Orienteering is a sport, which combines outdoor adventure with map reading and navigational skills. It involves navigating though the bush, parks or streets with the aid of a specially produced map and orienteering compass, with the aim being to locate checkpoints (controls) on various natural and man-made features along the way, such as a boulder, track junction, bench seat or street lamp. Controls are generally represented by distinctive orange and white flags.

The skill in orienteering is in choosing the best route between controls — while beginners’ courses may not offer choice, as you progress you will learn to decide between options — perhaps over a hill or a longer route which goes round it. It is this stimulating mental challenge as well as the physical activity that makes orienteering so popular. Each event may have a number of courses of differing lengths and levels of difficulty occurring at the same time.

A new format for orienteering is MapRun. This format involves using GPS tracking on a smartphone (or watch) to complete a course. There are no control markers on the ground but you still use a map – on your phone or a physical map -to navigate to “virtual controls”. When you reach the right location, your device will record that you have found the control!

If you are new to Orienteering, have a look at our Training Resources page which has a number of resources to help you understand what orienteering is and how you can improve your skills.