Better to be on the hill – than over the hill
Throughout this series of blogs covering Map Reading and Navigation we have dealt purely with the map and compass. The reason for this is very clear, if you cannot use a map and compass you should never go into the hills, even in the most popular areas. The clear, sunny day can turn bad very …
I have recently paid a visit to my Doctors for the results of a blood test. A couple of weeks earlier I had been sent for X-Rays for suspected OsteoArthritis of the left hip and the blood test was a routine follow-up to this. Well, I was in for a surprise. The suspected hip problem …
One of the main problems with navigating at night or in poor visibility is that errors can occur and this may result in the inability to locate a particular waypoint. This can occur for a number of reason which we will discuss and look at ways to resolve those errors. The most important thing to …
Review: Stance Nepal & Uncommon Arnot Trek Socks In the words of Stance - We have turned socks into one of the world's most exciting accessories in less than five years. Our founders saw a category that had been ignored, taken for granted, looked over, and dismissed. By creating life into something that had been …
Hopefully by now you have had the chance to practice your navigation and map reading skills and have enjoyed a few walks. It is important that you keep practicing your skills, even after 50 years of map reading, I still find the practice beneficial. What I am going to cover in this section are the …
Recently, I have been reading a series of brilliant blogs by Richard King aka the BionicOldGuy. A Mechanical Engineer in his mid 60's with a lifelong passion for the outdoors - very much a man after my own heart. He chronicles his efforts to stay fit, healthy and active despite all the curved balls that …
Today we will be looking at more advanced navigation techniques. These are designed to get you to and from your target location when the visibility is poor or there are a lack of good features. They include a means of using potential navigational errors to your advantage, or ensuring you leave a summit safely and …
There was a time, in my youth, when the word 'hip' meant good, cool, trendy. Now, these days, it means pain, suffering and a challenge. It constantly amuses me watching all of my outdoor colleagues doing exactly what I was doing 50 years ago, knowing full well the pain they will suffer later in life. …
Whenever I plan a new route in an area I have never been to before, I never know what is going to turn up. In most cases I have nothing more than a damned good walk but occasionally something special happens. This is the case with this particular walk. Where I live, at the …
Before we can start to plan a route, it is important that we understand how to calculate the timings of each leg of our walk. This can be done by using Naismith’s Rule. Naismith’s Rule Naismith's Rules was created as a means of using distance and ascent to calculate the time taken to complete a …
