Soloed yesterday...

[Horatio]

I could always bring along a navigator.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEatUIZzO_o

[Merlinspop]

The only time I would do "pure ded reconing" would be if I flew over absolute barren terrain or open ocean.
Lay out your DR course, then do a "map reconnaissance" as I called them in another life. Is there a rail road, highway, river, power line or ridge line that parallels your route of flight? If so, then file those facts away.
Then after you figure all the winds you get down to knowing you've got to fly xxx degrees on the compass for yy minutes (there's your DR part). BUT you also know there's a RR track that parallels your route the last half of the way. If the winds are trying to make you cross them, then you know winds aren't as forecast and you need to adjust. You might also have noticed a river five miles beyond your destination, so if you cross that river, you know you've flown beyond (perhaps that headwind you were expecting lessened or even turned around into a push. If that happens then you know to (say) turn left and follow the river until you hit the interstate bridge
which will lead you straight back to the airport.

[Horatio]

Thanks, Bruce. Everything I've read so far includes pilotage within DR planning. Frankly, I'm not quite sure how to fly just by pilotage, unless following roads or flying from one prominent checkpoint to another. There seems to be a lot of overlap.

[drseti]

The only time I would do "pure ded reconing" would be if I flew over absolute barren terrain or open ocean.

In addition to flying over open water or featureless terrain, pure DR is also essential in instrument flight, so you know your exact position and route to destination in the event of an electronic nav failure.