Permanent Orienteering Courses
Want to try orienteering for yourself or just fancy getting in the outdoors and tying something new? If so, then our permanent orienteering courses could be perfect for you.
What is Permanent Orienteering?
Permanent Course Orienteering involves finding control points using a specially drawn, large-scale colour map. The map shows the positions of the control markers with circles, each with an accompanying identification.
On Permanent Courses, control markers are generally wooden posts or plaques. Each control is marked with letters to match those on the map so that on arrival, the orienteer can check that their navigation is correct.
There are short, easy courses for beginners with controls at path junctions. Further courses progress through a range of map reading skills to find controls a short distance from paths and finally in more remote locations.
This video below is an excellent introduction to permanent orienteering courses.
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We currently have 7 permanent orienteering courses in the North Staffordshire area, all of which can be downloaded for FREE to enable you to set about orienteering for yourself. You can find information about our permanent courses below;
Apedale Country Park
The Permanent Course provides both easy, mainly track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes (up to 8·0 km) with some tricky navigation. It is an extensive area with wooded valleys, rough open fields and some pockets of complex old industrial workings; access to some parts is limited to protect wildlife.
Maps are available on site from the Rangers’ Office (01782 564885) or the Heritage Centre (cafe and mine tours also available)
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Bathpool Country Park
**Please Note the Bathpool Park Permanent Course is currently closed due to repair work taking place to some of the posts - Updated 5th August 2021. We hope to open the course again in 2022**
The Permanent Course provides both easy, mainly track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes with some tricky navigation. It is an extensive area with wooded valleys and rough open fields.
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Biddulph Grange Country Park
The Permanent Course provides both easy, mainly track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes with some tricky navigation. It is an extensive area with wooded valleys and some impressive views. Ample parking is provided with the visitor centre cafe open at peak times.
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Brough Park
The Permanent Course provides both easy, mainly track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes. The area is the Municipal Park for Leek, but is not a typical town park. The map can be split into 3 differing parts. The central third of the map comprises the normal park features and in addition a leisure centre. From this section the land falls to the south about 25m to a dry valley. The valley and the slopes to the north and south comprise about 40% woodland and the rest open grassland. The other third of the map is a recent addition to the park and is what made the area viable for mapping. This lies to the north and comprises mainly wooded slopes which drop 30m to the River Churnet.
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Downs Banks
The Permanent Course provides both easy, mainly track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes with some tricky navigation. Downs Banks is a small area of heath land midway between Barlaston and Stone, sometimes referred to as Barlaston Downs. Rectangular in shape it is about 1.0k × 0.6k. An unnamed stream runs N-S through the middle and the slopes to the East and West are very steep. The area stands out from its surroundings of more gently sloping farmland and the to the west the disused wasteland that was part of the demolished Meaford Power Station site.
Please note the permanent course is unavailable between April and June each year.
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Ladderedge
The Permanent Course provides both easy, mainly track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes. Ladderedge Country Park comprises 30 hectares (70 acres) of fields and woodland, with ponds, marshland and streams, lying in two contrasting sections. A main hilly section of the park lies to the west where there are commanding views over Leek and towards the Peak District.
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Central (Hanley) Forest Park
This is the newest POTOC course that opened in October 2017. The Permanent Course provides both easy, track-based, controls suitable for school/youth groups and longer routes. All the controls are on or close to paths at Forest Parks. The area is a reclaimed colliery, landscaped as a public park. Mainly rough open, with some scattered trees. The slopes on the partially wooded spoil heaps have some interesting contour features.
Maps are available on site from the Snack Bar for Free. Additionally they can be downloaded online via the link below.
Download a copy of the map and print off yourself for free.
Permanent Orienteering Courses - Answer Codes
Westport Lake
This is a MapRun course that we have created. This is one of the newest additions to our POC courses and unlike our other courses above there are no physical markers that are on the locations that you need to navigate, instead it is all electronically controlled by the MapRun App.
The MapRun application is FREE to download and you can choose to print off a paper based map or follow the map on your phone. At the end your route and score will be recorded and you can compare your performance to others - enabling that element of competition should you wish.
Find out more about MapRun and download your map for this course via the link below.
MAPRUN Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire
Tunstall Park
This is a MapRun course that we have created. This is one of the newest additions to our POC courses and unlike our other courses above there are no physical markers that are on the locations that you need to navigate, instead it is all electronically controlled by the MapRun App.
The MapRun application is FREE to download and you can choose to print off a paper based map or follow the map on your phone. At the end your route and score will be recorded and you can compare your performance to others - enabling that element of competition should you wish.
Find out more about MapRun and download your map for this course via the link below.
MAPRUN Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire
Hanley Park
This is a MapRun course that we have created. This is one of the newest additions to our POC courses and unlike our other courses above there are no physical markers that are on the locations that you need to navigate, instead it is all electronically controlled by the MapRun App.
The MapRun application is FREE to download and you can choose to print off a paper based map or follow the map on your phone. At the end your route and score will be recorded and you can compare your performance to others - enabling that element of competition should you wish.
Find out more about MapRun and download your map for this course via the link below.
MAPRUN Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire
