Outdoor Education…Character development through the outdoors

Navigation

The skills of navigation involve knowing where you are, where you want to go, and how to get there.

Indicators such as the sun, wind direction, cloud movement, and the time of day, can help you to navigate.

Ridges, rivers, lakes, peaks, and valleys are features, which make it easier to travel in the outdoors.

Point features are peaks, small knolls, vegetation patches and trigs
Catching features are large features such as a river beyond your target that tell you you have gone too far
Hand rail lines on the map are tracks, streams, bush edges, ridges, spurs, gullies, roads and fences

Various tools can also help with navigation. A map, compass, and watch are basic; an altimeter and a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver are useful extras. However, no tool is a substitute for map-reading skills.

Symbols

Maps use symbols to represent features on the ground or to give information about the terrain or features. You can see some features on the ground like huts and streams, but you can't see others, like contour lines.

The explanation of what the symbols mean is on the map border. They are grouped together for ease of identification and given a specific colour. Generally vegetation is green, water is blue, relief is orange, and man-made features are black.

THINK/PAIR/SHARE: Write down the symbols that each arrow is pointing to.

Scale

A map is a plan of the Earth's surface showing features in the same relative positions as they are on the ground. To fit onto a map, these features are reduced to a fraction of their real size. The amount of this reduction is called the representative fraction (RF) and is usually stated as a ratio, for example, 1:50,000. This means that one unit on the map represents 50,000 units on the ground, so one centimetre on the map represents 50,000 centimetres or 500 metres on the ground.

The larger the scale, the smaller the ratio number, and the more detail the map will show.

Contours

Contour lines link all points which are the same height above sea level. Maps show slopes and heights by using contour lines and ‘spot’ heights.

The vertical interval is the vertical distance on the ground between contour lines. It may vary between different map series. You should know the vertical interval on the particular map that you are using, for example, 20 metres.

The spacing between the contour lines indicates the steepness of the terrain: the closer the contour lines on the map, the steeper the terrain.

Orienteering strategies

The following strategies will help you orienteer to the control:

1.Setting the map: Aligning the map with the surroundings to match features on the map with those in the terrain, aiding in navigation.

2. Using the compass: Using a compass to orient the map and determine direction when navigating between points.

3. Simplification: Breaking down the route into simpler segments, focusing on navigating to prominent features along the way to reach the destination.

4. Attack Points: Choosing a distinctive feature near the control point as a reference point, making it easier to find the exact location of the control.

5. Aiming off: Intentionally navigating slightly off course towards a distinctive feature, then correcting towards the target, reducing the chance of missing the target.

6. Route Choice: Selecting the most efficient path between control points, considering factors like distance, terrain, and navigation difficulty.

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