Land navigation

C

CM11

5-Year Member
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Sep 15, 2013
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I will be a Ms1 next yr and would like to practice land navigation this spring but can't get military maps. Any suggestions?
 
.... I wouldn't worry too much on land nav, coming into ROTC, as much as I would your physical fitness. Land nav is something you will be taught in your Army 101 class. The one thing that will make you shine as a cadet is have good APFT scores.

... anyways regarding military maps? What do you mean by them? Because (at least for Army) all it is, is a topographical map; that's it.
 
Thompson said:
.... I wouldn't worry too much on land nav, coming into ROTC, as much as I would your physical fitness. Land nav is something you will be taught in your Army 101 class. The one thing that will make you shine as a cadet is have good APFT scores.

... anyways regarding military maps? What do you mean by them? Because (at least for Army) all it is, is a topographical map; that's it.
Click to expand...

I think he may be referring to maps printed by the Defense Mapping Agency, with all the .mil colors, symbols and what not.

Focus on PT.

Just as Thompson said, you'll be taught land nav. If you really want to start looking at the stuff, I'm sure you can google a slide deck or something, but without an instructor to explain it all, don't teach yourself something wrong. If you have the ability to, get a topo map for a local forest near your home and a compass, and go practice shooting azimuths, terrain association, etc. You could have someone set markers at certain grids to practice that as well, but it wouldn't be something I would rush into quite yet.
 
You can get topographical maps at REI and I'm sure at other outdoor stores as well.
 
Doing a quick google search found me this: Never Lost. That might be a good place to start.

Also, I have an Army map reading program that goes through the basics of all the terrain features, plotting, shooting azimuths, and everything else in between. PM with your email address if you want the program.
 
As others have said, PT and your GPA is much more important right out of the gate. If you have time for a hobby, use some Google fu and find an orienteering club chapter near you. If you develop strong terrain association skills, land nav is too easy.
 
We use maps that have the Military Grid Reference System (MGRS). There are ways to get maps printed with the MGRS, and most GPSs will let you navigate using MGRS. That being said, you are thinking too hard. Enjoy your summer. You'll have plenty of time for land nav next year.

google army land nav ppt
 
U.s. Geological survey...cheap and you can get topo map of any area. Be sure to get 1:25000 or 1:50000
 
DS did some orienteering and GPS for Boy Scouts. However, I supplemented it with materials from our local orienteering group. They have created maps for local parks which we purchased. These maps were not quite military grade, but were perfect for paces/compass/navigating. Only spent two days doing land navigation at a park to just fine tune map reading skills.

Needless to say wait for MS 1 classes unless you are completely unfamiliar with navigating. Some cadets struggle at night, so I compliment you on developing a certain comfort level before first year.

Congrats on ROTC!
 
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