If you have nothing but a map and a compass (指南针), could you find your way through an outdoor course (路线)? Orienteers can. Orienteering is a sport in which a person or a team must complete a course, stopping at certain marked (标注的) points along the way. They use a special map and a compass.
Orienteering maps are special because they are topographic maps. A topographic map is a kind of map that shows the shape of the land, from hills to trees to lakes. Special colors are used to mark different parts of the map. Black areas are man-made features, like roads and buildings. Brown shows highs and lows, like hills and valleys. Blue marks water areas such as lakes, ponds, and rivers. White shows open forest that you can run through easily. Green means a forest where you should slow down—the darker the green, the harder it is to run through. Yellow color shows open areas like fields.
By reading these special maps and using a compass, orienteers travel from one control spot to another. Control spots are circled on the map, and they are also marked by orange and white flags on the course. To complete a course successfully, you must find each control marker in a specific (特定的) order.
People of all ages enjoy orienteering because it is a fun way to exercise their body and mind. There are easy courses for beginners and more difficult courses for people who have had more experience. Websites about orienteering also give some extra tips and information. There are even orienteering competitions!
There are many kinds of orienteering. Among these, the oldest and the most popular is foot orienteering—this means orienteering while running or walking on foot. But now people also orienteer on skis, mountain bikes—even in canoes!
