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Hill Navigation From Fort William

Find your line in poor visibility

Small group map and compass courses, private navigation days and guided local hill days around Glen Nevis, the Mamores and Ardgour.

Since 2015

Started by Eilidh MacRae after seasons helping visitors make sense of Glen Nevis paths and claggy summit plateaus.

Small Groups

Maximum 6 learners on navigation courses and 4 people on guided mountain days, so nobody gets lost in the lesson.

No Summit Promises

The work is calm decision making, not chasing a top when the hill is telling you to turn the map round and think.

Course Snapshot

Three Ways To Get Steadier With A Map

Open Group

Introduction To Navigation

For walkers who usually follow paths, apps or friends and want the basics to make sense in their own hands.

Price
£95 per person
Time
1 day, 09:30 to 16:30
Group
Maximum 6
Read About Introduction

Open Group

Hill Navigation Refresher

For rusty walkers who know the words bearing, pacing and contour but want them to work in real Scottish weather.

Price
£105 per person
Time
1 day, 09:30 to 16:30
Group
Maximum 6
Read About Refresher

Weekend

Bronze NNAS-style weekend

A two day weekend for people preparing for bigger Scottish days, club walks or solo trips beyond signed routes.

Price
£185 per person
Time
2 days
Group
Maximum 6
Read About The Weekend

How The Day Feels

Unhurried Learning On Real Hill Ground

The pace is steady and conversational. We use low and middle hill terrain, old stalkers paths, lumpy moorland, forest edges and small ridges where a map has enough detail to teach you something. There are regular breaks, not because the day is soft, but because good navigation needs clear thinking.

You practise setting the map, choosing handrails, taking bearings, measuring distance by pacing and timing, reading contour shape and relocating when the world disappears into cloud. Weather calls are made plainly. If a forecast makes the chosen ground poor for learning, the plan changes before pride gets involved.

Owner's Note

I close the diary from 20 December to 12 January. The hill will still be there after the shortbread and the long dark mornings. - Eilidh

Enquiries

Ask For A Course Date Or A Private Day