Latest News: The new online course – The Beginner’s Guide to Natural Navigation – includes a video tutorial on how animals can help you to navigate.
Nobody yet knows for certain how humans found their way to every part of the Earth’s surface, but there are some interesting clues in the Pacific. Genetic and anthropological evidence now strongly suggests that the paths that humans followed is spookily similar to the migratory paths of the birds.
We can navigate with help from the animals without travelling to the other side of the world though.
Spider’s webs will be found in the lee of trees, fences and buildings, sheltered from the wind. If we know that our wind blows most commonly from the southwest, these webs become basic compasses.
The next time you walk past a gorse bush in an area with sheep, have a look at all sides of the bush. If you are in an exposed area (quite likely if there are gorse and sheep), you may spot that one side of the bush is less healthy than the other. The sheep like to shelter behind gorse when a storm blows through and these come from the southwest more often than any other direction. The giveaway is a hollow, or at least an area with dead branches and few flowers and tiny strands of wool hanging down from the branches.
Over the years I have had help from dogs, ducks, goats, horses, whales, dolphins, jellyfish, spiders and butterflies to name a few. Have a browse of some of the posts below, read one of these books or come to a talk or course to discover which animals may help you find your way.
