Instructor the NNAS Bronze Navigation Award

Last weekend I had the pleasure to be teaching navigation in the Peak District - this time round I was leading a two day Bronze level National Navigation Award Scheme (NNAS) course with four participants. The meeting point for day one was Hathersage and our route took in the church, Camp Green (a Norman earth and timber ringwork fortress), Callow Bank, Higger Tor and Carl Wark fort.

Learning how to count paces so distances can be measured

Callow Bank ahead of us

Burbage valley and a lack of plantations....don't always trust what's on the map to be on the ground!

Orientating the map with features on the ground

Checking the path ahead is the one we want

On day two we met in the centre of Castleton, right at the other end of the Hope Valley. The task for the participants today was focused on relocating themselves accurately and they all did brilliant.

Hardest part of many walks is getting out of the village on the right path

Now where exactly are we along the edge of this wall?

A challenging relocation on a wiggly contour line high above Winnats Pass

YEY!!! We've found Mam Tor by orientating our map with the compass

Using the map to find features on the ground...this time interpreting
contour lines of the great Mam Tor-Lose Hill ridge

Refinding the village of Castleton, but first relocation along
side a river by counting paces and wall junctions

I've received some super feedback from the course participants

"very much enjoyed the weekend. Lynn is an excellent and inclusive instructor."

"thanks to Lynne who was a fantastic teacher...we can't imagine a better person to learn with. [We] felt that we'd walked away being able to things we couldn't do at the start of the weekend.  The course was a perfect mix of theory and practice.  We'd love to build on what we've learned once we've done some practice and consolidation - Snowdonia this weekend will give us an ideal chance to do that.  We'd recommend the course to anyone."

If these photos have inspired you to learn navigation but you don't know your handrail from your attack point then get in touch. This weekend was a NNAS Bronze Award course but I also run bespoke private one-to-one or group tuition - course content is tailored to suit your level of knowledge (from beginner to advanced) and your pace of walking/running. I am available for instruction in the Peak District, Snowdonia and the Lake District. I've been walking and running in the hills for many years, competed in fell races that require navigation, orienteering events which are totally based on navigation, and safely got myself around hills and mountains in the UK and Europe.