Organizer:
Salome Hussein
Date/Time:
Date(s) - Saturday 01 March, 2025
All Day
activities
orienteering
rogaining
skills workshop
G’day Wanderers,
Can’t find your way to the pub after Ledge without Google Maps?
Sick of accidentally ending up in the wrong gully?
Are you kind of a map nerd and think they’re really good wall decoration? (*raises hand* guilty as charged) This is the course for you!
Tim, Sam, and myself (Salomé) are running Nav. Skills 1 at Belanglo/Rydal (pending forecast and lesson plan). This is a full day session, which will incorporate off-track walking (i.e. “bush-bashing”), so you should feel fit enough to navigate around obstacles and fight some scrub. You don’t need have to have any navigation experience, but ideally you’ve done some hikes and canyons with the club recently.
We’re using Caro Ryan’s (Lotsoffreshair) Guide as a supplement, which is also used by Bush Search and Rescue.
We’ll cover:
- Map reading
- Grid references
- Compass use
- Route and trip planning
- Visibility/pace-counting
- GPS/Phone apps (if you have your own, bring it)
- ***NEW*** What to do if you get lost, what NOT to do, and how to make yourself easier to find.
- Time permitted: mapping software, hand-rails/aiming off, navigation competitions, water crossing and other traversal challenges.
What you’ll need:
- Writing utensils
- Petrol money for your driver if carpooling
- Clothing that protects arms and/or shins (e.g. gaiters)
- Sun protection
- Compass (can borrow from club/scouts)
- Day-hike gear i.e. water, snacks, snake bandage, thermal blanket, appropriate shoes, walking poles if you need them.
Both locations have camping options.
This is the only Navskills I intend to offer in the 1st half of this year, but there’s 2-4 good opportunities to put new knowledge to work coming up on the rogaining calendar:https://nswrogaining.org/coming-events/
Practice makes perfect!
-Salomé
