Mountain Navigation Skills Training courses in The Lake District. March 31st/April 1st 2012.

During the weekend of March 31st/April 1st, Iain from Kendal Mountaineering Services ran a Mountain Navigation Skills Training course for four members of the general public.

From L - R Fiona, Andrew, Shelley & Rachel had all booked on to our course with a view to improving their map reading & navigational skill ability.

Photo one is taken atop a fairly insignificant ring contour in the Green Quarter Fell Area of Kentmere. By this time it was early afternoon on day one.

Prior to photo one, we had spent some considerable time looking at orienteering the map, measuring distances both on the map & by pacing and had followed a linear feature (linear features can be walls, fences, footpaths, streams etc) to get us from our start point to the location in photo one.

The group had also progressed to being able to find and to be able to give a grid reference for a specific location on the map.

By mid-day we had moved on to more advanced navigational techniques such as using the compass to take and walk on a bearing between two grid references.

In photo two everyone is working together to find the next grid reference, work out the distance and the bearing needed to get there.

Photo three is taken on Day two and here two candidates are discussing the best way to get to the next grid reference using one of our laminated maps. These are provided for you as part of our Mountain Navigation Skills Training Courses in both 1:25,00 and 1:50,000 scales covering that we use - they are cheaper than the Ordnancy Survey sheets - plus they stand up well to wet weather!

On day two we had moved slightly further north on to part of the Kentmere Horseshoe - going higher than the previous day and consolidating all of the skills learnt during day one - and adding new skills along the way.

Photo four on a gloriously sunny afternoon high on Kentmere Pike with the summits of froswick & Ill Bell across the valley above Kentmere Reservoir.

By this point it was getting to the end of the course but everyone was very satisfied with what they had learned during the weekend.

Typically, on one of our Mountain navigation Skills Training weekends you will cover the following aspects of navigation:-

Orientation of map.
Map to compass (Grid to mag)
Compass to map (Mag to grid)
Resections
Measuring distance - on the map & on the ground.
Walking on a bearing/back bearings
Naismiths rule (timing/pacings)
Tick off features
Linear/guideline features
Aiming off
Attack points

The cost per person is £80 each for a two day 16 hour course (minimum of four persons) or if you would like your own bespoke navigation skills training course or Mountainwalking Leader refresher day then contact us at Kendal Mountaineering Services. Night navigation sessions can be bolted on to the weekend course for an extra fee and Iain ran just such a session for Andrew during the Saturday evening.

To see other photographs from this weekend course click here.

The dates for the next Lake District based Mountain Navigation Skills Training course are June 30th/July 1st 2012.