Looking out over a foggy lake, I can't help but think about how tough it is to navigate an aircraft in poor visibility. When we fly, we not only have a GPS to assist us, we have maps of the area. One nice thing about maps is the power never fails like it may be prone to do in a GPS. Maps do not require batteries or charging units. Even though we fly over the same area daily, we do not rely on a GPS. For some reason however, many of our guests rely exclusively on their GPS to navigate a remote lake and sometimes end up pondering a night under a 14 foot boat when the power goes off.
Here is a hint about navigating a remote lake. Firstly, have a map and use a map. We will provide a map for each boat before you venture into the camp. A GPS is a great father's day gift and there is no problem owning one or using one, but they are not fool proof.
There is a phenomenon, which I refer to as “Daniel Boone syndrome”, which requires fishermen who have just flown into a remote lake to want to go the furthest end of that lake as soon as they can. When this urge hits, check the map and know where you are on the map. It does help to know which way is North and a compass certainly makes finding North rather easy. No need to wait til dark to find the North Star. Darkness opens a whole new can of worms in regards to navigation. Do not go all the way to the far end of the lake until you are sure you can find your way back to the cabin. It is kind of like finding your way around a large city. At first everything looks the same. I feel this way in
Touratel is a great site for checking out a lake or area. Check it out.
