Map replacement

After a good many years of service it is time to replace my OS 1:25000 series Dartmoor map.

Perhaps for some this is a matter of the totally mundane, not for me.

While it is not exactly seismic even for me, its not a five minute decision either.

The process could have a legitimate claim to have started two years ago when I first considered replacing the map.  From an informational point of view there was no reason;  things don’t change too dramatically and the progression of magnetic north has not been that astonishing.

The reason for change was the map was beginning to get “tatty”.  Areas of it had got wet and the crease lines where it folds were fraying.  There were also various areas of the map which were shaded various non-standard colours.  The colours represented bits of  meals which had sustained me along various routes.

Despite the map getting wet, it had dried pretty successfully and the folds were reinforced with micropore tape (significantly better than sellotape for this purpose).

The simple truth is the map had become part of the experience and its state represented no real danger to my safety.  The dog prints, the food stains, the rain, the fraying edges added to the fabric, it did not detract.

So the map limped on for another year, and then another.  While it is not used everyday in the field, the weeks of the year it does get an outing it gets a significant work out.

Oddly the decision to change the map was not based on the fact it was wearing out and becoming likely to fail me at a crucial moment.  It was based on the fact as a document it had become more than the sum of its parts.  It was no longer a map of Dartmoor, but a map of MY adventures on Dartmoor. 

Irreplaceable if lost, so time to replace it.

So the decision has been made, a new map is required.

Ideally I would buy a map at the location it represents, ie Dartmoor.  It would be “of the place”.  But it would potentially mean a restriction in choice and price. 

I cannot imagine a situation where I could not find one for sale, but equally the ramifications of that would be significant enough even an insignificant possibility is to be avoided.

The most significant disadvantage would be the lack of time to get to know my new map.

In truth given my location, online is the purchase choice, and this tends to be ebay, for better or worse.

25000 series or 50000 series?

25000, its the walking series, it is what I am doing.  Although the 50000 series does have logistical advantages to my mind, notably, more land shown in any given bit of paper.

OS or another producer of maps.

Again really a no-brainer for me, I grew up with OS, it is what I know.

The final decision was waterproof or not, and if waterproofing, what type.  I have heard tell of various potions and incantations you can add to paper based maps which will make them impervious to water.  There would be a weight saving to this method, but I decided against it because if I am that determined to save weight, I will cut my shoelaces a bit shorter, or simply miss a meal. 

The real reasons:

The first being it would still not be wind-resistant, while the wind has never torn a map to shreds in my hands, there is the possibility.

Related to this my old map failed me at the creases, I imagine the waterproof OS series is less likely to give me this problem.

Finally I like the idea of being able to draw upon my OS map with a waterbased pen.  It makes route planning a good deal easier.

The map is bought, but there are downsides.  It is heavier, it does not fold so flat and I suspect the increased strength of the creases mean bending the map to my will is going to be significantly more tricky.  Finally this map is just not going to age in the same way my old paper map did, it seems unlikely to gather character. 

Functionally I believe this is a more robust map, and it has reduced the chances of wind – rain destruction, which given its Dartmoor is no bad idea.

My old map gets hung up on the wall, it deserves the retirement and it is great to just let my eye wander over the landscape I know so well while running the movie of various walks on the big screen in my head.