my ways and got an e-trix.

Don

I have a Garmin summit, and don't go in the big woods without it. If it does fail me, I am perfectly comfortable with a map and compass which I always have with me also.

Another thing I have done is switched from Lat and longitude to UTM based grids. They are so much easier and as far as I am concerned accurate. I buy maps from MY Topo dot com and I can custom make a map on line and have it shipped to me. They are waterproof and rip proof. I can write down coordinates on them anad highlight spots on them, which I can transfer to Terrain Navigator, a computer based map system.

With radios I can get in touch with my hunting partner and radio coordinates to him and meet up as long as we are in radio contact.

I think I will buy a new summit HD this year and hope its even more accurate than my older summit.

Our county's Search and Rescue navigation gurus tell us not to go into the field without a topo, a good compass and a GPS, in that order. (A GPS is more likely to fail than a compass, a compass more likely to fail than a map. Together, they form a system.)

Personally, I don't want an expensive GPS unit (I consider mine to be expendable). All I want from it is a set of UTM coordinates. If I have those, I can locate myself on a UTM-ticked topo map to within a few meters. And if I have to walk a few hundred meters to get a satellite lock, I can live with it (though I never have had to).

I'm perfectly happy with my old Magellan 4000XL (c. Mid 1990s, I believe, and without WAAS), and I always carry fresh batteries in a water-tight baggie.

If I were buying new today, I'd want my GPS to give me, in this order: long battery life; quick and strong satellite lock; easy editing of waypoints; water resistance; simplicity of set-up and use; a brightly-colored case (to help me find it should I drop it); and be small enough to fit in a pocket.

(For those who have little experience with GPS units: If you're using paper topos, make sure the datum setting of the GPS matches the datum of the topo. Otherwise, you'll be 10s to 100s of meters off. And make sure your compass's declination matches that of the topo, too.)

Hi, A map and compass I carry all the time but I also use garmin foretrex 101, just 80 gramms with batteries, mark your car and let it track your trail. It is on your wrist so it is handy to check how long it is to your car and to check your bearing. And when you are at home download the track to your computer and there is a memory of the trip.

Excellent postings above.
The basic navigation tools are a map and compass. All I need a GPS to do it tell me my current location, for referencing to a map, and my car location for after dark return.

Don

Originally posted by stillbeeman:

quote:

A GPS can crap out on you a TOPO map, a compass and the ABILITY to use them never fails. If you get my drift.

How does a Topo map help someone lost in the dark?

Also the sand hills I was lost in all look the same and go for miles and miles.

The wind also shifted on me while I was de-boning my deer.

Also how do you plot coordinates on a map when chasing mule deer around? That is the problem, crawling on your stomach, trying to keep sand out of your gun, trying to move stealthy, trying to switch blaze orange hat for black before peaking over a hill, trying to negotiate backpack for prone rest etc.

It is not very practical to be plotting maps in these situations. The goal is to shoot a deer for meat.

What I want is something that will draw a picture of my trail/tracks while hunting, which I can follow out back to my vehicle with my game bags full, be it noon or 3:00 AM.

quote:

Originally posted by sherpi:
Hi, A map and compass I carry all the time but I also use garmin foretrex 101, just 80 gramms with batteries, mark your car and let it track your trail. It is on your wrist so it is handy to check how long it is to your car and to check your bearing.

This may be what I am looking for. Also lots of posting on the E-Trex.

Great information everybody and thank you.

Another vital piece of gear for mule deer in these hills next year: bi-pod

quote:

Originally posted by ar corey:

[ . . . ]

What I want is something that will draw a picture of my trail/tracks while hunting, which I can follow out back to my vehicle with my game bags full, be it noon or 3:00 AM.

Keep in mind that the plot your GPS charts while you follow a deer may not be the best route to follow to get out of the backcountry. For example, the deer could run you around 5 miles or so of tough country, and you could end up shooting him an easy 1/2 mile from your truck. Then, you probably wouldn't want to backtrack.

So in some cases, it might be better to use USGS 1:24,000 topos on which you've marked the location of your truck. Having shot your deer, you then grab your present location (UTM coordinates) with your GPS, find your position on the map, and decide the best route back.

Once you're happy with your route, you can use your map to pick key waypoints (UTM coordinates) along your route, enter the waypoints into your GPS, and GOTO each in turn. (A "key waypoint" might well be where you anticipate changing direction.)

Just some thoughts.

By the way — congratulations on staying cool and handling yourself so well while lost.

The Magellan Triton 500 will plot your location on a 7.5 minute USGS map that is displayed on the unit's color LCD screen. You can mark (create a waypoint) of your camp, vehicle, downed deer, or other features to make it easyer to see these land marks as compared to your current location. All of these waypoints will display on the LCD screen; a GPS with a map built in gives you the tools to navigate paperlessly.

By reading the contours on the digital map you can plan your route back to your camp-vehicle or you can plan the next move of your hunting route.

quote:

Originally posted by B. L. O'Connor:

So in some cases, it might be better to use USGS 1:24,000 topos on which you've marked the location of your truck. Having shot your deer, you then grab your present location (UTM coordinates) with your GPS, find your position on the map, and decide the best route back.

Once you're happy with your route, you can use your map to pick key waypoints (UTM coordinates) along your route, enter the waypoints into your GPS, and GOTO each in turn. (A "key waypoint" might well be where you anticipate changing direction.)

Just some thoughts.

Good thoughts. Makes sense, walk the crow flight back to truck.

quote:

By the way — congratulations on staying cool and handling yourself so well while lost.

Didn't want to dump my game bags and feed the coyotes! That mule deer meat is prime, aromatic, mineral rich meat!

Didn't have a pack frame so had these 2 game bags attached to a rope around my neck. My legs were raw the next day from walking and having the game bags banging into them. Still have very little feeling in my left hand fingers from nerve damage gripping those game bags all night. Walk a 100 yards then stop, rest, then walk.

Thinking I was going to start a fire but wax covered wood matches were useless.

Lucky I had hotshots in my gloves. This kept my hands warm for about 10 hours. Bought those on a whim at Walmart. They saved my hands from serious pain.

Actually was blessed to have a farmer wean his cows the day before. The wind shifted and was blowing very strongly and I could faintly hear distressed cows bawling the next day after walking all night. I decided to stash my game bags, mark the trail with orange tape out and follow the cattle sounds. There must be civilisation out near the cattle I thought so I walked with my rifle and backpack towards the cows a few miles and got closer and closer. When I finally reached the cows, the farmer happened to be there feeding them so I walked right to his truck. He gave me a ride.

My biggest worry was water. I had none with me.

I had previously dry fasted 2.5 days with no sleep,food or water before but this was in my house and without all the physical work.

My body was so dehydrated and acidic out there that my lips were peeled like a snake skin shed and my entire throat was burnt. I tried drinking some orange juice mixed with milk later but it was like drinking battery acid when it touched my throat. What me body needed was simple, pure mineral rich water and I downed some Evian.

Would not want to get lost in the hot desert! Would choose a cold northern bush any day. The bush might be more frightening but the desert is much more dangerous.

Please people reading this, take care of yourself and use this example as a warning to be prepared when you go out into the wilderness be it the bush or hills like these.

That's quite a story, and you have my profound respect. Being lost is to experience panic, or something close to it. Panic is a very common if not universal response, and those who survive are tough enough to push their fears back and to keep their cool. To be lost and without water would be especially unnerving. So again — congratulations on a job very well done.

1) I prefer a paper map to a GPS map program for a couple of reasons.

First, a 7.5 min (1:24,000) USGS paper map is large enough for me to get an overview while still seeing detail. I like that. If I place my vehicle on it before departing and take a compass bearing on roughly where I'm going when I leave it, I can pretty well figure out how to cut the access road to find it later on if need be.

Second, the GPS can fail, and if it does, I still have my paper map. (I really, really don't want to put all my navigational eggs in the GPS basket: even if I were to have a great mapping program in my GPS, I'd carry a paper map and quality compass like the Silva Ranger.)

Third, I find my GPS skills are perishable, and I am most secure with really basic functions which are more easily remembered without practice. Give me the UTM coordinates and a paper map, and I'm happy as a clam. The simpler the better for me, especially if I'm under pressure.

2) About fire. I carry several different means to start and maintain a starter flame. Personally, I carry 2 disposable cigarette lighters (pocket and pack); strike anywhere matches in a waterproof match box (pack); steel and magnesium spark thing (pack).

I also carry several "durable matches" in each of 2 baggies, one in my pocket and one in my pack. (Durable matches are ~ 2 inch by 3/8 inch strips of cardboard or cloth impregnated with paraffin. You light one of these, and it burns well for several minutes, enabling you to start a real fire.)

Finally, I carry 3 - 4 trioxane packets in my pack. They're easily ignited, and burn very hot for up to 9 minutes.

I doubt my entire fire-starting kit weighs more than 8 - 10 oz.

Just for what it's worth.

(typo corrected by edit)

quote:

One should not abandon old skills, on sunny days I still hunt on the sun, but just now and then a gps is invaluable.

I find myself using my GPS to orient myself and understand how I got disoriented in the first place. I find it very difficult to get my head around the fact that the sun is now in the wrong place! (This being in dense forest cover and hilly terrain). I am getting better at keeping my bearings - slowly. And I don't make jokes about anyone who gets lost - done that, been there. It is sooo easy! Mind you, in my case it was funny! And that was with a compass and a topo map. (Well, the compass went wrong!)

quote:

Originally posted by 303Guy:
And I don't make jokes about anyone who gets lost - done that, been there. It is sooo easy!

I have to agree with this. I'm sure most people on here have got lost at one time or another and once you do it you realise just how easy it is and just how quickly an easy stroll can turn into a problem.

On one occasion (should I really confess to this?) I got totally lost because I made the mistake of not parking my car where I thought I'd parked. Now, I know many of you are laughing but this is on flat featureless bog where one bit looks the same as the next. I was so confident I knew where I was going to park that at no point did it cross my mind that I'd parked about a mile away. I jumped out of the car with compass and map at the ready and headed out into the moor and I'd gone perhaps a mile when there was a slow realization that something wasn't right. I sat down for a while and studied the map but, of course, flat featureless bog doesn't have many features on the map. However, I remained convinced that something was wrong. Then I took out the GPS, a very old one, and it gave me my grid reference. I checked this on the map and was convinced that there was something wrong with the GPS so I double checked and then I started to realise what I'd done wrong.

Now, on that occasion there was never any danger as the bottom line was that if I walked north west I was always going to hit the road but I think it shows how a simple and stupid mistake that anyone could make can be the difference between an easy walk on a nice day and a disaster. I think it also highlights that when you start to think there is a problem the GPS really can be a useful tool. It isn't the only tool but after a few mistakes I believe that it is a tool well worth having with you, especially when you park your car in the wrong place!

Oh, the moorland looks like this for mile after mile:

If your going to be stupid I guess it pays to be tough.

No water.
No frame pack to remove meat.
No tested fire starting kit.
No poncho or other survival gear?
No map?
No compass? (Even if you don't know where the hell you are it WILL keep you from just walking in circles!)
Obviously NO night navigation skills. (I'll give you a pass here since there are few open water sailing opportunities in central Canada. Maybe it was overcast.)
Failure to orient yourself in macro as well as micro terms.

On the up side you set an excellent "bad example" to others and evidently to yourself as well.

I hunt mostly alone, in country that kills or badly injures people every once in a while. I carry 20+pounds of "crap" with me that will insure that I will not die if I sprain my ankle. A fellow I hunted with on occation used to give me a raft about my survival gear, until he got lost, got wet, got cold, got pneumonia, missed three weeks of work and generally had a really bad time.

I'd suggest a Garmin E-Trex Venture, mine has served me well as an ADJUNCT to my other navigation tools and skills. I also suggest that you look into some serious, tested equipment and training to:
Keep yourself found.
Keep yourself dry, warm and hydrated.

quote:

I carry 20+pounds of "crap" with me that will insure that I will not die if I sprain my ankle. A fellow I hunted with on occation used to give me a raft about my survival gear,

Yeah, I get that from my mate. He is always showing me how little he carries. OK, he is young and fit and crazy, but I'm not (not young and fit, that is) and I insist on carrying plenty water and a 'just in case' warm jacket. And that's not even wondering far off the track. Where I go one can break a leg or worse just next to the track and that's a vehicle track!

quote:

I got totally lost because I made the mistake of not parking my car where I thought I'd parked.

Sorry - I shouldn't laugh. But it happens just like that! I was walking along a trail in the forest toward the hut - except that the sun was in the wrong place! I had no idea I had changed orientation and was heading away from the hut. In the forest one is negotiating a very erratic trail and cannot see the change in direction.

Originally posted by 303Guy:

quote:

(Well, the compass went wrong!)

That's what happened to me. Had a cheap $2.00 water ball compass and it was tracking myself.

Cheap compasses are very delicate to static buildup on a person.

Also be careful if you are wearing polyester clothing like Helly Hanson. Static charge can track your compass. I have removed these types of clothing before and had shocks so strong they actually hurt the back.

Originally posted by HunterMontana:

quote:

If your going to be stupid I guess it pays to be tough.

Stupid for no water yes. But a better word can be broke for the pack frame, GPS, and advanced survival clothing. These things don't grow on trees.

Wasn't planning on even hunting on foot for very long or would have taken water from my vehicle. Spotted some deer bedded on a hill and left my vehicle to stalk them. Was planning on returning and go drive somemore. It can be just as easy to jump deer from the trail in a vehicle so why walk for miles?

quote:

On the up side you set an excellent "bad example" to others and evidently to yourself as well.

Yup, this is a good thread, Glory to God.

quote:

Originally posted by ar corey:
Originally posted by 303Guy:

quote:

(Well, the compass went wrong!)

That's what happened to me. Had a cheap $2.00 water ball compass and it was tracking myself.

Cheap compasses are very delicate to static buildup on a person.

Also be careful if you are wearing polyester clothing like Helly Hanson. Static charge can track your compass. I have removed these types of clothing before and had shocks so strong they actually hurt the back.

Compasses can also be thrown off by metal. Before I go afield, I test my compass both while wearing and not wearing my hunting (or backpacking) kit. My goal is to make sure that the needle points in the same exact direction with and without my gear on. I test my compasses away from anything that might influence the needle (preferably outside, away from buildings, cars, electricity, big belt buckles, handguns, rifles, etc.).

And when I arrive at my takeoff point, I DON'T lay my map on my truck's hood and expect to orient it with my compass. The car's metal may well throw it off. I step a few yards away from my truck and then do my orienting.

A reminder: when navigating with map and compass, make sure you take your location's declination into account. This can be done with greater or lesser accuracy with almost any compass each time you take or shoot a bearing, but it's a hassle and just one more step in a process that can go wrong.

So I always use a good baseplate compass like the Silva Ranger 515CL or Brunton 15TDCL. With them and others like them, once I set the declination, it stays fixed until someone consciously changes it.

quote:

Originally posted by 303Guy:
Sorry - I shouldn't laugh. But it happens just like that!

I think that is exactly the point that almost everyone on this thread is making which is that quite often you get lost in the most amazingly simple and stupid way, I certainly do. However, I will forgive you for laughing at me :-)

Most of us are heading out into the "wilderness" for enjoyment and so we are prone to the occasional distraction. 99 times out of 100 this will not matter in the slightest. However, once in a while it will lead to a mistake, which will lead to an error, which will lead to a bad decision, which will lead to an oversight which will leave you lost. In my experience all of these things can happen in about 20 seconds and deep trouble can follow along only a few minutes behind.

Like a compass, or a map, the GPS is another tool that is available to us that helps us avoid these mistakes and helps us deal with them when they crop up. It is no more or no less than another tool. Those people who reject such a tool because they are too macho and their balls are made of steel and they know how to navigate with little bits of metorite dust that they have been trained by the special forces to find between rocks either have a screw lose or they are making life much too difficult for themselves. I understand that a GPS costs $$$ and some people don't have the $$$ to hand and also that, perhaps, some people just can't get on with a GPS and so always use the map and compass but the bottom line is that the GPS is a simple tool that any responsible person heading into the wilderness should try to have about their person. Personally I also find that it can increase the enjoyment to be had on a day out as when the GPS is working well you can relax a little and focus more on enjoying your surroundings.

Of course there is, certainly here in the UK, a creature called the "safety weenie" who is very keen that everyone understands that he (it is usually a he) does dangerous things that requires a lot of serious safety equipment. He will mention in every sentence that he "does dangerous sports you know." Meet such a safety weenie and he will be only too glad to highlight the latest safety equipment that he carries and he will never fail to be shocked at how unprepared you are to deal with the great outdoors. "What!!!" he will exclaim when you admit that no you don't have either a parachute or an inflatable boat about your person. "Why my mate Bob was struck down by a massive tidal wave on this very hill not 2 years ago and if he hadn't of been carrying the latest nuclear powered high intensity LED laser inflatable boat he would be dead now. This is a very dangerous place you know! People like you just shouldn't be out here." Generally speaking the safety weenie seems to be a miserable character who doesn't enjoy his days on the hill much spending, as he does, most of the time looking out for metorites, or tidal waves or unexpected falls off cliffs or (and this is his favourite) people who are much less well prepared than himself and who need told where they are going wrong. The last safety weenie I met on the hill was, as you might imagine, carrying a huge rucksack stuffed with survival equipment. We were only 300 yards from the road in an area that was fenced in and he got most angry when I enquired if he was intending to stay long.

In saying all of this I can see a bit of the safety weenie and the macho "balls of steel" type in myself in terms of what I do and don't carry or do. I certainly sometimes carry more "safety" gear than is strictly necessary and there are certainly people I know who I feel just aren't up to walking a remote hill that I (in my opinion of course!) could tackle with no bother. I like to think that the difference between myself and true experts in both genres is that I go out there to enjoy myself while they seem to go out there to be as worried or miserable as possible. In the end the key is to get into the outdoors and enjoy yourself and to take the tools that you feel comfortable with and that will ensure you are safe. If you find you are not enjoying yourself because of fears of getting lost, for example, then stay near the road until you get more experience.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but we can all agree with caorach that there are people who go over-board on everything, including safety, and who may also be guilty of moralizing us to death.

But inadequate attention to safety is not simply a different "lifestyle choice" the impact of which is limited only to the individual himself.

In my digs, people who fail to return on time become objects of a search and rescue mission, often into some really rugged terrain and possibly in some very ugly weather.

The mission itself places people — the SAR teams — at risk.

"Safety weenies" are certainly irritating. And they may well enjoy the outdoors in a different way than we do, a way we cannot understand. But if their obsession with safety makes it less likely that SAR teams will have to go out and find them, I can live with my irritation.

Be careful with some of the options presented here, for example the new Magellan Tritons have some really nice topo software, but not for Canada. You will find the software offerings for Canada rather limited.

Best bet is probably still the Garmin GPSMAP 60Cs series with Vista HCx and Legend HCx not far behind. I have an old Magellan eXplorist 500 that I use with some free topographic maps of Canada from http://www.magicmaps.ca/ which is an okay choice, you can probably find them on special at CT, but the "free" maps are handled completely by volunteers so they aren't all that up-to-date.

If you are just looking for something to get you from your car to camp and drop a few waypoints to mark sign or trails or watering holes or whatever to come back to, just about any unit can do that.

I'm partial to having both a GPS and a map and compass to help me find my way, batteries don't last forever and you don't always get the most precise signals.