Originally Posted by danlikesbikes
Yeah I mean I am not worried I won't find the west coast or anything, I just want to practice my mountaineering and orientation and map reading , rate of ascent, etc. skills and this seems like a fun opportunity. I'm starting up studies in Geology (GeoChemistry @ SUNY New Paltz) in the fall and want to start building up my ranger skillz.
It might be fun to tinker with map and compass skills while on tour. Taking bearings on distant landmarks and finding your position on the map is a fun exercise that I have used only on a boat. There is no reason you couldn't do all kinds of interesting stuff with a compass on tour. It just isn't all that useful for actually finding your way when you have on the road.
BTW: We may possibly be moving our departure up to Memorial Day weekend. When did you say you were leaving? If we leave early enough we will keep an eye open for your group.