Orienting A Map

A map is useless unless you know how to use it.  One of the first skills for using a map is to orient it.  The map needs to face the right direction in order to figure out where you are and what terrain features are around you.  This section provides resources on how to get a map to face the right way.

Video tutorial links
Most recommended link - relatively short and to the point, shows how to take a bearing too

Next best link - this one is pretty short too, doesn't show how to take a bearing though

Third best link - This is another one that's pretty straight forward

Doing a youtube search for how to orient a map can also be helpful.

Written instructions

Web sites with written instructions seemed a bit confusing to me.  Here are the instructions I took straight from the orienteering merit badge manual.

1) Rotate the compass bezel until N or 360  degrees is lined up with the direction-of-travel arrow
2) Set the compass down on the map with the compass edge along one of the north-south magnetic lines
3) Check to make sure that the compass direction-of-travel arrow faces the same direction as north on the map.
4) Rotate the map and the compass together until the compass needle matches the direction-of-travel arrow.



Links

Home Page	Orienting A Map	Taking A Bearing
Measuring Distance	Contour Lines & Terrain Features	Practice & Quiz