“Jesus, that’s Jason Bourne.” That quote from the popular Robert Ludlum series has become a derogatory smear online when someone makes a comment about “gray man” or “op sec” or “non-permissive environments”. It seems like everyone is a secret agent these days or trains with someone who was making them cool by association. I get it, there are some practical habits Bourne brings up throughout the series including where to look in a house for firearms and keeping a vehicle in good working order. Something that gets me some odd looks in land navigation classes is the concept of “Map Recon”. I’m far from a veteran as I have never served in the military but this practice is one my late mentor (who was a Vietnam Vet and Army Survival Instructor) taught me. Map recon, also known as scouting, can help you get an idea of the terrain you’ll be traveling to before you actually step foot on the ground. Anyone, Jason Bourne included, can use this practice and should use this practice to improve your readiness and survivability.
Map Types
Map recon requires understanding of how to read maps. You can learn this by taking one of our land navigation courses or by reading great books like Essential Wilderness Navigation by our good friend Craig Caudill. It makes sense to use multiple maps with different layouts to get the best picture of where you will be. Topographic maps will show elevation and relief while satellite image maps may pick up on little details topo maps may not. Keep in mind, maps are not seasonal and what may be represented on a map (like a creek) could be dried out if you try to find it in the middle of the summer. Additionally there are some online programs that may have more revisions to the maps used electronically than appear in print copies. I would recommend using a variety of maps and looking for any anomalies like manmade features that appear one place and not anywhere else. Pay attention to those and see if they are consistent across the maps or if they are just an outlier that could be a misprint.
Terrain Features
In my land navigation classes, I teach students to look for the superlatives when doing map recon. Look for the largest body of water as it will likely not be affected by seasonal change. Look for the tallest feature as you may likely spot it before anything else. Look for the biggest, widest, longest, etc. etc. because we like to think in superlatives. Looking at a map, learn to identify the most likely path someone would take to enter an area as well as the most likely path out. Learn to recognize unlikely paths (ingress points) as well as inconvenient ways out (egress). This can help you determine what areas in the backcountry are going to have the most traffic, depleted resources, and privacy. Another very important map scouting/map recon practice is looking for deltas or changes. This can be a change in elevation like cliffs or steep trails as well as changes from forest to wetland. It is also important to note changes to the roads you travel on. How many times have you been given instructions “when the pavement ends..”. These points can become catch points for later navigation use.
Emergency Azimuths
The expression “hope for the best and plan for the worst” reinforces the idea of emergency azimuths. If you travel to a remote campground, incredible fishing hole, or other notable destination, what direction would you turn and move toward to get out of there quickly? Do you head in an easterly direction? Head westernly? The only way to know the best course direction is to know your emergency azimuth. These bearings can lead you to safety or to a rally point where other members of your party will meet up with you. They can be predetermined to help you find a ranger station where emergency medical treatment can be provided or they can take you to the most abundant water source.
Good Tools
An absolutely true statement for map recon is the use of good tools makes your job that much easier. A map scale ruler will help you take accurate measurements on your map that can be recorded on Rite-in-Rain paper. This tool isn’t necessary if you know the string or paper edge technique but it is also very accurate. Another great tool for map recon is lamination and wet-erase markers. You can augment your map with symbols, directions, and notes without having to worry about the ink wiping off. We recommend you take a photo of your map before you store it away just to have a backup copy somewhere. Another excellent tool that is used to both verify location when you are lost and record locations when you want to chart them later is a simple wrist-mounted GPS. I use a Garmin Foretrex 601 and only intermittently. There are times when you will want to use it to track the distance you’ve traveled but it really excels at giving you your precise UTM or MGRS coordinates down to a 1m by 1m square. Being able to remove uncertainty in your travel is extremely important to your safety and these tools are worth their weight in gold in terms of saving you time, money, and energy.
Universals
Even though I threw a jab at all the Jason Bourne wannabes at the beginning of this blog, I have to say, there are good universal habits you can adopt that he would probably know too. Scouting maps and relying on maps can be done in the backcountry or it can be done by ripping off a building map in an embassy as you are trying to escape. How else would you know to use the gutter to get to the ground level? In all seriousness, you should practice map recon whenever you can. Learn cardinal directions and points of reference on hotel grounds when you travel. If you own property or have access to a plot of and, recon it in person and on a map. Get in as many reps as you can and learn to make the process automatic. Maybe then you will be as cool as Bourne when he debriefed Marie in the diner.