Register Here: Map & Compass & Field Practice

Course Length: 4 Hours

Cost: $50/person + includes Orienteering Map

Location: Trailside Lodge, Letchworth State Park

*** Sign up through the ticket link above to be officially registered ***

In this 3-part course, you'll learn how to use a compass, read a map and start an orienteering course!

Compass Skills: we’ll have fun identifying why people get lost, and how you’ll most likely get lost. Next, we’ll grab our compasses and start slowly, getting you comfortable with how to use it to go in a straight line. Then we’ll get you comfortable returning to where you started. Then you’ll learn one of the most fun parts of the course - how to successfully get around hazards and obstacles!

Map Reading: Next we'll discuss a map’s key and all the information it reveals. Then we’ll learn how to read topographic lines - those squiggly lines all over the map. Next, we’ll learn how to identify hazards and obstacles, hills and valleys, swamps and lakes, and finally tricks and tips on how to traverse across the map using our compass.

Field Practice: And finally, we'll put map and compass together to find hidden treasures in Letchworth State Park. Learn how to correctly orient a map outdoors, estimate distance, and successfully discover orienteering markers. This part will be so much fun and you'll see a part of Letchworth that's hardly seen by visitors, with a few surprises guaranteed!

We'll be bushwacking in the woods, so wear comfortable protective clothing. Depending on temperature, ticks and other insects may be present. Long pants, headlamp, snacks and water highly recommended.

Trail Otter has compasses if you need to purchase for the course.

Total time: 4 hours

Difficulty: A few hills to traverse, logs to hop over, bushwacking, easy rolling terrain

Clothing: Seasonally appropriate comfortable protective clothing. Hats and gloves in cooler/cold weather. Don't wear your best puffy, as there are lots of wild roses to catch on your jacket and pants.