I know there are going to be people who might scoff at the idea of a compass. With all the GPS tools and the smartphone navigation apps out there it might seem archaic to have a simple baseplate compass. Even though it’s Made in the USA, has a Global Needle, has an Inches & Centimeter scale on it, and only weighs an ounce there will be those who just scoff at the idea of carrying a compass in this day and age. Well, I’m not one of those people and to me, this Brunton compass is a great piece of “just in case gear” to have!
Brunton TruArc 3 Base Plate Compass
Everyone has lost cell phone coverage at some point. Heck, if you are into any kind of outdoor adventure at all you are almost guaranteed to be going places that cell phones don’t work! In the off chance that you stray from a marked path or are trying to navigate along somewhere a compass will come in handy!
Overhead View of the Brunton TruArc 3 Base Plate Compass
Ok, truth be told I have this compass in case I’m ever in a situation where my phone or my GPS doesn’t work. There are a million reasons that can happen, but the one that I’m most concerned about it power. Even the smartest of phones are prone to battery drain when you get outside the network. There are all kinds of cool technological marvels that the phone trying to perform to establish service so that you can use your apps, and all those neat tricks take battery life. That’s just part of the smartphone thing.
Yes, you can carry charge packs and solar booster stuff. I’ve got a couple of them in fact, but nothing that I’ve used works very consistently just charging by the pool. And to get anything of quality you are going to have to spend some bucks. I prefer to have a $13 insurance plan in a Brunton Base Plate Compass. This thing is really compact and super lightweight, so it’s not a burden to carry in my backpack. I’ve got it on a piece of cordage that has my Storm Alert Whistle on the other end. Both fit together nicely in a small pouch and are available if I ever need them.
You know, just in case…