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Family Fun with Orienteering this Holiday Season

As the holiday season sets in, it’s tempting to lounge indoors with the aircon cranked. But here’s a sizzling idea to shake things up: head outdoors with your family for some orienteering adventure. This thrilling, map-guided treasure hunt isn’t just a stroll in the veld; it’s a sun-soaked escapade that strengthens bonds, supercharges your health, and crafts memories brighter than a Highveld sunset.

Time spent outdoors drops stress levels and amps up endorphins, making those family feasts feel like a celebration, not a chore. On the fitness front, it’s a sneaky calorie-torcher amid the bobotie and malva pudding indulgences, while that glorious sunshine floods you with vitamin D to keep energy soaring through the long, lazy days.

The family twist? In our always-on world, orienteering swaps screens for sweat and strategy. Forget doom-scrolling; dive into giggles over a wonky compass or high-fives at a hidden viewpoint. It’s for everyone, from little ones chasing clues to oumas and oupas dishing out bushcraft wisdom, turning holiday downtime into dynamic playtime.

Orienteering blends navigation smarts with a dash of exploration: armed with a map and compass you hit checkpoints across a game reserve, urban park, or coastal path. It’s wallet-friendly (snag a compass for R150 or less) and easy to find, check out events from Orienteering South Africa or apps tailored for local spots like Table Mountain or the Drakensberg trails.

The perks:

•  Brain Boost: Mapping routes sharpens decision-making and self-assurance, perfect for outsmarting holiday haze.

•  Body Buzz: It’s energizing yet chill; 30-60 minutes ticks off those daily movement goals from the Heart Foundation.

•  Heartfelt Ties: Conquering controls together sparks joy, gratitude, and stories that’ll echo around the campfire for years.

This festive season, wrap your crew in the ultimate gift: unfiltered time in the outdoors and  revived spirits. Orienteering isn’t merely an outing; it’s a nod that the greatest joys unfold side by side beneath the big blue African sky. What’s holding you back? Slip on those takkies and plot your path – the wild awaits!

Discover South Africa Like Never Before: Orienteering Adventures in Our Stunning Land

Imagine trading the hum of city streets for the whisper of wind through ancient fynbos, the crunch of gravel underfoot on a rugged escarpment, or the distant call of a klipspringer echoing off dramatic cliffs. Orienteering is not just a sport, it unlocks a gateway to South Africa’s soul. 

South Africa is a country of contrasts, where deserts kiss oceans, mountains pierce the clouds, and savannas stretch like golden oceans under endless skies. But how do you truly experience it all?

Picture this: You’re in the heart of the Western Cape, starting from the misty slopes of Table Mountain. As you orient your map to the north, the city’s iconic flat-topped giant looms ahead, its cable car silhouette fading into the distance. But instead of queuing for a ride up, you veer off-trail. You scramble through protea-lined paths, dodging granite boulders and pausing to catch glimpses of Cape Town’s glittering harbor far below. Each control point – a flagged marker hidden in a ravine or atop a viewpoint – reveals a new layer of the landscape, from the aromatic scrub of the Cape Floral Kingdom (one of the world’s six floral hotspots) to secret viewpoints where the Atlantic meets the sky.

What sets South African orienteering apart? Our terrain isn’t cookie-cutter countryside; it’s a playground of geological wonders shaped by eons of fire, flood, and tectonic drama. From the knife-edge ridges of the Drakensberg to the undulating dunes of the Kalahari, every region offers a masterclass in natural diversity, and a workout for your map-reading muscles.

Take the Eastern Cape’s rugged Wild Coast, for instance. Here, orienteering means bushwhacking through subtropical thickets where ancient shipwrecks rust on jagged shores. You’ll ford rivers that carve dramatic gorges, scale cliffs alive with seabirds, and emerge onto beaches where humpback whales breach just offshore. The terrain demands respect: slippery kelp beds, sudden sinkholes from limestone caves, and winds that whip off the Indian Ocean like a siren’s call. But conquer it, and you’ll uncover tidal pools teeming with starfish or Xhosa villages where locals share stories over fresh-roasted mealies.

Head inland to the Highveld grasslands, and the challenge shifts to open-visibility navigation across rolling plains dotted with acacia thorns and termite mounds. In the Free State, our events hug the golden wheat fields and sandstone koppies, where antelope herds scatter like living brushstrokes on a canvas. It’s here that orienteering teaches humility, vast skies make distances deceptive, and a single misplaced bearing can turn a straight shot into a scenic detour through a hidden vlei bursting with wildflowers.

Even in arid Northern Cape, where the Richtersveld’s volcanic badlands glow like Martian outcrops, we stage moonlit events. Navigate by starlight across quiver tree forests and quiverboard plains, feeling the pulse of the Gariep (Orange) River carving canyons deeper than the Grand. South Africa’s terrains aren’t just backdrops; they’re co-pilots in your journey, each twist and turn revealing why we’re called the Rainbow Nation – layers upon layers of color, texture, and surprise.

Beyond the sweat and strategy, orienteering in South Africa is a love letter to our beautiful land. It’s the dawn light gilding the Augrabies Falls in a prism of spray, or the bioluminescent waves crashing under a full moon on the Garden Route.

In the end, orienteering isn’t just about finding your way – it’s about finding yourself amid South Africa’s boundless beauty. Try orienteering – the map is yours; the adventure, eternal. What’s your next bearing?

Enter our Treasure Hike at Made on Earth Hiking Trails

ENTER HERE

The Treasure Hike is a “points score event” where you walk, hike or run to find as many checkpoints around Made on Earth Hiking Trails in 180 minutes. There is no prescribed route, and you can visit the checkpoints in any order. The aim is to score as many points as possible in the allotted time. This requires you to judge the best route that makes it possible for you to amass points within your time scale and range of fitness and navigational skills.

THE MAP

Use that time to plan your optimum route to obtain the maximum number of points in the time you have available. The map is a specially surveyed and drawn orienteering map drawn to inter standards.

The scale of the map is 1:15,000 This means 1cm on the map represents 100m on the ground.

The contour interval is five metres. The map size is A4 (210 x 297mm). Each person will receive a map.

The checkpoint descriptions are on a separate piece of paper – these indicate the feature and, if appropriate where on the feature, the checkpoint is located.

HOW THE EVENT WORKS

Thirty (30) orange and white checkpoint markers (30 x 30 cm flags, kites) have been set out in the terrain on topographical features which are explained on the checkpoint description sheet. The checkpoint feature e.g., significant tree, embankment, or vegetation boundary, is in the middle of the circle on the map. The checkpoints are not hidden and should be visible from several meters away. Each kite will be hanging or close by the feature. Each kite has a number and a red punch. When you arrive at a checkpoint, use your punch to punch a unique pattern in the block corresponding to the number on the kite. Punch once firmly to ensure you make a pattern on your card.

The start point is at the south side of the parking and is marked as a triangle on the map. The finish is at the bottom of the entrance road to Made On Earth and is a double circle. Each circle on the map shows the number of the checkpoint and the points value for that checkpoint in the format 5/20 where 5 is the checkpoint number and 20 the points value. Checkpoints 1-10 are worth ten points each, checkpoints 11-20 are worth twenty points each and checkpoints 21-30 are worth thirty points each.

The aim is to ‘score’ as many points as you can in the time you have available. Plan your route to maximise the number of points you score not just the number of checkpoints you visit. The further away from the start and finish the more points the checkpoint is worth.

Ensure that you leave enough time to get back to the finish within your allocated time. For every minute that you exceed your time limit, you will be penalised ten points. So, if you are 15 minutes late you lose 150 points. It is possible to end up with a score of negative points!

IMPORTANT NOTES: 

There is no water out on the course. Please take your own water.

EMERGENCY NUMBERS:

Note that cell phone reception is very bad in the area and you may not get through to Made on Earth immediately.  

Avi (071) 310-8678

Richard Lund(082) 521-0802

PRIZEGIVING 

The prize giving for all events will take place at 11h30 or as soon as possible thereafter. There are prizes for first, second and third place. We will give away the remaining prizes in a lucky draw. You must be here to win the lucky draw prizes. If you are not here, we will draw again.

What is Orienteering?

Orienteering involves navigating on foot around an urban or countryside area. The aim is to find marked checkpoints using a map, compass and initiative. Orienteering is fun and is well suited to those with a competitive spirit. You can orienteer as an individual or in a team.

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Orienteering has many different merits.

  • Orienteering is a sport that combines physical and mental abilities.
  • Some participants are very competitive while other enjoy getting outside and walking and thinking.
  • We orienteer in amazing places like forests, open koppies, sand dunes but also on the streets in our suburbs, in our city parks and schools.
  • It is for all ages; our members range from 8 to 80.
  • We do it outdoors in fresh air away from your phone, TV and computer.
  • It keeps the mind active through problem solving.
  • It teaches kids self-reliance.

Events

Companies and Groups

O-Ventures offers fun, stimulating and challenging activities designed specifically for ‘Team Building days’, ‘Away Days’ or just a fun team day out of the office. Our events are fun and combine teamwork, communication, co-operation, trust and initiative.

We tailor our activities to meet your requirements, time constraints and budget and work with you to set up a relevant package suited to your group. We can cater for groups of any size regardless of age, ability or fitness. Our assistants are experienced orienteers.

We offer a range of locations in Gauteng mostly in city parks such as Johannesburg Zoo, Delta Park, Golden Harvest and Emmarentia.

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Schools Orienteering

Courses for Children

O-Ventures run orienteering events for classes fitting in a 45-minute period. They comprise a ten-minute overview of orienteering in the classroom and a twenty to thirty-minute orienteering event on the school property. 

Our Outdoor Education programmes help to enrich the lives of young people by giving them new experiences and a real sense of achievement.

Training for Teachers

We offer courses in orienteering that are a combination of class and practical elements. We:

  • Provide teachers with the knowledge, skills and confidence in the basics of map reading and navigation
  • Give LO and Geography teachers practical examples of how they can bring map reading and orienteering alive
  • Show sports teachers the benefit of orienteering for learners especially those who are not interested in mainstream sports
  • Equip- – people with the skills to coach orienteering in line with the SA Orienteering Federation’s developmental goals. We want to introduce more schools to the sport of orienteering.  We wish to make orienteering an enjoyable experience for those taking part.  And we know that increased enjoyment comes with increased skill levels.

Mapping

We map schools, parks and outdoor centres based on an international standard. We can map your school for free using aerial images as part of the Schools Mapping Project. However, we charge a fee for an accurate map where we need at least one site visit.