Fetch Fell Runners

1 lurker | 159 watchers

Cog Noscensme AHA Feb 2018 9:48pm, 14 Feb 2018 480 posts	0 Cog Noscensme AHA Good point, Hohum. When I was last hillwalking, it was a Silva compass and a 1:50000 OS map folded to region of interest in a stiff plastic wallet. Do fell runners do that or is there a neater solution to managing maps these days?
jdarun Feb 2018 9:52pm, 14 Feb 2018 2,457 posts	0 jdarun Usually a printout of the relevant region, perhaps with course marked on. Of course if you go far enough wrong that's of limited use!
flanker Feb 2018 11:51pm, 14 Feb 2018 17,449 posts	0 flanker Yep, I tend to go with printouts these days - means it's far easier to fold it to small square and 'thumb' your current position. Full OS maps only tend to get used for route-planning and occasionally walking if I'm away without access to a printer.
Northern Exile Feb 2018 9:20am, 15 Feb 2018 4,622 posts	0 Northern Exile I do the same, it's pretty easy to take a screenshot of 1:25 from Garmin Basecamp (or OS Maps) then print it out, much easier than taking a map along with you. Occasionally I'll really push the boat out and edit a map section with timings, bearings and spot heights for altimeter calibration. Below is a part of the map series I did for last year's High Peak Marathon, the section north of Cutthroat Bridge/Snake Pass is an absolute bastard of a race to navigate, GPS is not allowed and you really have to have to focus on your nav.
Hohum Feb 2018 12:53pm, 15 Feb 2018 2,713 posts	0 Hohum I tend to print out relevant sections on the 1:25000 scale and put them in a waterproof case still. You do have to be aware of GPS and phones for nav as they only show a limited area and batteries do go flat.
Northern Exile Feb 2018 1:12pm, 15 Feb 2018 4,623 posts	0 Northern Exile Phones for nav is an absolute no-no in my opinion, they're highly dependent on a cellular signal to work properly and are not ideal things to manipulate in poor weather. And you're right, batteries can go flat. I use an eTrex 30 and always carry spares ... I once had quite a drama coming down to Kirkstone Pass in a whiteout, the batteries failed and, believe it or not, my compass was 180 degrees out of cal (really). It was only the lie of the land and the map that enabled us to get to safety, it was one of the few occasions when I didn't trust it! I knew I'd been travelling E to W and could see my footprints, so S could not be where the compass was showing it!! Moral: Carry batteries, check your compass.
rhb Feb 2018 2:08pm, 15 Feb 2018 903 posts	0 rhb ^ and beware magnetic clothing clasps etc! bbc.co.uk
Northern Exile Feb 2018 2:36pm, 15 Feb 2018 4,624 posts	0 Northern Exile This is true!! I had magnetic holder on a rucksack pack for a bladder valve, it was just at chest level and sent my compass haywire. I often wonder if I actually remagnetised it in this way p.s. does anyone know how to remagnetise a compass
flyingfinn Feb 2018 2:41pm, 15 Feb 2018 949 posts	0 flyingfinn And touch screens quite literally freeze in cold weather. In an account told to me very recently this left the user stood in a white out with a map and compass but rather unsure as to his starting point for using them. In that case there was a safe and obvious bearing to take. That might not always be the case....
swittle Feb 2018 2:41pm, 15 Feb 2018 47,503 posts	0 swittle sciencing.com