I used to work under contract with the BLM and forest service as a wildlife biologist. Most of my work was in very remote areas where there were no trails. Initially I relied on map and compass because the early gps units at that time were pretty unreliable (I bought a $300 unit that would rarely get a signal or maintain it once obtained). As the years progressed and the gps units improved then I began to use them more often but still relied primarily on my maps and compass.
Now days I'm a big believer in having multiple sources of information from different maps in both paper form and downloaded onto a gps app plus my knowledge of nature and terrain aquired over many years. I don't believe there is only one right way to navigate. Getting lost can be miserable and dangerous (been there and done that!) and the more resources you have available the better your chances of getting back home safely.