With the incredible advances in electronic navigation equipment, especially the development of the satellite system, small boat navigation is so simple I'm surprised anyone would make the effort to learn basic navigation.

The greater effort of learning celestial navigation, I thought, would be an effort that would go the way of the dinosaurs. To my surprise basic navigation is in good demand and I have more requests for classes in celestial than ever before.

There remains a fear the electronics may fail. To a greater extent my students want the security that comes with knowledge and in the case of celestial, they want the bragging rights. Very few sailors ever get far enough along with the study of celestial navigation for it to be useful to them. Most sailors at a yacht club bar will begin to fade away when a few sailors start talking about reducing sights, cocked hat star sights, etc.

Before the electronics age, most long-range sailors who claimed to know celestial navigation, only understood the "noon sight." As you will learn the noon sight is a very small part that can be learned by almost anyone in a matter of minutes.

When I decided to go cruising, I knew I had to learn celestial because the only electronic aid available at the time was the old Loran A, a huge, expensive instrument, which I knew I couldn't afford on my limited budget.

I read that people would sit on the end of a dock and learn celestial from a boat neighbor, but I didn't know anyone who knew celestial. In one sailing magazine story a new sailor picked up a book on celestial navigation and after a few hours reading was qualified to go around the world using his sextant. If it's that easy why don't I just dig in and learn? I tried not one, but several books on the subject and after many days of reading had not learned anything. During the fifth book the light finally penetrated my thick skull and I started to enjoy the learning experience. Many more days went by before I could honestly say, "I understand."

After arriving at this understanding, I spent several months getting the boat ready to go. Shortly before it was "cast off" time, I realized I couldn't remember enough celestial navigation to work a sight. To my chagrin it was almost as hard to relearn celestial navigation as it was to learn it in the first place.

Finally, all came together and I began my cruising life, with my celestial navigation working very well. This sort of life came down to a few days of sailing and weeks of hanging on the hook, gunkholing and exploring, amounting to nothing more than coast piloting. When it was time for the second leg of my cruise, I had forgotten celestial again.

All in all, I probably relearned celestial navigation six times, with each time being virtually as difficult as the first time. It wasn't until I agreed to teach celestial navigation to a group of my sailing buddies that I got the material organized well, thereby getting it straight in my mind. Using this organization as a technique in the class room I find my students are better able to remember what they learn. Part of this technique involves NOT using preprinted forms. With forms, the student is learning how to fill out forms and retains very little of the purpose behind the procedure. If the navigator addicted to forms runs out of forms or -- God forbid -- they get blown overboard or soaked with sea water, then he is no longer able to find his way. That would be no different than having a GPS with dead batteries.

Please understand my methods are not necessarily scientific perfection. They are more of a method for you to find your way with a sextant, reducing the sights on the back of a matchbook while leaning against the mast, if it is ever necessary to do so.

Jack I. Davis

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Captain Jack's Celestial Navigation

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