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Orienteering means maps, varied terrain and adventure. It doesn't matter how young or old or fit you are. You can run, jog or walk, you decide your own pace. Orienteering is a sport where competitors navigate their way between control points marked on a specially drawn map.

Orienteering can take place anywhere from remote forest and countryside to urban parks and school playgrounds. The most challenging orienteering takes place in remote areas which have demanding terrain and fewer paths.

Orienteering can be a leisure activity. It is an easy, painless way of staying fit or getting into shape. A great day out to take up with friends and family, allowing you to share your adventures afterwards. At the competitive and elite level Orienteering is a highly competitive sport involving intense concentration, skill and fitness running against the best in the world at international competitions.

Orienteering is a perfect outdoor activity for children - with the family and friends, or through schools, scouts and other groups. It has challenging courses for all ages and abilities, and can be used as an element in the National Curriculum for PE, Geography and Mathematics.

Orienteering is competitive navigation on foot. With the aid of a map and a compass competitors find their own way as accurately as they can between given check points (known as controls) using their skill to choose the best route. Courses varies in length from under 2km with 6 to 10 controls for beginners, to over 15km for elite adult orienteers. For more information on orienteering have a look at the Berkshire Orienteers website - http://www.bko.org.uk/ - who helped us with the Langley Park Orienteering Trail launch.

Langley Park currently has a choice of 2 courses to cater for beginners (both young and old), and the experienced orienteer. The first is around one and a quarter miles, the second around two miles. It takes you on a lovely walk through the beautiful park (at present full of stunning colours and flowers - particularly the famous Rhododendrons).

We provide you with a map, and detailed instructions. Each of the controls has a post at their respective places within Langley Park, with the control symbol (a square split diagonally in red and white - see last picture below) at the top. The control symbol contains a number and a letter, the number represents the control number and the letter represents the control code which should be copied into the appropriate box at the bottom of the map. The starting point is at the top end of Langley Park car park beside the Pay & Display machine and the start of the Avenue of Friendship. Once all the letters are identified they spell out words related to the park. The short course spells out two words of six letters and four letters related to the park, and the long course spells out a seven letter and a four letter place name. The answers can be found by clicking here.

The launch of our orienteering trail was on 12th May 2007 and was very successful. We had professional orienteers, as well as complete beginners, families and dog walkers.

The trail is now open all the time. Just pick up a map, instructions and holder, and compass if required (all for a small fee) from Black Park offices, by contacting us on the email address or phone number below, or online by paying below and they will be posted to you.

We would like to encourage as many people to come along as possible to try it out, including groups, schools, scouts and guides, etc. Please tell all your friends and family and bring them along for a fun, interesting day out.

Below are pictures of the launch - Peter the professional orienteering signing up; Rob, Maurice and Chris posing by the start post; Chris the Chairman of Friends of Langley Park at the information desk (with Jethro our mascot on his shoulder); Peter just about to start the course; and Tansie with the orienteering map.

17 six foot posts had to be in place at Langley Park for the orienteering trail to begin. Below are pictures of the oak posts being erected. The conservation volunteers, along with Head Ranger Steve Heywood, had the enjoyable task of digging holes 3 feet deep - very hard work in places due to stones, flint, bricks and roots being in the way. The oak posts were cut from a fallen oak tree by the car park earlier in the year, with a sawmill brought in to do the job - pictures of the whole process can be found on the Photos page.

Many thanks to our funders: BAA Heathrow Environment Awards in Association with Groundwork.