Eileen Woodward led two map and compass field trials this past Sunday and Monday, April 18 & 19 at the old Tumalo Canal. It was a perfect topic, as it followed on the heels of Bill Martin’s webinar that also discussed map and compass. However, things are a bit different in the field!
On Monday’s excercise, we started by plotting our direction of travel on the map cross-country from post 12 to post 7. To return, we plotted a different route from post 4 to post 1. Eileen made it fun on the second leg to break us into two groups; one aiming to hit the post, and the other aiming to miss… and ensure we hit the trail.
Monday was a perfect day, with a cool breeze at the beginning but warm enough to get down to one layer on the second leg. The venue was also perfect; mostly flat with just a few topographic features for “spatial orientation”. There were also the historical features of the old still with rock walls still standing, the canal remnants, and a few sand lillies.
Photos by Eileen Woodward and Eric Ness
