What is Orienteering?

Here is a nice New York Times video with a basic description of what orienteering is:

Orienteering is a sport in which competitors must navigate through nature using a highly detailed “orienteering” map and a compass. There are checkpoints laid out in the area and they are indicated on the map. Competitors must find these as fast as they can in the specified order. Various variations of orienteering include: night-o, kayak-o, rogaine, mountain bike-o, goat-o, radio-o, score-o, ski-o, trail-o etc. Here are the reasons why I think orienteering is such a great sport, and why it is my sport of choice:

• Orienteering is in many ways unique:
  • Mind and body
  • Useful life skills
  • Unique activity is good for college
• Orienteering is FUN!
  • You get to meet a lot of genuinely cool people from all over.
  • Spending time in nature, and going to places where very few people go (especially in more advanced, less urban courses).
• Low commitment, high reward
  • One can get truly good at orienteering at a competitive level without devoting their whole life (as in practices every single day) to it. Few sports can boast something like this!

Feel free to check out the Orienteering USA What Is Orienteering? article for a more detailed explanation!