Why is it important to frequently check your heading while navigating?

Frequently checking your heading while navigating is essential to ensure you are staying on course. Navigation relies heavily on a consistent direction, and even slight deviations can lead you off your intended path. By regularly verifying your heading, you can make necessary adjustments to your route, correcting any drift caused by varying terrain, weather conditions, or environmental distractions. This practice helps maintain situational awareness and reinforces the accuracy of your navigation strategy, ensuring you reach your destination efficiently and safely.

While memorizing your route, tracking time, and estimating remaining distance can be valuable aspects of navigation, they do not directly address the immediate need for directional accuracy, which is why consistently monitoring your heading is crucial.