Your time, your pace, your adventure
Jogging round a Permanent Orienteering Course (POC) is the perfect way to get active, enjoying the scenery and green spaces with your family, or a chance to get outdoors for a competitive challenge! The combination of physical and mental exercise often in stunning locations is like no other, as you can find, navigate and complete courses at any time, at your own pace. A Permanent Orienteering Course is a set of posts (
controls) spread around a woodland or a park, together with a map showing where they all are. Posts are usually on obvious features such as path junctions and fence corners. Your challenge is to discover these controls, following a route drawn on the map. Each post or control will have a number and a unique letter on it. Controls should be visited in the order shown on the map. Match the control code with that shown on your map, and note down the the matching letter as proof you’ve been there. Navigation around a course is a great fun - you can run, jog or walk between controls from the start to the finish. Courses are graded from easier and shorter (Yellow) to longer and more challenging (Light Green).
Moravian Orienteering Club have Permanent Orienteering Courses at the followwing locations in Moray:
Quarry Wood, near Elgin, supported by Forestry & Land Scotland
Brodie Castle, near Forres, supported by the National Trust for Scotland
Cooper Park, Elgin, supported by Moray Council under development, Summer 2025
Cluny Hill, Forres, supported by Moray Council, Forres Footpaths Trust and Forres Heritage Trust. Under development, Summer 2025
The equipment you need: a map with your course marked on it. You can download to view on screen or, if you prefer, print off the map(s) from either the web links above for each course or from the British Orienteering website (www.goorienteering.org.uk/), where you will find more information about permanent courses in the local area; a pen or pencil; a compass is optional but recommended. Do you have one on your mobile phone? Suitable clothing for the day, and maybe something to drink.
Go Orienteering
If you are visiting other parts of Scotland or elsewhere in the UK on holiday, you can check out the location of other Permanent Courses by visiting the British Orienteering ‘Go Orienteering’ webpage, where you can find maps and information about courses in your area.