Magnets and compasses don't go very well together!

In the ever increasing ways that manufacturers seem to have to come up with brigth new ideas to flog their wares, a cautionary tale. I was out with a group recently navigating around the fab little area around Tal y Fan in Snowdonia. One of the groups compasses seemed to be going a bit haywire, with the red needle determined to point south - it was a brand new compass but ok, could have been faulty.  And Tal y Fan is not renowned for being an area full of magnetic rocks that could interfere with compasses.A few frustrating minutes later we found out that the brand of rucksack being worn - can't say the name but something to do with a big bird - had a nifty little magnet that held the drinking tube of their water bladder onto the front of the rucksack. And this little magnet seemed to be of sufficient strength to interfere with the compass. For goodness sakes Os****, this is sold as a walkers rucksack; walkers use compasses (honestly, some really do), and a magnet just seems to be a bit daft to stick on the front of a rucksack where a compass may be near. As it was the lady concerned contacted the local emporium in Betws y Coed where the items had been bought and they responded absolutely brilliantly - replaced the compass and the bladder, personally delivered to the centre where the course was being held - and the little magnets were chucked in the bin. Well done CC and keep it slightly more simple Os****