FREE MAP-AND-COMPASS LAND NAVIGATION CLASS at the 26th-Annual Winter Camping Symposium, Friday, October 17, 2025, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm CT (YMCA Camp Miller • 89382 E Frontage Road • Sturgeon Lake, Minnesota, 218.372.3188 www.WinterCampingSymposium.com):
ATTENDEES AT WCS 2025 -- the world’s largest non-profit gathering of winter-camping enthusiasts -- will be able to network with some of the world’s top winter-camping subject-matter experts, expeditioners, guides, outfitters, authors, speakers, instructors, and gear vendors. FOLLOW WCS 2025 on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/wintercampingsymposium
>> THE CLASS
Taught by Team MibSAR’s Long Range Special Operations Group (LRSOG) instructor cadre -- Nick St. Onge, Chris Ozminski, Kelly Robinson, David Pickett, Steve Haynes, and Michael Neiger -- participants will get hands-on, in-the-bush instruction on how to:
• Use a map (provided) and baseplate compass (loaners available) together
• Calculate bearings and distances between two points on a map
• Adjust for magnetic declination when plotting/calculating bearings
• Pace distances with U.S. Army Ranger Pacing Beads (loaners available)
• Navigate around the YMCA’s heavily-wooded, 14-point orienteering course -- accompanied by an instructor
A compass-proofing station will be on-site to identify defective or inaccurate compasses, which is more common than users realize
Full-color, 1:3,600-scale topographic maps for the 14-point YMCA Camp Miller orienteering course will be provided by instructors
>> WHAT TO BRING
• VERY IMPORTANT: Safety glasses to protect eyes when bushwhacking
• High-quality, baseplate (see-through-style) compass, if you have one or can’t borrow one (or use one of 12 high-quality, Suunto-brand, A-30 luminous baseplate loaner compasses available on a first come, first served basis from an instructor). Your compass should be equipped with a long, loss-prevention-lanyard loop, long enough to hang near your belt, so you can use it without removing it from your neck. Many OEM compass lanyards are too short.
If you need to purchase a basic compass for this class, consider the Finish-made Suunto A-30 baseplate USGS UTM model (1:24,000-scale) compass balanced for the Northern Hemisphere (NH): $35 free shipping from:
https://www.amazon.com/Suunto-A-30-L-Adventure-Compass/dp/B00ARUSLDG/
NOTE: If your compass of choice does not have a clear (see-through) baseplate, or has a compass CARD instead of a NEEDLE -- like a military-style lensatic unit -- you will need to carry a 360-degree pocket protractor to accurately plot and calculate azimuths on a quadrangle (map), both in the classroom for tabletop exercises, and in the field, while underway. Here is a good pocket protractor with interior UTM corner plotters:
https://www.maptools.com/product/PocketCorners
• U.S. Army Ranger Pacing Beads, if you have them (or use one of 12 sets of high-quality, unbreakable, U.S. Army Ranger Pacing beads available on a first come, first served basis from an instructor)
• Pencil
• Paper
• 8.5- by 11-inch clipboard with note-taking paper
• 6-inch (or longer) ruler
• One, 2-gallon-size, clear-plastic, zip-lock bag to protect map from brush and rain
• Ruck (lined with a water-proof garbage bag to keep contents dry) stuffed with rain jacket, rain pants, warm jacket, warm hat, spare polypro shirt, ready-to-eat snacks, 1 or 2 water bottles, electrolyte mix for water, eye protection (for bushwhacking), toilet paper in plastic bag (please don't burn toilet paper as it is an extreme fire hazard; either pack it out or bury it), insect repellent (100-percent DEET recommended), bug head net, basic first-aid and stop-the-bleed kit in zip-lock plastic bag, two-gallon ziplock bag for class-specific gear listed above, and a zip-lock bag carrying essential survival items (if you don't carry them in your pockets on lanyards, which is recommended): waterproof matches, lighter, waterproof fire starters, emergency blanket/tarp, whistle, pocket knife, small flashlight, extra battery, small backup compass, signal mirror, etc.
• Non-cotton underwear and clothing are recommended in foul weather. Cotton is the Devil’s Cloth -- when it gets wet, it cools the body faster than synthetic clothing, greatly increasing the chance of hypothermia, which is a leading killer of people in the outdoors.
• COVID-19 facemask (optional)
• Hand sanitizer (optional)
>> MEALS AND LODGING
• No meals or lodging are provided by the organizer, Michael Neiger, during this class.
>> INSURANCE COVERAGE
• No insurance coverage is provided by the organizer, Michael Neiger, for this class. Participants are encouraged to consult with a trusted professional about the need for life, disability, medical, prescription, dental, eye, evacuation, class cancellation, automobile, etc., insurance coverage.
>> LIABILITY WAIVER
To participate in this class, participants must sign a liability waiver at the start of the class
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>> Team MibSAR’s free upcoming wilderness skills classes:
• November 8-9, 2025 Foul-Weather Survival Class at the DNR RAM Conference Center in Roscommon, Michigan:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1467443691081580/
• May 23-24, 2026 Map-and-Compass Wilderness Land Navigation Class at the DNR RAM Conference Center in Roscommon, Michigan
__________________
>> TO SCHEDULE FREE SPECIAL OPERATIONS GROUP (SOG) TRAINING FOR YOUR TEAM – Foul-Weather Wilderness Survival, Map-and-Compass Land Navigation, Man-Tracking, or Strategies and Tactics for Search and Rescue Operations -- reach out to Michael Neiger at
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