News from Peak Navigation Courses

Map Reading and Navigation Course I’m constantly amazed at the frequency that I’m approached on Kinder Scout by people who are lost and want directions to get back down safely.   I don’t mind this but it usually happens when I’m running a navigation course! Map Reading Course, Kinder Scout People book onto our map reading and navigation courses for a variety of reasons, many because they have been “misplaced” and want to make sure that it doesn’t happen again.   Peak Navigation Courses offer a range of courses from absolute beginner to “master classes” designed to provide handy revision to experts in need of a challenge. Our basic level course, 1 st Steps to Map Reading and Navigation covers all the basics, spending about 1.5 hours in the class before heading out for a short walk putting it into practice.   A further session in the classroom over lunch helps us prepare a route card before heading up onto some local moorland to navigate with a ...

Night Navigation and Poor Visibility Navigation Course Most of us who have been walking in the hills and mountains have experienced the mist coming down. Also in Britain once the clocks change in the autumn, it seems as if there are fewer daylight hours and it is not uncommon to see people returning from their walk after it is dark. On Kinder Scout in the mist Whether you are caught in the mist or end up coming down in the dark, it is useful to have practiced in poor visibility beforehand. Map reading and navigation in poor visibility, especially off path across open ground requires slightly different techniques and strategies.   It is harder to interpret the “contours” around us and if navigating in a straight line using a compass we need greater precision and strategies using “handrails” and “catching features.”   In situations like this pacing and timing play a more vital role in telling us where we are. Knowing just how many paces you take to a hund...

Autumn has arrived early this year as we didn’t seem to have much of a summer. Looking at the mountain rescue call out reports, the Peak District moors have certainly been proving too much for many ill prepared walkers who have ended up having to be rescued.   It’s not just about poor map reading and navigation skills and the over reliance on GPS navigation technology, but also about having the skills, clothing and equipment to deal with the difficult terrain, which has become extremely boggy after the summer rains.  The Following is an extract from Buxton Mountain Rescue Team call out log: “ Buxton Mountain Rescue Team called out as night fell to search Kinder moor for two walkers who were trapped by deep bog without lights or whistle.   Although the casualties, a married couple from Doncaster, had no apparent injuries, they were very cold and disorientated. The night was damp and misty at high level, with some wind. They had set off for a days walk from E...

Each year, autumn sees an increase in people booking onto our navigation and map reading courses . We like to think that this is in preparation for winter where shorter days and the chance of poor weather can be more of a challenge if someone were to get misplaced in the mountains or on the moors. However the reality is that a significant number of people go out walking over the summer, enjoy it but get a bit lost. It’s this group that provide the majority of our autumn bookings. Introduction to Moorland Navigation Course Peak Navigation Courses provide a range of map reading courses and navigation courses from complete beginner to expert standard where people attend to refine or revise their skills.  Our Introduction courses both start with around 1.5 hours spent in the classroom (Foolow Village Hall) which is then followed by a walk taking in a range of landscapes that includes both open moorland and fields.  Both Introductory courses teach the basics of navi...

The only good point about the British “Summer” that we have been experiencing is that it’s been testing the navigation skills of those visiting the moors and mountains.   With all the low cloud, rain, drizzle and wind, visibility has been poor on more days than not. This is why it’s essential to know how to map read and navigate. Peak Navigation Courses provide a range of navigation training from the complete novice up to the expert wanting practice for undertaking Mountain Leader assessments. Peak Navigation Courses Autumn Programme is now available.

Well our Spring season ofMap Reading and Navigation Courses is drawing to a close.   This year we have put on additional courses due to demand and the positive feedback we have received has been great.   It’s been wonderful for us too, as ever making new friends and even learning a thing or two from our students. One of the highlights was discovering the compass that pointed south! Peak Navigation Courses are now running Hill Skills Courses based in the Peak District looking at a complete range of skills: Mountain Safety, Weather, Equipment, Navigation, GPS Navigation, Scrambling and Ropework. Photo’s of this years courses are also on the website.   Check them out to see if you are there.   If you have any pictures from your course that we could use, please send them in. With our other company, Sierra Nevada Guides we are also running Mountain Skills Courses based in Spains Sierra Nevada .   This course builds on the navigation you’ve lear...

Choosing Trekking / Walking Poles As an advocate of poles and professional walking guide I get the chance to lead many people in the hills and mountains of Britain and Europe.  The vast majority of serious walkers are these days already using poles, there is a reason for this: “A 2010 study by UK-based Northumbria University shows that using trekking poles reduce muscle damage and soreness in the days following a hike. The combined benefits of using trekking poles in reducing load to the lower limbs, increasing stability and reducing muscle damage also helps avoid injury on subsequent days of trekking, according to Dr Glyn Howatson. Trekking poles can also reduce the compressive force on the knees by up to 25%, according to The Journal of Sports Medicine in a 1999 study.” The advantages of using trekking poles are: 1.            Extra stability  on difficult or loose terrain If you walk off path or in the mou...