I am the Navigator!

Hello, friends! Today at the Civil Air Patrol was all about becoming a master navigator! No planes today, but we had a super fun time learning about maps and compasses. It's like being a treasure hunter or an explorer searching for new lands!

We started the day with Captain Collins teaching us about different kinds of maps. There are so many! We looked at topographic maps, road maps, and even nautical charts. Each type shows different things, like mountains and valleys, highways, or depths of the sea. Captain Ellis explained how people use these maps to find their way around, and now, we were going to learn the same!

We each got a compass and a map of our local park. Our mission? To find hidden markers based on clues and coordinates. It felt just like a treasure hunt! The compass was a bit confusing at first because it always points north, and I had to figure out which way was south, east, and west from there. But after a few tries, it started making more sense.

My team, which included Kollar and a couple of other kids from the program, worked together to find our first marker. We had to walk 300 steps north from the big oak tree near the playground. Counting the steps and making sure we were going straight was a challenge, but we did it! At the marker, we found a small box with a fake ELT (emergency locator transmitter). This leads me to believe that our next training could be at an army base with an actual ELT missing. 

We spent the rest of the morning hunting for more markers. Some were tricky and took a lot of thinking and teamwork. I really liked how everyone had ideas to contribute, and when we found each marker, we all cheered. By the end of the activity, I felt like a real explorer.

Back at home, I was still so pumped about the day that I decided to make a map of my own neighbourhood. I took some paper and coloured pencils and started drawing out the streets and houses around my block. I even marked my house with a big star. It wasn't as detailed as the maps we used today, but it was a good start, and my mom put it up on the fridge. She said she was proud of my map-making skills.

I kept my map and compass close by—just in case I wanted to go on another adventure around the house.

Today I learned that there are so many ways to explore the world, even from the ground. I can't wait to see what's next at CAP. Maybe we'll use our navigation skills in a real outdoor challenge!