On Sunday, April 19, we will hold a special pairs event at Schenck Forest for orienteers at the ‘advanced’ or ‘expert’ level (i,e., able to complete an orange course on your own). You and your partner can start together any time between 10:00 AM and 1:00 PM, but be sure to be done by 2:30 when control pickup will begin. Note that Schenck Forest does not allow dogs, even if leashed.

Orienteering is typically a solitary sport. Relay events are ostensibly team events; however, they still involve an individual making and executing navigation decisions on their own. Similarly, even when a group of people orienteer together, it’s rare for one person to explicitly take directions from another. As a result of the sport’s focus on individual navigation, orienteers tend to have little practice with communicating spatial information in real time. This event will exercise these skills, forcing competitors to communicate navigational information with each other. Here are the basic rules:

1. You must compete in a team of two. The team member in the field who punches controls will be called ‘the runner’. The other team member instructs the runner where to go and is called ‘the instructor’. (We will allow instructors who are not advanced orienteers to participate; however, all runners must be advanced orienteers.) Although you will be competing in pairs, each team member must register separately. If you do not have a partner, please go ahead and register! Indicate that you’re a solo in your registration, and you will be paired with another solo on or before meet day.

2. There are four loops to the course that must be done in order. The first loop is 1km, the second 2km, the third 3km, and the fourth 4km. For pairs who prefer to not do point-to-point courses, there will be an ‘Explorer’ option in which you and your partner can acquire any or all controls in any order you choose.

3. All maps will be at a scale of 1:7500. The runner’s map for loop one will not show any vegetation, control circles or leg lines. The runner’s map for loop two will only show contour lines and foot trails (N.B., no vehicle tracks or roads). The runner’s map for loop three will only show contour lines. The runner will not have a map for loop four. (The runner for the Explorer course will not have a map.) The runner may carry a compass.

4. The instructor will have a map with all symbols and control descriptions for each loop that they instruct, but is not allowed to leave the clearing around the shelter. The instructor may use a compass.

5. The runner and the instructor can communicate in real time via cell phone or walkie talkie (not provided). Only voice and/or text is allowed (e.g., no GPS tracking, LiveLox, etc.)

6. Teams may decide to stop any time after the second loop. Stopping earlier will result in an ‘mp’.

7. The runner and the instructor may switch roles at the end of any loop, but they are not required to. Teams doing the Explorer course may switch roles at most once. Notes about how to execute the role switch will be provided at the start.

Please note that this is a brand new format for us, and questions are likely to arise that are not answered by these rules. Please send note for clarification to the event director (dw.orienteer@gmail.com). He will collate and edit these questions and, if necessary, send out an FAQ to all participants on Saturday morning.

We will have an OPEN event at Umstead Park (South) on Sunday, April 12, 2026. Please be sure to register by Friday, April 10th, at 6pm.

Take the N Harrison Avenue exit to the park entrance. Go to the main parking lot at the end of the road and follow the BOK signs. Registration and starts will be in the large picnic shelter to the north of the parking area.

The event starts at 10.30 am and everybody must finish by 2.30 PM.
We will have all regular courses from beginner to expert, White through Red. Advanced courses will have remote start (behind the creek). Red and Green courses will also have a remote finish (about 200m from the shelter).

Course distances are:

White – 2.0 km

Yellow – 2.2 km

Orange – 3.5 km

Brown – 4.1 km

Green – 5.7 km

Red – 7.2 km

If you are new to orienteering, we recommend that you check out these short videos to prepare for the event.

An Orienteering Class (Video 14:24) This class video includes the information in the following two videos:

An Orienteering Map Explained (Video 3:52)

An Orienteering Thumb Compass Explained (Video 1:26)

Register Here (Closed)

We will use Livelox so you can see your route on the map after the event along with everyone else on your course. This is great both because you can learn a lot about route choice, and fun to see how others’ choices affected their run. The easiest way to use Livelox is to download the Livelox app to your phone. Then, when you start open the app on your phone and click “Start Recording”. After the event, the event will be published on Livelox.com and you can select your “Class” which is the same as your course. Then you will be offered the event to choose so you can see your and everyone else’s routes. (You can also upload your route from your GPS watch.)

Help with control pick-up would be greatly appreciated.

Vladimir and Tatyana

Sunday was a beautiful spring day in North Carolina, and the rain a couple of days earlier meant there was less pollen to contend with. This park is slightly small for a 2-hour event, so for this event, we removed all of the trails and park roads, which significantly increased the navigation difficulty. In addition […]

Read More

Double-Up Score-O

Join us for a Score-O event at the New Hope Overlook section of Jordan Lake on Sunday March 29. In this event, your goal is to collect as many points as possible within the allotted time. There is no set route—you can visit the controls in any order you choose.

Registration is closed

Special Twist: “Double-Up” Controls
Some controls on the course will be designated as “double-up” controls, meaning their point values will double every 30 minutes. These will be denoted as “2x” on the control description.

Elapsed Time (in Min)	Value
0–29:59	1 point
30–59:59	2 points
60–89:89	4 points
90–120	8 points

Event Timing and Rules

• Map Handout starts at 10:00 and you can use as much time as you want to plan your route
• Start Time: Any time after 10:00 AM (but you must finish by 2:00)
• Time Limit: You have 2 hours from your start time or until 2:00 PM, whichever comes first.
• Maps will be printed at 1:10000 on an 8-1/2 x 14 (legal) sheet.
• Trails and access roads will NOT be printed on the map. Once you receive your map, you are not allowed to reference any other maps except those posted by the park on kiosks.
• Note that clearing the course will require you to get your feet wet.

Late Penalty
If you return after your 2-hour limit or after 2:00 PM, you will be penalized 3 points per minute, beginning immediately after the deadline.

Control pickup will begin promptly at 2:00, and help with pickup would be appreciated.

Registration will close at 9pm Friday, March 27.

There is no entrance fee required at the park.

Ruth and I would like to welcome you to our house adjacent to the Birkhead Wilderness Area in the Uwharrie National Forest for a weekend of Radio Orienteering and Classic Orienteering. Below is a registration button and details of the weekend plans.

Some of this information will change. Be sure to check back just before the event for the update.

When:

• Friday Noon – 10pm Apr. 3, 2026
  • Night-O 8:30pm – 10pm
• Saturday 9am – 10pm Apr. 4, 2026
  • Pizza Dinner Saturday at ~4:30
  • Night-O 8:30pm – 10pm
• Sunday 9am – 2pm Apr. 5, 2026
• Control Pickup Sunday 2-4pm
  • Any help is greatly appreciated. The orienteering controls are needed for the following week’s Umstead event.

Where:

• Asheboro, NC
• 1725 Gray Owl Road
• 35.6346680703153, -79.88024674672587
• Directions: There is a control on our mailbox at the intersection of Hopewell Friends and Gray Owl Road. Drive 1/4 mile on Gray Owl and take the first left turn onto our driveway. Drive 1/4 mile to the turnaround. Turn around and park only on the right side (east side) of the driveway as you are heading back out. Do not drive on the grass at all! Do not park in the turnaround!

Orienteering Courses

The expert courses have a 1km walk to the start and finish at the house.

• Explorer Beginner through Expert. Max 8k
  • The start and finish are at the house
  • The Explorer course consists of all the controls, beginner through expert. You take as many or as few of the controls as you like without a time limit. Just return before 4pm.
  • Beginner controls are 50-59
• Orange 3k Advanced
• Brown 3.6k Expert
• Green 5.3k Expert
• Red 6.7k Expert
• Blue 8.9k Expert
• Night
  • The Night course also includes all the controls, however there is a 1 hour time limit. You may start at or after 8:30 and must return by 10pm
  • The start and finish are at the house

Since Radio-O isn’t much fun if you know where the foxes are, you should do any radio-O courses before any Orienteering courses.

The Birkhead Hiking Challenge

This is a separate event piggy backing on the Gray Owl Weekend. You can check in and out and share the Pizza dinner Saturday evening (if you are back in time). You will need to download and print the PDF from a separate store product. Details are in this article. You do not need to register for the Gray Owl Weekend unless you intend to do one of the other courses.

Radio-O Courses

(Tentative Schedule subject to change)

Classic 80m

• 9am-3pm Fri, Sat, Sun
• 80m foxes 3.53
• Beacon 3.60
• 1k walk to start, finish at the house
• Distances
  • 5 foxes 4.7k
  • 4 Foxes 3.4k
  • 3 Foxes 2.5k

FoxO 

• 9am-1pm   Fri, Sat, Sun
• 1-2  – 3.55 MHz
• 3-5 – 3.57 MHz
• Beacon – 3.6 MHz
• Start and finish at the house
• Distances
  • 9 foxes 5.4k
  • 6 foxes 3.7k

Sprint

• 1pm-4pm   Fri, Sat, Sun
• Slow 3.55
• Fast 3.57
• Beacon & Spectator 3.60
• Start and finish at the house

Classic 2m

• 9am-3pm Sat 5.5k
• 1k walk to the start, finish at the house (different start from 80m)
• Distances
  • 5 foxes 5.7
  • 4 foxes 4.1k
  • 3 foxes 3.1k

LiveLox

• All the orienteering courses are in one event and the code is specific to your course.
• Each of the Radio-O courses is considered a separate event
• The radio-O LiveLox replay requires a password so you won’t accidently open them by mistake. You will get the code when you finish your radioO course.

Accomodations:

Event Directors: Joseph and Ruth

Resources for Beginners

Check out these videos. The first one is our 15 minute class. Then there are two short ones, one introducing an orienteering map, and the other how to use a Thumb Compass – which we can loan you to try out on your course.

• An Orienteering Class (Video 14:24)
• An Orienteering Map Explained (Video 3:52)
• An Orienteering Thumb Compass Explained (Video 1:26)

Event Notes

Map Notes

There are lots of controls out there considering everything is on one map, so be sure to check the code on the control to be sure it is on your course.

Non Standard Symbols

The trees were mapped years ago, and are flat on the ground and mostly wouldn’t all be mapped at this time. So you should ignore big trees on the ground with branches still up in the air.

Note the upper bridge symbol where there isn’t any trail or bridge. This indicates an area that may be easier to cross especially during low water.

Note the lower bridge symbol around fallen trees. This indicates that you can cross on the trees if you are brave. Make sure the logs aren’t slippery before you cross in them.

Controls in the woods:

You are likely to see controls out there that aren’t yours. Here is what is out there

• 80m foxes have regular controls with a diagonal blue stripe hanging with an ORANGE ribbon 181-185 3.560 MHz

• 2m foxes have regular controls with a diagonal blue stripe hanging with a PINK ribbon 121-125 144.50 MHz

• Orienteering controls have a vertical blue stripe

• Sprint controls are striped poles with an SI-box on top. No flag.

• FoxO controls are a black pole with an SI-box on top. No flag.