Navigation
UsingMaps
StudentManual
January2015
AlbiSole
IanSherrington
FieldLeader(Maps)©OutdoorCouncilofCanada/Conseilcanadiendepleinair
0
©OutdoorCouncilofCanada/Conseilcanadiendepleinair
Publishedby
TheOutdoorCouncilofCanada/Conseilcanadiendepleinair
KNA-101,2500UniversityDriveNW.
Calgary,AB.Canada.T2N1N4
©2015andtheOutdoorCouncilofCanada/Conseilcanadiendepleinair
Allrightsreserved.
-November2015version
Nopartofthismanualmaybereproducedinanyform,orbyanyelectronic,mechanicalorothermeans,
withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher
Thisfirsteditionofthismanualwaswrittenwithassistanceandguidanceofthefollowingmembersof
theCertificationCommitteeoftheOutdoorCouncilofCanada/Conseilcanadiendepleinair:
IanSherrington(Chair)
WillWoods
RobynRankin
Jo-AnneReynolds
PeterTucker
JeffStorck
ZabeMacEachren
MikeCrowtz
TheOutdoorCouncilwouldliketothanktheDavidEltonOutdoorFund,TheOutdoorCentreatthe
UniversityofCalgary,andMountainEquipmentCoopforprovidingthefinancialsupportthatmadethe
creationofthismanualpossible.
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TableofContents
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Introductiontonavigationandscopeofcourse
Observationandmindmaps
TrailMaps
TopographicMaps
Contourlines,slope,andelevationgain
Identifyingterrainfeatures
Mapandgridreferences
Usingthemapinthefield
AppendixA:ScopeofPractice
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Introduction
Navigationisavitalaspectofoutdoorleadershipatanylevelofactivityorterrainchoice.Asterrain
becomesmorecomplex,hasfewersignposts,orvisiblelandmarksbecomelessavailable,navigation
becomesmorechallengingandrequiresahigherlevelofnavigationalskill.
Navigationisinfactsomethingwedoallthetime.Wesuccessfullyfindourwayaroundourhouse,our
neighbourhood,andotherplaceswevisitfrequently.Mostofthetimethisisaneffortlessprocesssince
wehaveacomprehensive‘mindmap’oftheseplacesthathelpsusrecognizewhereweareandhowto
gettowherewewanttobe.
Aswemovefromthefamiliarplacestounfamiliarplaces,weneedtocollectadditionalinformationthat
wecaninterprettokeeptrackofwhereweareandtherouteforward.Thiscanbecomeverycomplex
andchallenging.Aswegrowasoutdoorleaders,weshouldviewnavigationasaworkinprogress.It
requirespracticeandself-disciplinetobuildreliablecompetenceinthemorechallengingtechniquesfor
navigation.
TheFieldleaderandthiscourse
IntheOCC’sLeadershipcurriculum,navigationisdividedintothreecategories:
1) Navigationusingmindandtrailmaps
2) Navigationusingmind,trailandtopographicmaps
3) Navigationusinganyformofmapandacompass
Thiscoursecoversmind,trailandtopographicmaps.Itspurposeisto:
a) Helpthegraduatebecomemoreproficientinnavigatinginfamiliarterrain
b) Empowerthegraduatetobuildproficiencywiththeuseofmapsforterrainrecognitionand
navigation.
ThegraduateofthisprogramwillneedtobearinmindthattheFieldLeaderprogramonlycertifiesa
persontoleadinsituationswhereatrailandmindmapsaresufficientfornavigation.Successful
completionofthiscoursedoesnotautomaticallycertifyapersontoleadagroupinasituationwhere
successfulreadingofatopographicmapisessentialforasuccessfulexperience.Forclarificationplease
refertothescopeofpracticedocument(AppendixA).
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Observation&MindMaps
Amindmapisamentalreferenceofone’sphysicalsurroundings.Itinvolvesrecognitionofkeyfeatures,
andtherelativelocationofthesefeaturestoeachotherandtoone’spresentlocation.Itincludes
detailssuchasdistanceexpressedintime,height,recognizablefeatures,names,etc.Ifthismindmapis
ofapieceofnaturalterrain,itmightcontainmanyofthefeaturesofaphysicalmapaswellasmuch
otherinformationthatistoodetailedtobecapturedbymostmaps.
OnepurposeofrequiringtheFieldLeadertofamiliarizethemselveswiththeirvenuebeforerunningan
eventissothattheycanbuildasufficientlydetailedandaccuratemindmapandsodonotneedtousea
topographicmaptofindtheirway.Anotheradvantageofamindmapoverphysicalmapisthatitcan
containamuchhigherdegreeofusefuldetailthanaphysicalmap.
Evenwhenapersonpullsoutaphysicalmap,thatmapmustbeusedasasupplementtothemindmap.
Thephysicalmapcanaddimportant,evencritical,informationtothemindmapbutultimatelyitsuse
dependsonthereaderhavingamentalimageofwheretheyareinageneralsensewithrespecttothe
terrainaroundthem.
Mindmapscanbeenormouslypowerfultools.Inuithunters,forexample,priortotheintroductionof
papermaps,wereabletokeepamindmapofmanyhundredsofkilometresofcoastlineintheirheads;
-completewithspatiallycorrectinformation,keylandmarks,goodhunting/fishingareas,locationsof
increasedriskandmuchmore.Forthesepeople,thebuildingofsuchpowerfulmapswasacritical
survivalskillinaharshandoftenratherfeaturelesslandscape.Few,ifany,moderntravelerswillachieve
suchskillinmentalnavigation.
Map drawn from memory by an
Inuit hunter/fisherman.
Map created using modern
cartography of the same area
of southern Baffin Island
Figure1
Source - http://pencilandpipette.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/thinking-outside-the-square
/
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Analogy:
Whenyoudrivetoandfromwork,doyouneedtopulloutamaptofindyourwayhome?Howdoyou
makeyourwaysuccessfullythroughyourhouseinthedark?Thisisamindmapatwork.
Exercise:Drawoutonapieceofpaperamindmapofsomethingveryfamiliartoyou;perhaps
aroominyourhouseoryourimmediateneighbourhood.Besuretoincludekeylandmarks.
Next,drawoutamindmapofaplacelessfamiliartoyou;perhapsamapofatrailina
ProvincialParkorevenamapofNorthAmerica.Ensureyouhavetheactualmapofthisarea
availabletocompare.Suggestinsertingplacenamesoffeatures,bothmanmadeandnatural.
Thinkabouttheimportanceofthemindmaponeverydaynavigationandhowthiscanbe
appliedinanoutdoorsense.Ponderthelimitationsofthemindmapandwhatothertoolswe
haveatourdisposaltoaugmentthistypeofnavigationalprocess.Whatimportancedoplace
nameshaveforourmindmaps?
PlaceNames
Placenamesnotonlyprovideuswithlanguagetomoreeffectivelycommunicatemattersofnavigation
toothers,buttheyalsoofferuspotentmemorytriggersaroundwhichtoformsolidmindmaps.Inother
words,itishelpfultoknowtheofficialnamesofsuchfeaturesasrivers,mountains,lakes,andhighways
asfoundinorneartheareasyouareoperating.
Howdoweformmindmaps?
Buildfamiliarity:Conductingsitevisitspriortorunningaprogramwillbegintheprocessofmindmap
creation.Byonlywalkingonetrail,themindmapistypicallyverylinear.Areasthatyoudon’tseeare
unknowntoyou.Themoreyoutravelinanarea,themoreyouareabletofillintheblankareasonyour
mindmap.
Besensitivetodirection:Byknowingthedirectioneachportionofthetrailistravelingyour‘linear’trail
canencompassatwo-dimensionalspace.Sensingdirectioncanbedifficult.Ifthereisanysun,itwillbe
yourmostreliableguide,butrememberthatitmovesfromeastthroughsouthtowestduringthespan
ofaday.Whenthereisnosun,aprominentfeaturelikeamountaintopmayhelp.Infeaturelessterrain
suchadenseforest,theremaystillbeclues.Forexample,mossorlichenwilloftengrowbetteronthe
shadynorthsideofthetrees,especiallyindrierclimates.
Beobservant:Whilewalkingatrail,makenoteofkeylandmarksasyoumove.Useafieldbooktonote
traveltimesbetweenpointsandotherimportantinformation.Notingthenamesoffeatureswillbevital
forstimulatingrecallmemoryforlateruseandwillhelpincommunicatingyourobservationstoothers.
Lookforpatterns:Inthecity,knowingthathousenumbersincreaseinaparticulardirectionwillhelp
keepyouoriented.Inthewildernesstheremanypatternsthatareoftenplace-specific.Forexample,
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wheretherockissedimentary,theeasiestrouteswillflowwiththebeddingplanes.Similarly,vegetation
patternsareaffectedbythingslikehowwettheclimateisorthesoiltype.Recognizingthepatternsof
theareayouworkinwillhelpyoudiscovereasyroutesandavoiddensevegetationorsoggyareas.
Useamap:Bystudyingatrailortopographicmapofthearea,theoverallscopeofamindmapwill
increasefromwhatcaneitherbeexperiencedorobservedtoallthatisencompassedinthearea.Amap
willfacilitateyourabilitytobemoreaccurateinyourspatialorientation.Thisisalsoaveryefficientway
ofswiftlycreatingamindmapofanarea.Beawarethatthisdoesnotreplacetheneedforsitevisitation
asmanyfeaturesarenotshownonaphysicalmap.
AWordofWarning
Familiaritywithaplaceallowsmindmapstowork.However,familiaritycanalsocreateanoverdependenceonamindmapandanover-confidenceintherelianceofitsaccuracy.Beawareofthe
tendencyforsometoattachegototheirabilitytouseonlyamindmaptonavigate.Tooffsetthisoverdependenceonthemindmap,outdoorleadersmustbewillingtoutilizeadditionaltoolstohelpanchor
theirmindmaptoaknownpointortoreassesstheirmindmap’saccuracy.Thisisincreasinglyimportant
asterrainbecomesmorecomplex,consequencesforpoorroutefindingbecomehigher,yourfamiliarity
withanareaisunder-developed,orthesurroundingshavefewerobviouslandmarksbywhichto
navigate.Thismightoccurinthefollowingcircumstances:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Heavilyforestedareas
Tundraoralpinemeadowenvironments
Prairiegrasslands
Poorly-markedroutesthroughcomplicatedterrain
Poorvisibilityduetoweatherinanyterrain
darkness
TrailMaps
Atrailmapisarepresentationofapieceofterrainwiththemajortrailsmarkedinit.Typicallyitwillbe
drawntoscaleandcontainakeysoyoucanseehowfarthedistanceisbetweenrecognizablefeatures
liketrailjunctions.Figure2issuchamap.Notethatithasnomarkingtoindicatewhichdirectionis
‘North’.Byconvention,youcanassumethatthetopofthemapisnorthunlessotherwiseindicated.This
mapisquiteadequateforfindingyourwayaroundStanleyPark,butitcontainsverylittleinformation
otherthanthetrails.Ifyoubecomelost,thereisnoinformationtoletyouknowwhereyouareunless
youcanfindasignpost.
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Figure2
Trailmapsmayalsoincludepictographicrepresentationsofmorecomplexaspectsoftheterrain.The
mapofWatertonPark(Figure3)containsagreatdealofinformationincludinganintuitive
representationofvegetationandtopography.Itwouldbeveryhardtocalculatetheelevationgainsand
lossesalongthetrail,however.Norwouldyoubeabletocalculatewhetheraparticularfeatureisvisible
fromaparticularpointorhiddenbysomeotherfeature.Forthisyouwouldneedatopographicmap
withcontourlines.
Figure3
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TopographicMaps
Therearemanytypesofmaps,butthemostusefulmapforthebackcountrytravelerinCanadaisthe
1:50,000topographicmap.ThesemapscoverallofCanadaandaredetailedenoughformostpurposes,
butcoverenoughterrainthatoneortwomapswilltypicallybeenoughformostdaytrips.Thisisthe
typeofmapwewillbereferringtowheneverwesay‘map’.
Beawarethatwhiletopographicmapsandnauticalchartssharemanycommonfeatures,thereare
someimportantdifferencesbetweenachartandmapandthiscoursewillnotaddressthem.
Ifyoupickupamap,itisimmediatelyobviousthatthereisagreatdealofinformationthere.Agoalof
thispartofthiscoursewillbetointroducethekeytypesofinformationandtolearnhowtousethemap
tohelpwithtripplanningandmonitoringyourpositiononthetrail.
MapColouring
Mostmapsarecoloured.Whileblackandwhitetopographicmapsareavailable,theyaremuchharder
toreadthancolouredmapsbecausethecoloursprovideadditionalinformation.
Colourisusedintwoways.Colourisusedtodistinguishwater(blue)fromvegetation(green)androck
(white).Colourisalsousedtodistinguishtwosymbolsthatmightotherwisebeidentical.Forexample,a
bluestreamcaneasilybedistinguishedfromthebrowncontourlineortheblackstreet.
TheConventionalSigns
Asecondwaythatonethingisdistinguishedfrom
anotheristhroughtheuseofspecificsymbolsand
linestyles.Withoutakeytotellyouwhatthese
symbolsandstylesmean,youwillnotbevery
successfulinreadingthemapcorrectly.OntheNTS
mapwewilluseinthiscourse,thatkeycanbefound
ontheothersideofthepaperthemapisprintedon.
Tobecomeanefficientmapreaderyouwillneedto
learnthemostcommonsymbols,butmostpeople
havetoturnthemapoveronceinawhilefortheless
commonones.
Somesymbolswillalsohavesometextnexttothem.
Forinstanceabuildingmightbemarkedas‘Motel’or
‘Warden’sCabin’.Manystreamsandother
geographicalfeaturessuchasbaysormountainswill
alsohavetheirnameattached.
Figure4
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Contourlines
Themapfeaturesdescribedabovearealsofoundonsimpletrailmaps.Mosttrailmapsonlypresentthe
landscapeintwodimensions.Whileitispossibletomarksome3Dfeaturessuchacliffonatrailmap,
suchtechniquesarelimited.Fortripsonflatterrainthispresentsnoparticularproblem,butin
undulatingterrainyouneedamapthatcantellyoumoreaboutthetopographyor3Dnatureofthe
landscapetoo.Atopographicmapcontains‘contour’lineswhichcantellyouatremendousamount
aboutthelandscape,buttheycanbetrickytoread.
Acontourlineonamapisalinethatjoinspointsthatareatthesameelevation.Atrailfollowinga
contourlineisaflattrail.Followingacontourlineforlongenoughitwillbringyoubacktowhereyou
started.Whereacontourlineiscompleteinthismannerandhasnoothercontourlineswithinit,it
eithermarksasummitorahollow.InCanada,thecompletelooptypically,butnotalways,marksa
summitifyoudonotseealake.
Understandinghowcontourlinesmapreliefenablesyoutocalculatehowsteepatrailis,ifitisgoingup
ordown,andhowmuchelevationchangeisinvolved.Contourlinesalsotellyouwhatyoushouldbe
abletoseestandinginaparticularspot.Inparticular,keylandscapefeaturessuchassummits,ridges,
andvalleyscanbedetectedbylookingatthecontourlines.
Howsteepisyourtrail?
Ifyourtrailcrossescontourlinesitisgoingeither
upordowntheslope.Thecloserthecontour
linesaretogether,thesteeperslope.Itis
possibletocalculatetheaverageinclineonthe
map,butthisisnotusuallydone.Typically
experiencewilltellyouhowsteeptheterrainis
whenyoulookatasetofcontours.Figure5
providesexampleofthissubjectivejudgment
concerningsteepness.
Awordofwarning:quitesignificantfeaturescan
behiddeninbetweencontours.Acliffthatis
slightlylessthantwicetheheightbetweentwo
contourscouldbehidden.Thisisbecausethe
contourlinesonlytellsyoutheheightatfixed
intervalsandtellsyounothingabouttopography
inbetweentheseelevations.Seefigure6foran
example.Inruggedterrainitisquitetypicalfor
smallcliffs,steepsidedgullies,andothersmall
butimportantfeaturestobeinvisibleonthe
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map.Forthisreason,yourpre-tripplanningshouldconsultothersourcesofinformation.Thisisalso
anotherreasonwhyyoushouldscoutthetrailbeforeyougowithagroup.
DirectionofSlopeandElevationGain
InFigure5youcanquiteeasilytellthedirectionofslopebecausethereisamountaintoplabeled,so
everythingelseinthatsmallmapisdown,butonalargermapsectionitiseasytobecomeconfused
aboutwhichwayaslopeisgoing.Youcanbesureofthedirectionofslopebyconsultingtheoccasional
contourelevationsmarkedonthemap.
InFigure7youcanseethattwocontoursaremarkedwhiletherestarenotmarked.Fromthe2,000m
contourwherecircled,
eachcontourlinetothe
leftofthe2,000mline
willbehigherthanthe
onetotheright.By
followingthecontour
closesttopointByou
canseethatitishigher
than2,000m,whilethe
contourlineclosestto
pointAislower,sothe
trailgainselevationas
youwalkfromAtoB.
Inordertoestimate
howmuchelevationyou
willgainyouneedto
knowtheelevationgain
betweeneachcontour.
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NewCanadianNTStopographicmapsaremetric,butbewareoldercopiesmaystillbeinimperial.On
1:50,000NTSmaps,thedistancebetweencontoursisalways100feetforanimperialmapand40mon
metricmaps.Someothertopographicmapsmayuseothercontourintervals–25misalsocommon.In
figure7,pointAisclosesttothe2,120mcontour,andpointBclosesttothe2,280mcontour,sothe
elevationgainisslightlymorethan160m.
Notethatthecontoursaregroupedinfiveswiththefifthlinebeingslightlythicker.Thishelpsyouto
countcontours.OnanimperialNTS,mapthethickerlineisalwaysamultipleof500ft.andonametric
one,200m.Ifusinganothermap,checktheintervaloftheindexcontours.
Alsonotethat40misgreaterthan100ft.andsobiggerfeaturescanbehiddeninbetweencontours.
ThismeansthatthemetricNTSmapscontainlessinformationthandotheimperialmapsbecausebigger
featurescanbehiddenbetweenthe
contours.A25mcontourintervalshows
moredetailthaneitheroftheothertwo.
SpottingTerrainFeatures
Contourlinescantellyoualotmorethan
thesteepnessanddirectionofslope.Close
readingofthelinescangiveyouarich
understandingoftheshapeofthe
landscape.Thisisanimportantskillwhen
travelinginruggedterrain.Figure8shows
twovalleys,onewithastreamandone
without.Althoughthestreammakesit
obviousthatthereisavalley,evenwithout
thestreamyoucanfindthevalleysonthis
mapbyknowingthatawhereabendina
contourfacesthehighercontoursthereisa
valley.Forexample,thereisabendinthe2,200mcontourinFigure8atthepointoftheupperred
arrow.Thatbendisfacingupslopeandtowardthe2,600mcontour.Thisbendindicatesavalleythatin
thiscasedoesnotcontainasurfacestream.Anotherterrainfeaturecanbefoundatthepointofthe
lowerredarrow.Inthiscase,thebendinthecontourisfacingtowardlowergroundandthisindicatesa
ridge.
Onceyouhaveidentifiedthelargerfeaturesrevealedbythecontourlines,moresubtlefeaturescanbe
found.Forexample,theshapeofthecontoursinfigure9revealsthreecreekbottomswithvery
differentshapes.ThestrongVinthecontoursinthefirstexampletellsusthatbothsidesofthecreek
risesharply.Thissortofvalleywillbeawkwardtocrossorwalkupunlessthereisatrailbecauseyouwill
beonaside-hilleverywhere.Inthesecondexamplethecreekisflowingdownanopenslopethatis
probablyquiteeasytowalkoneverywhereexceptclosetothecreekwherethesmallsharpVsuggests
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thecreekhascutdeeplyintotheslope.Thissortofdetailiseasilymissed,butcrossingsuchafeature
withoutatrailcouldbeverytough.Thethirdexamplesuggestseasyterraineverywherenearthecreek.
Thecontoursarespacedevenlyandthecreekisnotcutintotheslope.
Figure9
MapScale
Atthebeginningwesaidthiscoursewasaboutusinga1:50,000topographicmaps.Thismeansthatthe
distancebetweentwopointsonthemaprepresentsadistancethatis50,000timesgreaterinthereal
world.Inpracticaltermsthatmeansthat1cmonthemaprepresents½kilometer.(50,000cm=500m=
½km).Thisscaleisrepresentedintwoplacesonthemap:bythescaledrawingatthebottomofthe
map(figure10)andthestraightbluelinesthatformagridonthemap.Theselinesare2cmapartand
thedistancebetweenthemrepresents1km.
Figure10
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WhatcanIseefromhere?
Contourswillalsogiveyousomecluesaboutwhatisvisibleandwhat
ishidden.Infigure11thereisaroundedsummitatthebottomofthe
map.Thesummitisround,buttheroundnessrollsoffintoabigcliff
ontheHawkCreekside.Thiscliffblockstheviewofthesummitfrom
pointBbutnotA.
HowdoIknow?Inordertoseethesummit,Ihavetobefarenough
awayfromtheclifffortheaverageslopeofmysightlinetobeless
thanthefinalslopetothesummit.Takearulerandmeasurethe
distancebetweenthetwotopcontoursthatmarkthesummit.Now
multiplythatdistancebythenumberofcontoursbetweenthe
summitandeachpoint.Tobeabletoseethesummit,thatdistance
mustbelessthanthemeasured(horizontal)distance.
Forpoint‘B’:Distancebetweencontours=3mmandnumberofcontours=12,sotoseethesummit,B
wouldneedtomeasureatleast36mmfromthesummit.Itonlymeasures25mm,soB
won’tbeabletoseeit.
Forpoint‘A’:Distancebetweencontours=3.5mmandthenumberofcontours=9,sotoseethe
summit,Awouldneedtomeasureatleast30.5mmfromthesummit.Itmeasures46mm,
soAwillbeabletoseeit.
North
Direction
Byconvention,thetopofthemapisalwaysNorth,thebottomSouth,theleftWest
andtherightEast.LaterthereareactuallythreetypesofNorth,butthisisnot
West
importantuntilwestarttouseacompass.Tonavigatebymapalone,itisonly
necessarytoknowwherenorthisinageneralsense.
East
South
Figure12
MapandGridReferences
Everymaphasauniqueidentifyingcode,andanyparticularspotonthatmapcanbeidentifiedbya
uniquesetofnumberscalledthe‘mapgridreference’.The6-digitgridreferencetaughtinthis
handbookisashortformofthe‘UniversalTransverseMercator’(UTM)coordinatesystem,whichcan
identifyanypointontheglobewithspecificcoordinates.Thesimplegridreferenceallowsustoeasily
identifyanypointonagivenmap.Beingabletointerpretorcreatethesereferencesisanimportant
skill.Onoccasioncriticalfeaturessuchasbridgeorhutcanbeverydifficulttofindwithoutthis
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reference.Moreimportantlyfromtheperspectiveofthiscourse,intheunlikelyeventthatyouneedto
callforarescuetherescueservicemayneedyourmapandgridreferencetolocateyou.
IdentifyingaMapfromtheNationalTopographicSystem
Eachmaphasanamesuchas‘Banff”andacodesuchas82-O/4.ThemapofCanadaisdividedinto93
sections,ofwhichmap82isone.Theselarge-scalemapsarefurtherdividedintomapswithascaleof
1:250,000.Eachofthesemapsisidentifiedbyaletter.Inthiscaseitistheletter‘O’.Atthelower
latitudesthe1:250,000mapsarearrangedingroupsof16(Figure14).The1:250,000mapsarefurther
dividedintomapsonthe1:50,000scalewitheachofthesesmallermapsbeingdistinguishedbya
numberbetween1and16.The1:50,000mapsarealsoarrangedonagridof16(Figure10)
M
N
O
P
L
K
J
I
E
F
G
H
D
C
B
A
13 14 15 16
12 11 10
9
5
6
7
8
4
3
2
1
Figure13:TypicalLayoutof1:50,000Maps
Onceyouhaveidentifiedthemapyouareusing,youcanidentifyanyplaceonthemapwitha6-digit
number.Thisnumberismadeupofthree’easting’numbersandthree‘northingnumbersinthatorder.
Forexample,lookatthesummitnearthetopofthemapinFigure14betweenthewords‘National’and
‘Kootenay’.Tofinditsgridreference,firstfindtheeastingbylookingatthebluenumbersthatrunfrom
westtoeastalongthebottomofthemap.Thesummitliesaboutonetenthofasquaretotheeastof
thegridlinenumbered75,soourfirstthreenumbersare‘751’.Lookingatthenumbersthatrunfrom
southtonorth,weseethatthesummitisonetenthofasquaretothenorthof55.Soournorthingis
551.Togethertheymakethegridreference751551.
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Figure14:Aportionofmap82-O/4
WhenMapsareWrong
Earlieronwelookedathowcontoursmaynotrevealsmallfeatures.Thisisnotamappingerror,but
errorsdooccasionallyoccur.Trailscanbeinthewrongplace,glacierssmallerorlargerthanmarked,etc.
Also,thelandscapechangeswithtime.Bridgeswashout,newroadsarebuilt.Sodon’tjustassumethe
mapisright.Trippreparationincludesscoutingthetrailtodiscovertheseanomalies,andcheckingother
sources.
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PuttingitallTogether:UsingtheMapintheField
Thepurposeofthiscourseistohelpyougaintheskillsyouneedtoplanatripmoreeffectivelyand
orientyourselftothefeaturesaroundyouwhileonthetrail.Forplanning,youneedtoknowthingssuch
asdistances,elevationgains,goodstoppingspots,sourcesforwater,possibletoughsections,etc.For
orientationyouwillneedtoknowhowtorecognizethefeaturesyouseeonthemapintherealworld,
andhowtofindthefeaturesyouseeintherealworldonthemap.Someofthesetasks,likecalculating
elevationgainarefairlystraightforward.Sometasks,likeidentifyingtherealworldfeatureyouseeon
themap,aremorechallenging.Forthislattertask,manyanexperthasmadeamistakeandendedup
gettinglost.
ImagineyouareplanningtowalkfrompointAtopointBinfigure15.Howfaristhis?Howmuch
elevationgain?Wherewouldbeanappropriatespottohavelunch?Etc.Toanswerthesequestionsyou
mightstartbybreakingthetripupintoshortsectionsandcalculatingtimesanddistances.Fromthisyou
mightendupwithachartlikethatinTable1:
Notethatthetimerequiredforasectionwilldependonyourgroup.
Astandardcalculationforfitadultsistoallow1hourper300meterelevationgain,andadd15minutes
perkilometerdistance.Youwillhavetoadjustthesetimesdependingontheconditionand/orageof
thegroup.
Nowthatyouhavesomeideaofhowlongitwilltaketogetfromoneplacetoanother,youwillhaveto
addinsomereststops.Nowitistimetolookatthemapagainandimaginewherethebeststopping
placesare.Theidealspotswillbeniceandflat,haveagoodview,beshelteredfromthewindandnot
havebitinginsects.Inanycaseyoushouldplanfora15-minbreakatleastonceperhour.
Section
Distance
ElevationGain
TravelTime
PointAtoGibbonPass
3.1km
480m
40min+100min=140min
GibbonPasstoSouthTwinlake
2.5km
-240m
40min
SouthTwinLaketoArnicaPass
2.7km
40min+50min=90min
Total
8.3km
240m
net480m,
cum.720m
270min,(or4hrs.30minutes)
Table1
WhatdoesthemaptellyouaboutthesectionfromPointAtoGibbonPass?Therearetwokeypiecesof
informationhere.Thefirstisthatitismostlygreen.IntheRockyMountainsthatprobablymeanstrees.
However,themapindicatesthatthepassitselfistree-free.Thismakessensebecausethetreelinein
theRockiesisaround2,300mandthepassisrightaroundthatelevation.
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Thesecondpieceofinformationcomesfromthecontours.Theyareprettystraight,whichindicates
therearenoridgesorgullies,andtheyareevenlyspaced.Thedistancebetweenthelinesindicatesa
moderateslope.Basically,thislookslikeanuphillgruntwithoutanyparticularchangeuntilyougetclose
tothepass.Thepassistoofarforyoutomakeitinoneshot.Unlessyouhaveaverystronggroupyou
willneedtomake2stops.Notealsothatthishillfacessoutheastandcatchesthemorningsun.Ifitisa
hotdayyouwillneedtostopmoreoftenthanonceforwaterbreaks.Althoughnoparticularplace
seemsdifferentfromanyotherplace,youwillneedtomakethesestopsinthemiddleoftheclimb.Add
15minutesperstop.
ThefirstplacethatmeetsthedescriptionofagoodstoppingplaceisGibbonPass.Thecontourssuggest
itisgentlyrounded,andthe
lackoftreesmeansitwillhavea
goodview.Butwindoftengets
channeledthroughpasses.
Despitetheview,andthefact
thatitwillbetheperfecttime
forastop,thismightbeareally
miserableplacetobeona
windyday.Butthewindmight
notaffectthepassonallwindy
days.Onceagainthemapgives
yousomekeyinformation.To
thewestandnorththereare
steepcliffsandsummitsthat
rise700mabovethepass.
Unlessthewindisveryhigh,
thesecliffsshelterthe
passfromawestornorth-west
wind.Itmightbeaverycold
placewhentheNorthwind
blowshowever.Forasouthwest
wind,whichisthecommonest
andoftenstrongestwindsin
thisarea,itmaynotbesogreat.
Inanycase,youwouldneedto
takeanotherbreakinthis
generalarea. Figure15:Asectionofmap82O/4
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Ifyouweretostopatthispass,inwhatdirectionswouldyoubeableseetoalongway?1Thereisasmall
lakeabovetheTwinLakes.Willyoubeabletoseeit?2
Usingoursystemitisonly40minutestoSouthTwinLake,butgivenitisdownhill,itmightbeless.What
willthissectionbelike?
Thecontoursonthefirst100mdropfromthepassarefairlyclosetogether,soexpectamoderately
steepdescent,andthenthecontourswiden,sothegradewilldecrease.Thegreensuggestsyouwillbe
inthetreesshortlyafterleavingthepass,butyoushouldstillhavegoodviewsofthecliffstoyourwest.
Takealookatthosecliffs,thereisquiteabigbowlinthemiddleandthatwillsurelybeabigavalanche
startzoneinwinter,sodon’tbesurprisedtocrossanavalancherunoutzonewithouttreesopposite
thatbowl.Mightthisbeagoodplaceforastopifthepasswastoocoldforaproperstop?
Onceyouareatthelake,whatwillyousee?Unfortunatelyamapofthisscalewillnottellyoumuch
aboutsmallfeaturessuchasasmallmeadow,soperhapsthereisnoopenplace,orperhapsthereis.
Whatmightyouseefromthere?3Willyoubeabletoseethatsmalllakeyet?4Willitbebuggyhere?5If
youstoppedatthepass,thiswouldbetooearlyforastopunlessthenatureoftheplacemakesita
‘muststop’place.
WhatwillthenextsectiontoArnicaPassbelike?Obviouslyitwillbemostlyforestedagain.Thegrade
willbeeasyforthe1stkilometersincethepathonlycrossesonecontour,andthenonceyoucrossthe
outletstreamfromthelakethepathwillbeofsimilarsteepnessasthatuptoGibbonPass.Yourearly
calculationsshowthissectionastaking90minutes.Youwillneedtotakeabreak.Whereshoulditbe?
TheobviousspotisbytheNorthLake,butthatisonly15minutesawayfromtheSouthLake.Ifyouhad
agoodstopatthepassperhapsconsidermakingthisyourstopinsteadoftheSouthLake.
1
NorthandSouth
No.Followthecontourfromthepassaroundandyouwillseethatitbowsoutsothatastraightlineviewfrom
thepasstothelakeiscutoffbythecliff.
3
Ifonlybetweentreesyoushouldgetsomeniceviewsacrossthelakeandofthecliffstothewest.Sincethecliffs
riserightoutofthelakeitmightbequitespectacular.
4
No.Youarebelowthelake,andsoitcannotbevisible.Infactthelakeisalmostcompletelysurroundedbya
contour,soyouwouldonlyseeitasyoucamerightuptoit.
5
Hardtotell,butitwillprobablybeworsethanthepass.
FieldLeader(Maps)©OutdoorCouncilofCanada/Conseilcanadiendepleinair
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Nowyouhaveconsideredallthisinformation,youcancreateamoredetailedtripplan(Table2).Thisis
yourplan‘A’.
Location/Activity
PointA
Hikefirst3rduptoGibbonPass
Water/snackbreak
Hikenext3rduptoGibbonPass
Water/snackbreak
Hiketopass
Lunch
HiketoNorthTwinLake
Water/snackbreak
HiketoArnicaPass
TimePeriod
09:00
09:00-09:50
09:50-10:05
10:05-10:50
10:50-11:05
11:05-11:50
11:50-12:20
12:20-13:20
13:20-13:35
13:35-14:40
Distance
-
ElevationGained
-
1.1km
-
160m
1.0km
-
1.0km
-
160m
3.5km
-
'-240m+40m(=-200m)
-
200m
1.7km
-
-
160m
-
Table2
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AppendixA
NavigationUsingMaps
ScopeofPractice
ThesuccessfulgraduateoftheOCC‘NavigationUsingMaps’coursehasdemonstratedthattheyhavean
understandingofhowtointerpretthemarkingsonatopographicmapsoastorecognizeimportant
terrainfeatures,howtocalculatedistanceandelevationgain,andhowtouseatopographicmapwhile
constructingatripplan.Despitethisdemonstratedlevelofcompetence,thiscertificatedoesnot
automaticallyallowthegraduatetoleadwheresuccessfulexecutionoftheseskillsisimportanttothe
successfuloutcomeoftheevent.
TheOCCrecognizesthataleadermaywellhaveattainedsufficientskillssoastobeabletoexceedtheir
scopeofpracticebeyondthatspecifiedintheirFieldLeadercertification.However,suchleadersshould
beawarethatthemostseriousincidentsoccurringtogroupsinhikingterrainhavetypicallyhappenedto
moreexperiencedleaderswhodidnothaveterrain-specificcertification.TheOCCrequiresthatsuch
leaders,andtheirsupervisors,takethenecessarystepstoassurethemselvesthattheyhavethe
necessaryskill,experience,andjudgmenttoleadtheevent.
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