Kōkiri Learn

Background reading · Health and Physical Education

Finding your way: maps, compasses and planning a route

How to read a topographic map, use a compass, and plan a route with times, a turnaround point and ways out.

Phones and GPS are useful, but batteries go flat, screens get wet and signal disappears in valleys. A paper map and a compass never run out of power. Learning to use them is like learning a new language for the land.

Reading a topographic map

  • Scale: on a 1:50,000 map, 1 cm on the map is 500 m on the ground. Each grid square is 1 km across. - Legend: the key that tells you what each symbol means, like tracks, huts, bridges and bush. - Contour lines: lines joining places at the same height. Close together means steep. Far apart means flat. - Grid references: numbers along the edges that let you describe any spot exactly.

    • Setting the map

    Before you do anything else, turn the map so it matches the land around you. If a river is on your left in real life, it should be on your left on the map. This is called setting or orienting the map.

    Using a compass

  • The red end of the needle points to magnetic north. - To take a bearing, point the direction-of-travel arrow at where you want to go, then turn the round housing until the red needle sits inside the orienting arrow. - Read the number where the arrow meets the housing. That is your bearing. Keep the needle in its 'shed' and walk the way the arrow points. - In New Zealand, magnetic north is quite a long way from true north (about 20 degrees or more), so trampers adjust for this on long routes.

    • Planning a route

    Measure the distance with a piece of string along the track, then compare it to the scale bar. A school group on a good track might walk 2–3 km an hour on the flat, and slower uphill. Add time for rests and lunch. Then plan: - A turnaround time: the time you turn back, even if you haven't reached the end. - Entry and exit points: where you start, where you can get out, and where you can safely get in and out of water. - An escape route: the fastest safe way out if the weather changes or someone is hurt.

    Leave your plan with someone

    Tell a trusted person where you are going, your route, who is with you and when to raise the alarm if you aren't back. That one step can save hours in an emergency.

    Sources and further reading

    Written for Kōkiri Learn students in our own words. Check facts against the sources.

    Used in: Into the Outdoors: Risk, Navigation and Leadership