expeditions - The Natural Navigator

Expedition: Africa

19 June 2009 by Tristan Gooley

I watched the History Channel’s ‘Expedition: Africa’ last night, a retake on Stanley’s expedition to find Livingstone. It is quite enjoyable if a bit ‘light’, the interest certainly coming from the internal politics of the expedition team rather than the nature of the journey itself. One thing did strike me, one of their challenges is billed as ‘using only compasses and basic maps’, which could only be billed as a challenge in the age of satellite navigation. Even this seemed to rob the team of some of their awareness of their surroundings. Pasquale Scaturro, the navigator, takes a compass bearing and then navigates from ‘tree to tree’ despite numerous clues in the sky and ground to help him hold a course. To be fair Benedict Allen does point out that the river would give a line to follow, but Pasquale does not seem to want the river to get between…

Tags: benedict allen, compass, courses, expeditions, expediton africa, maps, mireya mayor, navigator, pasquale scaturro |

Share and Enjoy:

RGS Past and Present

21 November 2008 by Tristan Gooley

I had an enjoyable and full day yesterday holding a Beginner’s Guide to Natural Navigation course at the Royal Geographical Society in Kensington. We were in the Lowther room for the day, one of the many rooms at the RGS that oozes character and a sense of history. Even when stepping into the room for the first time, a lot of people experience a feeling of familiarity as it has appeared in many films.

There was a great group for the course from very diverse backgrounds, from the art world to the military. Some of us were busy chatting over a cup of tea, about the room and the sort of figures from history that would have shared the same space, Shackleton and Co, when Sir Ranulph Fiennes passed us in the corridor.

It was one of those serendipitous moments that does no harm to the romantic mystique of the place.

…

Tags: expeditions, Lowther Room, RGS history |

Share and Enjoy:

The Natural Navigator is the school set up by Tristan Gooley to research and teach natural navigation.

Natural navigation is the art of being able to find your way solely by using nature. It encompasses using the sun, moon, stars, weather, water, land, plants and animals.

The courses are designed for those who enjoy the outdoors. Who comes on the courses? Read the feedback from those who have been on the courses here.

If you would like to know more about natural navigation you can browse the website, read about my natural navigation book, or listen to a BBC Radio 4 programme.

beach birds book cirrus cloud coast compass contrails courses dawn direction east equinox gps horizon jupiter land rover latitude lichen moon moss myth natural navigation nature navigate navigation navigation course navigator north orion polaris royal geographical society satnav sea senses shadow shadows Sirius south south downs southeast stars sun sunset trees venus wayfinding west wind wind direction

WP Cumulus Flash tag cloud by Roy Tanck and Luke Morton requires Flash Player 9 or better.

BBC Sciences & Nature
- Climate change makes birds shrink March 12, 2010
  Songbirds on the US east coast are becoming smaller, a trend thought to be driven by the warming temperatures caused by climate change. […]
- Thalidomide effect mystery solved March 11, 2010
  The mechanism by which thalidomide causes malformed limbs is revealed by scientists. […]
- Half-cock chicken mystery solved March 11, 2010
  Researchers in Edinburgh say they have solved the mystery of why some chickens hatch out half-male and half-female. […]
- Parched island March 11, 2010
  Politicians look away as Cyprus dies of drought […]
- Farming future March 11, 2010
  The dawning age of the agricultural automatons […]
- Japan protest over tuna ban plan March 11, 2010
  Japan voices opposition to a proposed ban on international trade in bluefin tuna, after the EU backs the plan. […]
- In pictures: Bear power March 11, 2010
  The European brown bear's love of electricity and telegraph poles is helping scientists gain new insights into its behaviour. […]
- Scientists to review climate body March 10, 2010
  The UN secretary general asks the world's leading science academies to review the UN's climate science body. […]
- EU to back bluefin tuna trade ban March 10, 2010
  EU nations decide to support a ban on international trade in Atlantic bluefin tuna until stocks recover. […]
- Ancient eggshell yields its DNA March 10, 2010
  The eggshells of long-dead and extinct species are a particularly good source to find preserved DNA, researchers say. […]

Archives by Month: