General Info

The club has installed permanent courses in Durand Eastman, Mendon Ponds, Webster County Parks, and Letchworth State Park. These courses use posts as controls, instead of flags, that remain in place year-round. Not being a timed event, the courses may be completed at any pace over several visits to the park. They are a great way to learn (or teach) the basics of orienteering and also explore areas of the park not normally visited. Children enjoy the courses too and are thrilled to be the first to see a control while adults find this leisurely approach a good way to develop their skills.

Each course has 24 controls of varying degrees of difficulty that are identified with the control number and a code letter. The control code-letter must be written in the corresponding box on the "punch card" as proof of finding the control. The punch card, when completed, may be mailed to the club for recognition and an award.

The permanent course kits consist of a detailed orienteering map with the control locations marked, an instruction sheet with clues, and a punch card. The kits are available at all club events, and at The Map Shop (45 Schoen Place, Pittsford, NY 14534, 585-385-5850). Letchworth kits are available through Friends of Letchworth at the park office, 585-493-3600. Mendon kits are available through Wild Wings, 585-334-7790, in Mendon Ponds Park.

If you have questions about the permanent courses, contact Nancy & Richard Burgey, the permanent course coordinator.

GPS Option for the Permanent Courses

For those who want to use their GPS in connection with orienteering, we have recorded the location of each of the controls on the Durand, Letchworth, Mendon (old course only), and Webster courses. You can obtain the coordinates of the controls along with the instruction sheet and punch card from the links below. However, we strongly suggest that you might find the course more enjoyable if you purchase a permanent course kit as mentioned above since it contains the detailed orienteering maps with the controls clearly identified.

Currently the award for finishing the permanent course is available only for those who use a map, compass, and traditional orienteering skills. There is no award for those who complete the course with a GPS, other than the satisfaction of a job well done! You should still feel free to mail in your completed course punch card with an indication that you used a GPS. That way we can track the usage of the courses

If you have any questions about the GPS aspects of our permanent courses, you can contact Mike Gallagher, our GPS coordinator.

Detailed Information on the Available Courses

Letchworth State Park
       Instructions and Punch Card (PDF)
       GPS Coordinates (Printable)
       GPS Coordinates (Downloadable for Easy/Expert GPS)
Mendon Ponds Park
       Instructions and Punch Card (PDF)
       GPS Coordinates (Printable)
       GPS Coordinates (Downloadable for Easy/Expert GPS)
Webster Park
       Instructions and Punch Card (PDF)
       GPS Coordinates (Printable)
       GPS Coordinates (Downloadable for Easy/Expert GPS)