The Silver National Navigation Award develops the navigation skills acquired at the Bronze level. It adds skills required to navigate to features and places some distance from paths and tracks. It teaches accurate compass work. It will also teach you to select the suitable navigational techniques to cross open country.
Silver National Navigation Award courses are taught in areas with access to open country and involve periods where you’ll be navigating away from paths and tracks.
Course Objectives
- Utilise the skills and techniques of the Bronze Award in the context of Silver Award navigation strategies.
- Relate small hills, small valleys, prominent re-entrants and prominent spurs to their corresponding map contours. Use prominent hills, ridges, spurs and valleys as a means of navigation in good visibility.
- Use landforms and point features to orientate the map and as collecting and catching features.
- Use a compass to: Accurately follow a bearing; aim off; check the direction of handrails and other linear features.
- Deviate briefly from a compass bearing to avoid obstacles or difficult terrain and accurately regain the original line.
- Use back bearings to check route following accuracy.
- Measure distance on the ground in varied, open terrain using timing and pacing and make practical allowances for any discrepancies.
- Simplify legs using course navigation, attack points and fine navigation.
- Recognise dangerous or difficult terrain on map and ground.
- Plan and implement navigational strategies based on the above skills.
- Maintain route finding accuracy in poor visibility or darkness.
- Recognise a navigation error within a few minutes and apply appropriate relocation techniques.
- Understand how personal fitness and nature of terrain affect route choice both at the planning stage and on the ground.
- Understand the potential consequences of fatigue and physical discomfort in demanding terrain and/or extreme weather conditions.
- Select appropriate clothing, equipment and first aid items for walking in open country in all weather conditions.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the Countryside Code, current access legislation and the environmental impact of walkers on the countryside.
- Understand the responsibilities of walkers towards other countryside interests such as farming, forestry and conservation.
Day 1
- Course introduction and theory
- Practical session outdoors
- Lunch break during practical session
Day 2
- Practical session outdoors
- De-brief and questions
- Assessment outcomes
Equipment
- Appropriate footwear for rocky and uneven terrain
- Spare layers, hats & gloves
- Waterproof jacket and trousers
- Map and compass (can be provided if required)
- Personal First Aid kit
- Food, snacks and enough water for the day
- Head-torch
If you are successful, you can order a certificate and badge for £10 from the NNAS. The NNAS Silver Navigator Award is accredited by the Scottish Credit & Qualifications Framework (SCQF) at Level 5 and 2 SCQF credit points are awarded on completion. If you are just interested in the course and don’t want the qualification, you do not have to be assessed.
More Information
For more information about the course content and syllabus, visit the NNAS website. Before attending this course, you must register with the NNAS via JustGo.
