Funny - just had the compass rebuilt on the boat. Was asked by my son - why? Cause it's good to have a back up to get you home that doesn't rely on electricity... and I like the way they look.

I have a panel mount GPS in one of my airplanes, and having airport data available on it is really useful. That said, I can get by without it and always know roughly where I am on my paper sectional chart.

I do not have a GPS for my car, but since getting a smartphone last year, I have used the GPS feature a couple times while on trips. I still plan my routes beforehand and have never felt the need to "rely" on a GPS in a car for the primary route to my destination. I do think they are neat for spur of the moment sidetrips to nearby attractions while vacationing.

Really what is sadder, that you don't have and use a GPS, or the fact that you apparently can't read a map? I vote for number 2

I miss the "old days" when people would print directions from yahoo maps or mapquest stop you on the street with the printed page because they were wrong. :)

I was in SLC a few months ago, following my Garmin's directions for a motorcycle shop. Of course, it let me through a residential area to a dead end, which was across a busy street from the shop. Turning around in the dead-end to backtrack, there was a house with a bunch of guys out front, working on a car. They saw me and busted up laughing. I'm sure they see it 5 times a day. Pretty sure they thought I was a dumbass.

Our Son just finished his Orienteering MB in Scouts. That badge took over a year to complete. He could only use maps, the sky and a compass to do tasks. At the beginning he asked me if he could use my GPS and I told him that would be right and his response was "Dad, long ago they didn't have maps, then they did, now there is something else."

I understand his logic train but I am not on board with it. Not yet anyway.

When I travel I like having a map, it gives me the bigger picture of what is around. Also, in other countries that I haven't been to before, I don't KNOW if the GPS or iPhone will work. Data in foreign countries can be insanely expensive.

I like paper maps, glove box is full of 'em. They are especially good for getting the "bigger picture" and planning routes.
My iphone has saved my butt many times though when I went off the map or on tiny city roads. In the country it doesn't always work anyway.

Uhm Fred and Wilma were the Flintstones,, Barney and Betty were there Rubbles..

I couldn't live without my GPS !

I print out Mapquest maps if I don't know where I'm going.


And I end up driving around in circles a lot.....

i love maps.

i had a GPS for a short while (mere weeks). someone went into my car and lifted it. now i only have a GPS suction cup thing. ironically, they had to wade thru my car full of maps to even find it. hope they got a papercut. mofos!

My 10 year old and I just went on a spur-of-the-moment top-doors-off Jeep trip a few weekends ago. All off hwy, just driving in the general direction of our destination. I made sure he had the MI county map book handy the whole time and could tell me roughly where we were.

I love maps. Even with GPS in the helo, on NVGs at night I mapped it. I loved the challenge and satisfaction of looking at terrain and knowing exactly where I was on my topo.

That said, in cities, GPS rules. I couldn't live without it in terms of finding hotels, office buildings, etc. DC and Boston are a terror even with great maps.

The paper is always near, however:)

I love maps as well. Heck we make them for a living and we have a lot of stupid expensive mapping software. I still like having a gps for traveling in an unfamiliar city. I just wish there was a "keep me out of the ghettos" feature like the no left turns or avoid toll roads feature.

I love maps, too. I look at maps almost every day just for fun. I have no interest in GPS for navigation.

GPS does have avoid toll road features, but it might send you thru the ghetto to get around.

Now I'm wondering. I've successfully navigated heavily wooded, mountainous areas using topo maps many times. I could always tell where I was by looking at the map and keeping track of topographic features along the way. I wonder if that could be done with a GPS where there are no roads in the area for 10 or 20 miles around.

One book (if it's still in print) that may help your son:

Be expert with Map & Compass
"The orienteering handbook''
by Bjorn Kjellstrom

To go deeper:
Army field manual "FM-21-26"
Map reading and land navigation

With an advanced GPS yes. They can load elevation data.

+10,000

Every time I use the GPS it seems to route me through the hood. :mad:

Prefer my paper map.