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The Lost Art? How to Read a Map

I thought this was another Landnav discussion. I can't imagine someone not being able to read a road map.
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Before I get beyond Landnav I do once again want to recommend these two books. Best books I ever read about Landnav.

I'd also like to recommend this video



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I bought this at the Shoppette on Fort Lewis when I bought my first brand new car in 1992. It's been in my glove box since then.
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I had a job working for a Carpet Cleaning company the first thing they told me to buy was one of these.

Agains, I can't imagine someone who can't read a road map. I mean the legend literally tells you how to read the map.

Is that bigfoot on the cover of Survival in the Outdoors?
 
I remember Army map courses, before GPS. Wow it could be tough doing it on your own, staying "tactical" and keeping a pace count. I learned a few tricks, like counting telephone poles
In the Gulf War we had a few GPS but mainly used Loran with a small MGRS converter computer. You still need paper maps. Even today, you still need paper maps and a compass given many hostiles have GPS jammers.
 
In the Gulf War we had a few GPS but mainly used Loran with a small MGRS converter computer. You still need paper maps. Even today, you still need paper maps and a compass given many hostiles have GPS jammers.
I lived in Riyadh before, during, and after the first Gulf War. I worked on ground navigation systems (NAVAIDS) and we had remote sites that we had to maintain. We followed directions like, "Go to this town, drive all the way through. Stop at the gas station at the end of the paved road, get some water and snacks. Head off into the desert and angle to your right - you'll eventually run into the pipeline road (graded, not paved). Turn left onto the pipeline road and drive for 62 km, then turn right into the desert. Keep going for a few klicks and you'll see the antenna.

The first time we would go to a remote site like that, we'd ride along with one of the other techs. After that, we would solo. It was on one such solo run that I learned just how good Toyota Land Cruiser 4WD worked.
 
I lived in Riyadh before, during, and after the first Gulf War. I worked on ground navigation systems (NAVAIDS) and we had remote sites that we had to maintain. We followed directions like, "Go to this town, drive all the way through. Stop at the gas station at the end of the paved road, get some water and snacks. Head off into the desert and angle to your right - you'll eventually run into the pipeline road (graded, not paved). Turn left onto the pipeline road and drive for 62 km, then turn right into the desert. Keep going for a few klicks and you'll see the antenna.

The first time we would go to a remote site like that, we'd ride along with one of the other techs. After that, we would solo. It was on one such solo run that I learned just how good Toyota Land Cruiser 4WD worked.
Spent time on the reservations in SD. Exactly like that- look for the lone tree, the gully with trash, the sweat lodge at the blue house…
 
In the Gulf War we had a few GPS but mainly used Loran with a small MGRS converter computer. You still need paper maps. Even today, you still need paper maps and a compass given many hostiles have GPS jammers.

When I was in the National Guard it was Battalion policy that on Friday night we would load up in the motor pool on Fort Carson and go to the same firing point every single time.

The idea was to save time trying to land nav someplace different every month. We went to the same Laager area, got everything situated and then started the exercise.

And every month the same Second Lieutenant, presumably using the same Plugger, would take the same wrong turn, at the exact same Trail Junction and lead us halfway to Pueblo.

I was never in the vehicle with him, in fact I never met him. But I was told that his driver told him every single time this is the turnoff. This is the turnoff. It's a right turn Sir, not a left.

But the lieutenant would direct him to turn left anyway. Looking back I think The LT. did it just to trifle (you can spell that word with a capital F) with people.
 
One thing I like about Colorado Springs is they have some really nice city parks.

One of my favorites is North Cheyenne Canyon which is a city park that's 1600 square acres. It is bounded on the South Side by South Cheyenne Canyon and on the North Side by Bear Creek Canyon.

Seven Falls is actually owned by the Broadmoor and it is in South Cheyenne Canyon. Although there are a couple places in North Cheyenne Canyon where you can see it from.

I cannot count the number of times that I would be out hiking in Bear Creek Canyon and run into groups of hikers who would tell me that they were on their way to Seven Falls as they were heading away from Seven Falls.

They were navigating by GPS or Alltrails and when I would show them my paper map they would invariably point to a location that they were miles away from and tell me that's where they were at.

Then I would tell them that that's not where you're at and you're going away from that and you're heading in the exact wrong direction. To which they would invariably reply "Well Alltrails says...."

After a while I'd quit trying to correct them
 

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