Maps Understanding maps Being able to interpret the information on a map and relate it to the terrain around you is the most important part of mountain navigation.
Colour gives a good general over view but is of little use for accurate navigation. In some places spot heights are used particularly for summits, knolls etc, that is, the height in metres is printed on the map.
Conventional Symbols The newest maps in Ireland are made at a scale of 1:50,000. This means that 1cm on the map represents 50,000 cm (500m) on the ground. 2 cm = 1km or 2 mm = 100m The grid lines on the map are 2 cm apart representing one kilometre.
Setting a map by eye We set a map to help us relate the map to the terrain. It simply means turning the map around until it coincides with the countryside around you. Where the visibility is good or the terrain is familiar it is easy to set a map by simply identifying points on the ground and on the map, then rotating the map until it matches the countryside.
A map is a bird’s eye view of an area where roads, houses, forests, lakes and so on are represented by lines, colours and symbols. By just taking a little time to look at your map closely you will get a lot of information. The signs used to represent objects are given in the key or legend. They change from map to map depending on the scale of the map and its intended use. Some features may be left out while new features will not be represented such as newly planted forest, tracks etc.
An experienced hill walker gets into the habit of having the map set all the time as it helps to identify features, visualise the route ahead and generally avoid getting lost as with the map set feature recognition both near and far becomes easier.
While a map is flat, the ground is hilly. There are several ways we can tell the shape of the landscape from the map. Colour - rivers, lakes and the sea are blue, while low lying ground is green and mountains varied shades of brown, getting darker towards higher ground.
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