On Sep 16, 5:51 am, wrote:
I was just told by a friend that I should learn celestial
navigation before sailing around the world because
GPS devices don't work that well in the middle of the
ocean and can malfunction if they get wet, etc.

Does my friend have a point even if I intend to bring
3 independent GPS systems with me ?

How about if I just get a cheap sextant and the book
"Celestial Navigation When Your GPS Fails" and
bring them with me ?

TIA

I would learn celestial navigation if I were you. There is safety in
redundancy as you obviously know by bringing 3 gps sysems with you.
If you learn celestial you could reduce that to just two perhaps. It
seems that most experienced blue water sailors know how to use a
sextant. There is some satisfaction in navigating by the stars for
some of us instead of relying on electronics. Its part of the charm
of blue water sailing for me.