Let's not get lost

A few reviewers have reported giving up because they are lost. Why does this happen? What can be done to avoid it?

The training for route plotters was for an accurate trace of the paths as shown on the Ordnance Survey maps that we had access to online. These initial reviews are tests of the routes but later users should have no issues using a Slow Way. So it's important to check, is the route accurately plotted? It has been discussed before but it's worth repeating. If the route has not been reviewed it would be in your own interest to check with the OS map and any online map from the Highway Authority before starting the walk.

Do you have the skill to follow a printed map? Some paths are easy to follow if they are well maintained and or well used but in some cases stiles or gaps may be hidden in an overgrown hedge. There is little chance of success map reading unless you have the latest OS 1:25,000 which shows field boundaries. Don't be misled by locals who may have their own well walked paths. It's so easy to follow a well walked path to find it no longer agrees with your map.

You might think you are lost because you can't find a stile or gate. The general condition of the whole path should help you decide if you have gone wrong.  If there have been recognisable stiles along the way and you encounter a boundary with no crossing you might be lost. If others have got through you should be able to follow. Take a good look around the correct location stiles are sometimes slightly off the correct line. If it's a thick hedge could a stile be hidden?

The first reviewer is a trailblazer we need to help those who follow our review. So if there are issues and it's generally a good route please report the problem to the Highway Authority. If no one submits a report, nothing gets improved and the Slow Way has to take a different and perhaps longer way around the problem.

It's for you to decide how you follow a Slow Way but we have moved into the digital age and many routes will be followed using a GPS device. While these can assist with navigation they are only as good as the information supplied. So again it's vital that the plot is accurate. It's also important that the farmer or HA has provided the path along the route shown on the OS map and that occasionally is not the case so a report is necessary. A GPS device should also show you where you are, offering confidence that the path is obstructed You are not lost.