Contour Association Workshop - April

Map - Terrain Association

Map - terrain association is probably the single most valuable tool available to us for navigation. For many it can be one of the most challenging areas to learn but once mastered you will find navigation with a map becomes second nature.

Interpret contours and identify landforms

This workshop is specifically designed to help participants recognise the patterns of contours on the map, group them by slope and other common characteristics and use symbols that represent physical features such as cliff, rocky outcrops, scree and boulder fields to further enhance out understanding of the terrain ultimately associating what we see on the map with what exists on the ground.

Slope

Understand slope and how it connects everything on the map. We will investigate different angles of slope, shape and aspect and how we can use contour spacing as navigation tool.

Contour Features

Where there is a change in direction of slope through a high or low point we can often identify that change as a physical feature on the ground, a peak, a valley, spur, re-entrant or saddle. We will run through the characteristic contour pattern so as to identify them on the map.

Landforms

Our goal is to associate all discernible contour features on the map with their respective Landforms on the ground, due to complexity of the terrain or more subtle changes in relief this is not always possible and we will investigate what can and cannot be achieved.

Spot, Area and Linear Features associated with contours

We will discuss the relative merits of each and identify when best to use them in the context of navigation with map only and with the benefit of a compass.

Scale

We discuss scale, particularly in relation to contour recognition. we will investigate the limitations smaller scale places upon the maps ability to display detail and how this in turn limits our capability in associating features on a 1:50k map compared with a 1:25k map.