Categories: Camp Tips

How to use the Moon to Find Direction at Night

How can you find your way if you are lost at night in the wilderness and don’t have a compass or GPS?

While most people are familiar with navigating the wilderness using the sun or the stars, the moon is also a surprisingly simple and effective tool, especially on a cloudy night when the constellations are hidden. If it’s a crescent moon, the process is straightforward and can be easily mastered.

To Find South during a Crescent Moon

Imagine a line connecting the endpoints of the moon’s crescent and project it to the horizon.
Where this imaginary line intersects the horizon, it points to the South in the Northern Hemisphere and North in the Southern Hemisphere (e.g., Australia or New Zealand).

This works because the moon reflects light from the sun. Like the sun, the moon travels east to west across the sky, and its shape and the reflected light change as it orbits the Earth in its 28-day circuit. The moon’s reflection of sunlight makes it a reliable wilderness navigation tool.

You can navigate using the moon before dark.

You may also see the moon in the sky before the sun has set. In this case, look at the illuminated side of the late afternoon moon. The light will point toward the west.

If you want to delve deeper into the art of moon navigation, we have more comprehensive information to enhance your wilderness survival skills.