On Thu, 3 Dec 2009 21:08:57 -0800 (PST), max camirand
wrote:

I could just get a run-of-the-mill compass with a
hemispherical glass, and use a handheld (or compass-binoculars as
suggested elsewhere) for my magnetic bearings.

When I started cruising back in the early 1970s that is how everyone
on small boats was doing navigation. Hi tech was having a radio
direction finder which had to be coordinated with compass headings,
and a rotating arm depth sounder. Really hi tech was having a Loran-A
set with the oscilloscope and manual pulse delay adjustments but
almost no one had one except for high end yachts with plenty of
battery power.