  Extensive simulations of the ultra-high energy cosmic ray (UHECR) propagation
in the Galactic magnetic field (GMF) have been performed, and the results are
presented. The use of different available models of the large-scale GMF and/or
primary particle assumptions leads to distinctly different deflection patterns
of the highest energy cosmic rays (CR). The lensing effects of the Galactic
field modify the exposure of an UHECR experiment to the extragalactic sky. To
quantify these effects for the Pierre Auger experiment, we performed a
correlation analysis of the simulated cosmic ray event samples, backtracked
from the Earth to the Galactic border, with the active galactic nuclei (AGN)
from the 12th edition of the V\'eron-Cetty and V\'eron catalogue. Further
forward-tracking studies under plausible UHECR sources scenarios are needed to
allow for direct comparison with the observed correlation between the nearby
AGN and the highest energy Auger events.
