Map Tips

[MissingAll4Seasons]

I bought one of these compass pendants for "dress up" occasions. It just contains a button compass on the backside, but I etched a mark on the outer rim where the N needle points when the jump loop is pointing true north. It's not totally accurate, and will be significantly off in a couple of years, but it's good enough to get going in roughly the right direction as long as I'm in my general area. You don't have to sacrifice looks for preparedness

[kathyu]

People who love maps often love orienteering as well. There are great map discussions on Attack Point and other sites frequented by orienteers. Delaware Valley Orienteering Association has extremely detailed maps (down to the individual boulder or rock field) and people who are not familiar with map and compass use can have free instruction at events, which are almost weekly. Check the schedule on their site. I like to read maps just for fun, but hiking or running in the woods, finding hidden controls on my map, is an adventure almost every Sunday.

[Chava61]

I also maps. I always try to get a map of place either arriving there or as soon as I can after arrive. This way, I can orient myself beforehand in order to know where things are. As said it is always to have a map in case an emergency situation arises so one's knows what ones options for getting around any obstacles that might occur.

[bolillo_loco]

[hiero2]

Originally Posted by Mircea

That isn't true at all. Having used USGS maps to rain fire and steel on people, they are the best thing going. . . .

Originally Posted by MissingAll4Seasons

Age of the map is more important than you might think. The most recent topos for my particular grid are over 7 years old and are now incorrect, both man-made and natural features have changed significantly enough to be problematic for detail orienteering... you could probably find your way to the rough square mile where my cabin is located, but I doubt you'd find my doorstep. Maps for more highly populated/traveled areas are updated more frequently, and (printed) road maps tend to be updated more frequently than topo maps.

Also be aware that the presence of certain facilities may lead to inaccuracy/limited detail in all forms of maps and aerial photos. Most commonly these will be military bases and government complexes... for example, the maps I posted above for Fairbanks are not entirely accurate because specific information related to Ft. Wainwright has been omitted.

The age of the information is, indeed, important. It would be best to be at least passingly familiar with your maps before you really desparately need them. For instance, topo maps in my area of New England often show stone walls - that are still there - 150 years or more after they were originally put up. But they often don't show recent buildings (<10 years old), building developments, and new roads. Road maps may also not show these, but are updated more often and are more likely to show more up-to-date features. A topo may show an abandoned track or roadway that is 50 years out of date, and hard to follow today. In bad weather, or with snow, it might not be possible at all. At the same time, current road maps do not show tracks or fire roads or logging roads at all. Google maps and Google Earth are the most incredible source ever since cartography was invented, but they aren't perfect, either.

[MissingAll4Seasons]

Topos are good for urban orienteering 1) if they've been recently updated, 2) they clearly indicate (legibly) the presence of easily identifiable landmarks, 3) you've zoomed in to the grid to get a useful level of information, and 4) if you can get up high enough to appreciate a bird's eye view of the area (a tall building or a plane).

If you're trapped at ground level with your line of sight occluded by buildings, especially new buildings or in a recent development, you're probably going to have an easier and more accurate time going off newer street maps using street signs and municipal buildings/landmarks that are identified more clearly on city maps, often with blow-ups of denser areas already on the flipside.

Old maps are useful in that they may show abandoned roads and tracks that may no longer be maintained, but may still be passable on foot with care since the original road bed was cut out of the original landscape and the area flora may not have completely recovered.

Orienteering in inclement weather of any kind is difficult, especially if some sort of event has decimated or distorted some or all of the local landmarks (like a tornado, earthquake, fire, bomb, etc.) Land nav is a whole different skill than sky nav... both take practice to become proficient, and being proficient in one doesn't mean you'll be more than passably adequate in the other.

[CoventryDude]

I laminate my maps with clear acetate sold at my local hobby store....been using it since the 1980's when I was a young grunt.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

When our town in Maine was founded in 1832, magnetic north was 13 degrees west of true north. Today it's more than 18 degrees west. New surveys that describe old property lines are described as north, five degrees east to show where the line on the ground is today. The old stone wall that has been there for a century and a half is now 5 degrees east of today's magnetic north. Some property owners don't understand that. I just tell them the Canadians moved the north pole. ;-)