Orienteering is a fun and challenging outdoor adventure sport that exercises both the mind and body. The aim is to navigate between a series of checkpoints known as “controls” marked on a special, detailed orienteering map while deciding the best routes to complete the course in the quickest time.
Orienteering can either be a competitive individual sport or a totally recreational activity. It is suitable for all ages, fitness and experience levels which makes it a fantastic family sport. If you enjoy hill walking, fell running, cross-country running or geocaching there is a good chance you will also enjoy orienteering.
Benefits of Orienteering
- Physical Fitness: Orienteering combines running or walking with navigation, ensuring a complete cardiovascular workout.
- Mental Focus: Navigating a course demands concentration and mindfulness, providing a welcome escape from daily distractions.
- Spatial Awareness: Using maps and compasses enhances your understanding of space and direction, improving your ability to navigate unfamiliar environments.
- Problem-Solving Skills: Finding the fastest route needs clever thinking and quick decision-making.
- Family friendly: Orienteering is suitable for all ages, making it a great activity for the whole family to participate in together.
- Social Connection: Join a friendly club and meet like-minded people. Participate in events together and represent the club at events nationwide.
Getting Started
Embark on your first orienteering event with confidence, as we are eager to welcome newcomers like you. Here's a step-by-step guide to get you started:
- Find an Event:
- Check our Events page for information on where and when the orienteering event is taking place.
- Online Registration:
- Visit pre-entries.co.uk to register online in advance.
- This ensures we print enough maps and speeds up the registration process on the day.
- Course Selection:
- Choose a course based on your experience level or age class:
- Registration on the Day:
- Receive a timing chip (Si-card), control descriptions, and a start time.
- Don't hesitate to approach any volunteer or participant; they'll be happy to assist and guide you.
- Clothing:
- Wear running/walking shoes, leg/arm-covering clothing, and bring a waterproof coat if needed.
- Consider studded trail running shoes for more challenging courses.
- Bring a compass for harder courses.
- Starting your course:
- Go to the start point and receive a map with your course printed in purple.
- In competitions, your time starts when you get the map.
- Navigation:
- Navigate to each control site, choosing routes based on your skill level.
- Easier courses involve following paths or fences, while harder ones may take you through the terrain.
- Lost? Don't Panic:
- Head to an obvious feature on the map (path, stream) to relocate.
- Ask fellow orienteers for help if needed.
- Finishing your course:
- The Finish is usually near the Start; record your time by downloading your Si-card.
- Even if you don't finish, download to let organisers know you're back safely.
- Keep your map and splits for future analysis.
- Post-Race:
- Discuss your course with experienced orienteers - this is a great way to learn.
- Results are usually online within hours, allowing you to compare your time and split times with others.
- Enter your next event!
Course Color | Distance Range | Description |
WHITE | 0.5-1.5 km | Ideal for young children and beginners, staying on main paths. |
YELLOW | 1.0-3.0 km | Slightly more technical, controls slightly off paths. |
ORANGE | 2.5-3.5 km | Suitable for adult beginners, basic route choices, and simple compass skills. |
LIGHT GREEN | 3.0-4.0 km | Increased technical and physical difficulty; used by under 16's and adult improvers. Usually, there is something obvious like a path to “catch you” if you overshoot a control |
GREEN | 3.5-5.0 km | As difficult as the area will allow (Ideally TD5), using contour features, point features. |
BLUE | 5.5-7.5 km | Similar to GREEN but longer and more physically demanding. |
Understanding the Map
An orienteering map is specially prepared for use in orienteering competitions. It is a topographic map with extra details to help the competitor navigate around the course.
Orienteering maps are much more detailed than maps like OS, and they are the same style internationally so that all orienteering maps can be understood wherever you go. In addition to showing the contours, orienteering maps show what the vegetation is like - whether it is long or short grass, open forest, thick bushes. The map also shows streams and rivers, paths, fences and walls, boulders, crags and other features of the terrain.
Perhaps the biggest difference between orienteering maps and other outdoor maps is the scale – most of our events use 1:10,000 scale maps. This means 1cm on the map is equal to 100m on the ground.
Some maps, particularly sprint orienteering maps use a larger scale, usually 1 :4000, and these are usually of urban areas or parks.
The following legends will help you understand symbols on orienteering maps:
- ISOM 2017 map symbols are those used for normal orienteering maps, generally at 1:7,500, 1:10,000 or 1:15,000.
- ISSOM 2007 sprint map symbols are those used for sprint orienteering maps at 1:4,000.
Control Descriptions
Control descriptions in orienteering are a set of symbols or written information that provide participants with details about the exact location of each control point on the course. Sometimes they are on the map and sometimes on an extra piece of paper. Here are the main ways that they are useful:
- Control Code: Each control point is associated with a unique code, typically a number between 1-255. Participants can check that the code at the control point matches the one on their control descriptions to confirm they have found the correct location.
- Feature Descriptions: Control descriptions provide extra information about where the control is placed than you might be able to tell from the map. For example, "boulder, 1m high, East side" "reentrant, top," or "path junction."
- Extra guidance: Sometimes in orienteering events you should follow a marked section of path, or cross a fence at a gate or a stile. Anything specific like this is shown on the map and in the descriptions.
- Words vs Symbols: On beginner courses, controls descriptions are written in words. On more advanced courses, usually Light Green or harder, there are specific symbols which are used to convey where you’ll find each control point. These symbols are internationally recognised and are consistent across orienteering events.
Understanding control descriptions can improve your orienteering. A guide to control descriptions can be found below.
Think you have mastered control descriptions? take the quiz!
Thanks go to Simon Errington for providing the legends and control description guides.
Top Tips for Beginners
- Orientate your map - This is especially important at the beginning and it is worth taking a bit of time to identify the location of the start and relate the features around you to what is shown on the map. Then, checking the features in front of you, make sure that you set off in the right direction You can also orientate your map using a compass by making sure that the north lines on the map point the same way as the north or red end of the compass needle.
- Think about the scale: At first, you may find you arrive at path junctions, etc. sooner than you were expecting to. It can help to spot a feature nearby and then look at how far away it is on your map
- Remember the map colours: open land is mapped in shades of yellow and forest areas are white through to green.
- Fold your map: this is so you can easily see the part of the map where you are. Many orienteers also learn to keep their thumb on the map to mark their position.
- Check your control descriptions - Once you have found a control you always need to check that the code on your control description sheet matches the code on the control.
Have fun and enjoy yourself.
What is my age class?
The table below shows the Orienteering Age Class for a given age of competitor.
When entering orienteering events, the age class below is prefixed by ‘M’ for Men or ‘W’ for Women.
Your Age by the end of the current year* | Orienteering Age Class |
Junior Age Classes (M / W) | |
10 and Under | M/W 10 |
12 and Under | M/W 12 |
14 and Under | M/W 14 |
16 and Under | M/W 16 |
18 and Under | M/W 18 |
20 and Under | M/W 20 |
Adult Age Classes (M / W) | |
Any Age | M/W 21 |
35 and Over | M/W 35 |
40 and Over | M/W 40 |
45 and Over | M/W 45 |
50 and Over | M/W 50 |
55 and Over | M/W 55 |
60 and Over | M/W 60 |
65 and Over | M/W 65 |
70 and Over | M/W 70 |
75 and Over | M/W 75 |
80 and Over | M/W 80 |
85 and Over | M/W 85 |
Ready to take the first step? Check our upcoming events and join us for your first orienteering experience!