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Navigation for mountain runners: Part 1

Friday 26th July 2024, 9:00am


Adapted from an article in Scottish Mountaineer Magazine, Issue 101, Summer 2024

The world’s best navigators are orienteers, they can move rapidly through complex terrain with limited visibility, using small features to pinpoint their position. They do all of this with a very simple compass, often with little more than a magnetic needle and a straight edge that sits on the thumb.

As walkers and runners, the features we navigate to are much bigger, so navigation should be easier. However, our compasses are often more complicated, with a rotating bezel with 360-degree markings and a larger baseplate. Does this actually help? And how do orienteers manage without it?

As always, it comes down to using the right bit of equipment for the right job. You can consider your compass as three separate bits of kit; the magnetic needle tells you where north is, the base plate is useful for pointing at things and the bezel can be used to ‘record’ a bearing on your compass.

All three come into play when we are walking accurately on a bearing in open country for extended distances. But let’s be honest, this is only a very small part of how we spend our time navigating. For the majority of the time, all we really need to know is where north is and then everything else falls into place.

To make this work, hold your compass flat in one hand, and the map in the other. Now turn the map until north on the piece of paper is lined up in with the north magnetic needle. Your map is now “set”.

Example 1:

If you know where you are on the map and it is set, everything around you will line up perfectly with the map. So, it is quick and easy to check the direction of features around you. Point on the map along the line of the trail you want to follow, or ridgeline down from a summit, then raise your finger and, as if by magic, you will be pointing where you want to go.

Example 2:

If you are unsure if the path/stream/slope on the ground is the one you should be following, you can quickly test to see if its direction matches the one you want. Again, set the map, point where you should be going. Does it match what is in front of you? Here you would use other information as well, such as the steepness of a slope or other features you can see, but on a misty day when all paths look the same, direction should be a key piece of your puzzle.

Example 3:

If you are not sure where you are you can quickly test the direction of any line feature (trail/stream/wall/edge of a forest) against the map and narrow down your options. Point your feet along the trail you are testing, set the map. Hold out your finger in line with the trail and compare its direction to the ones on the map. You can probably quickly eliminate most trails on the map.

Watch a short explanation video on the Trail Running Scotland YouTube Channel. 

Looking to up your navigation skills this year? Mountaineering Scotland’s One Day Navigation Courses are great for those just starting out in the hills, or anyone looking for a navigation refresher.