I recently bought a topo map for an hike. It's pretty big since I got it at a scale that wouldn't require that I change into reading glasses to use. I had intended to fold down the map to just the area I'm in for any particular hike I'm on. I've run into a smallish glitch. The map coordinates are printed on the top/bottom/sides and are not visible once folded back. Does anyone have a slick method to temporarily add them to the working section? I've been thinking along the lines of some kind of clear tape ( something akin to painters tape )and with a sharpie mark the numbers on the tape, and attach it to the section perimeter, probably slip the works into a map protection sleeve ... Afterwards the tape is removed and re attached to the section thats being next explored. now, I'm sure others have run into the same problem AND have come up with a much more elegant solution.

Just an idea - why not mark directly on a clear sheet protector, and slip the map in, folded to reveal the right section of course.

Why do you need coordinates?

That's what I was wondering when I read the OP last night. I have left them on the map if I trimmed the margins, but I never pay attention to them.

I've given up trimming margins, though. I now scan/photocopy original maps so I only take the copy section I need for the specific trip, while the original stays more or less pristine. This also can solve the problem of routes that cross from one map to the other--just scan the two portions together.

in the past I've mostly hiked solo with little more than a loose description of any hike. last year I was approached by two people who want to do a hike that I did solo last year. this hike is from the desert floor in palm springs up to the upper tram station ( over 8k foot elevation gain- in about 10 miles.) this trail doesn't appear on any of the topo charts and if asked of any local rangers about it, they won't revel any information about the route. the best you'll get is "you'll have to figure it out for yourself" ..anyway this'll be the first time we hike together. fwiw, I judge 'em as being up to this hike. but one never really knows. so I think the ability to point to a position on a map and say "we are here" will go a long way towards keeping everyone up to date and anxiety low. I intend to get position coordinates from my gps and locate 'em on the topo. could probably use this opportunity to renew, my own rusty map reading skills as well. my theory is,if the other members are informed as to position they can feel more comfortable participation in any trail decisions that might have to be made. after all I chafe at the though of being a tour guide

Well, I can understand using the GPS as a crutch to find your position. There is nothing wrong with that.

If I were doing it with a GPS, I'd do it differently. I'd mark locations on the map during planning and record the coordinates. I's save each of these as a waypoint on the GPS. On the trail, I'd find a bearing and distance to that waypoint. If you use the USGS site to plan your route, I think you can hover over a point and find the coordinates.

I seldom bring a GPS backpacking. If the trail is unfamiliar, I microplan the route and navigate with a combination of the compass and the map.

I agree with not using GPS on trail. I had one never took it out of my pocket on trail and just got annoyed with the loss of pocket space , lost it never cared to replace it.

However what I was always tought, growing up and in military land-nav courses is to use a pencil so you can erase and then to make lines for grids if you need or coordinates I guess. Use a yardstick/ ruler and your pencil as well. We marked the crap outsome maps before just erase after trip and they look pretty ok

If you scan/photocopy the piece of map you need for a specific trip, you can always write in what you want without spoiling the original map. There's also a LOT less bulk and folding involved, which was really the original question.

If you do this, though, be sure to include the bail-out points, especially for long hikes! You never know! I've had to do this only twice in a long lifetime, but that was enough.

If your GPS has a topo map built in you can just reference the elevation contour lines from that to your topo map.

If you have a clear view of the distant peaks, ridges, and canyons around you should be able to triangulate your position on a topo map with just a compass and a straight edge pretty dead on according to what you see. If you're not sure how to do that I'm pretty sure we can find some explanations, and there's probably a youtube video.

This takes some practice and paying attention, but if you're in a creek bed or canyon, or wash, (pretty much all the same thing) you can locate your position by keeping track of the bends in the bottom and reference your map according to what you see.

None of those methods need the tick marks on the edges of your map.

But I agree with Gershon, if you're not sure how to pinpoint your location on a topo map making a pre-hike and recording the track and setting some waypoints with your GPS is probably a good idea because you can transfer those to your printed map before your trip.

an small update is in order here.... after reading the reply's, I thought that photo copying sounded like the best idea....yesterday I stopped by the local shipping store and had the topo copied. and when they were done, I found myself wondering why I had even bothered at all .. the resulting copy was mess..too blurred to be of any practical use. ( I lack the equipment to scan and print at home) so I though I'd at least get some way points collected and at least enter 'em into the gps...guess again waldo, the gps apparently is so old that the software no longer can communicate with the unit (Magellan Meridian yellow- circa 2001- for the record, it's never been in my pack.)I think I can still get accurate position reports, though. so will most likely go with my org plan, using 4ever's suggestion for the coordinates. the last few days I've spent a lot of time on goggle earth, reviewing the trail, and collecting waypoints and looking for bail out spots-----there's doesn't appear to be any reasonable places to exit this trail. no trail crosses this one except for one that does so within the first 1/2 mile.. and the same at about 1/4 mile from the other end.( I there's two "emergency stations" that contain first aid supplies, water, and a cell phone) steep canyon walls, that present more of a challenge than simply staying on that trail. aside from the "point of no return", of course. in my research I have found a picture of a topo map with the trail drawn over it. the accuracy could be questioned...but something more than I had before. from time to time I get asked about this and some other hikes..if the asker is really interested in the hike, it's nice to be able to give accurate locations of features on a trail...that's about the only reason I would carry one into the field.something fairly easy to do on an posted trail, pretty hard to do with a trail that doesn't appear on any topo

I use Topo or other mapping software and print 8 1/2 x 11 sections of where I'll be. (there are online sources too) The coordinates are on every page, as are grid lines and such. I don't bother water-proofing. A paper towel tube or florescent light protector tube serves as my map container. Just mark your route in advance and number the pages in the order the route progresses. And....I rarely ever look at coordinates and never carry a GPS. If visibility is good, a compass will orient the map and you should be able to put yourself on the trail with landmarks. I have carried an altimeter to help put me on the map visibility is bad.

ok, I'll have to be the first to admit I must be missing something in this discussion. the subject trail exists. I've been on it a number of times, finished it once- and at that time I didn't carry a gps, so a track log of the trail was not created. no position fixes, either. it does not appear on any topo map. how does one mark a route onto a topo, under those circumstances?(I'm not worried about navigating this trail for myself, so what would it serve? since I'll be hiking it again this Jan. taking a gps seems like a rather pleasant way of creating a track log. later to be used as "trail notes" for interested friends.

It seems to me that hiking the trail with a GPS, as you described, and getting a track log might be the most straightforward method

You can download topo maps from the USGS Map Store for free.

They come in the PDF format and you can copy the part you want and save it as a PDF file. You can take those to a Kinkos or UPS store and they'll print them for you and they should come out very nice.

Your original question was how to fold a map so the coordinates still show. I responded with printing several smaller maps. That the trail isn't on any map wasn't what you were asking.
So, three solutions:
1. the old fashion way....map, compass/pocket transit, altimeter, and plot the trail as you hike.
2. GPS and track log, print to a topo map via software.
3. Zoom in with Google Earth and see if the trail shows up in the satellite photos. Print, go hike. This is how I find little known off-map trails. You can do this with your iPhone.

What purpose would a map serve, you having already hiked the trail....don't know.

Okay, I'm going to offer a more detailed answer that focuses on that question, but the short answer is you do that from memory.

Here are some details...

In practice you need to be able to read a topo map and recall the route you took and then draw it on the map. You'll just have to estimate the route and elevations as best you can.

The real trick to doing that with any degree of accuracy is paying close attention to the main ridges, the main hollows between them, and all the smaller cuts along them that lead from the main hollows to the main ridges while you're hiking through them.

You need to be aware those features on each side of the ridges or valleys as you travel no matter if you're mainly on a ridge or in a valley, or anywhere on the side of a mountain. You have to count them as you go. Some of them may even have names, and those that don't you can name for your own use if you want.

Generally speaking this is called "reading the lay of the land". I don't mean that to be a wisecrack, I say it to differentiate between formal navigation and the less formal getting around without getting lost.

For example, if the trail heads along the bottom of a main valley there will be a main ridge on each side of it. As you head up the main valley there will be smaller valleys, or "cuts" in the main ridges that shed water into the main valley. A trail heading to the top of a mountain from a valley will generally, at some point, leave the main valley and start up towards a ridge on one or the other side of the valley. If you count the number of cuts before it heads up and compare that with your topo maps and you'll be able to locate yourself pretty accurately. Keep doing that as you climb, and estimate how far up or down you've went, and you'll still be able to locate yourself on a map.

I looked at the topo maps and satellite photos for where you're going and those are some big land features your hiking. There are big ridges and big valleys and big cuts. You'll almost always know exactly where you are on a topo map if you've paid close attention to the lay of the land there.

If I were you, just for grins, I'd print a map now and draw the trail on it where I think it is, then when you hike the trail again record your track with a GPS, or draw it on the map again, and compare the two routes. If you really put your mind to it you might do better than you may think. And even if you know that you really don't have a clue where to draw the trail it should be fun to take a crack at guessing.

I hope this helps.

That depends on what you really know. If your best clue that you're heading where you want to go is that you're still on a trail you could get lost pretty easy.

That happens a lot. Knowing where you are on a topo map with no GPS or trail to follow is a very good thing, especially where you're heading. That area can be pretty harsh anytime of year.

One of the things I do to assure everyone they're not lost when I'm leading a group like you is to point out features along the route to everyone with me. I make a point to stop and make sure they all see it. I try to point out things that will be easy for them to remember. Rock formations, fallen tress, even a piece of trash or some other man made mark.

Another thing I do on the way in is to make sure they stop and look at the view behind them so they'll recognize it on the way back out. In my experience that's when newbies get nervous about being lost because nothing looks familiar to them. Of course nothing looks familiar if they never looked back at where they came from! Seeing that fallen tree or piece of trash you pointed out on the way in makes all the difference in the world.

BTW, that's a really sweet area and I'd love to see some photos from your hike there. It'd be great if you'd post a trip report. I've driven by there several times, but never hiked that area at all.

For what it's worth, I did zoom in on his hiking area using Google maps, satellite view, and all trails/roads stand out nice and bright. Plus, there is a cell tower in the view, so he could use phone maps and probably be fine. Even track the route with the phone.
I've found this method very handy. I ride a dualsport motorcycle and sometimes look for unmapped trails and dirt roads. The satellite view is very revealing for that.

home again and a small up date is in order.....I went down on a few weeks worth of vacation. Immediately launched into getting back in shape. after a few days hiking in & around the hills on the southern edge of Joshua Tree N.P., I developed a medical problem that effectively knocked me out of all hiking until about a week before I had to leave for home. while recuperating, I found some time and found online a GPS track for this hike ( along with some forums that focused in on this area- on these forums the members talked openly about this hike and was of great help in my planning.) the snow at elevation was not an issue while I was laying about on a lounge chair, and fiddled with a new gps. But, started to collect at the 7,500level towards the end. I will be going down again in Oct. and from what I've been reading, that is the preferred time for this hike. Snow, starts to collect up in the higher elevations in late Dec. onwards. So this project is on hold until the fall.

taking a scanned map of just the area you are hiking in is a great idea! i've been folding my maps so they would fit into a waterproof case and some of them have taken a beating from this.

It occurred to me you might want to get the GPS coordinates from your GPS and plot it on the map. There is an easier way. Mark the trailhead as a waypoint when you start. Then measure a bearing and distance from the trailhead. Of course, you will have to orient your map properly and be sure you know if you are using a true bearing or magnetic bearing on the GPS. You will need a good compass for this. Usually, there is only one distance on the trail that will make sense even if you aren't accurate on the bearing.

i personally seldom use GPS too ,quite agree with you