Orienteering in the United States 🇺🇸

Overview

The United States has a diverse orienteering community, with active clubs, national championships and competitions ranging from beginner-friendly local events to technically demanding international races. Although orienteering is less widely known than in Scandinavia, dedicated clubs across the country organise events for all ages and experience levels.For international visitors, the greatest attraction is the diversity of terrain. You can navigate through detailed glacial forests in the Northeast, race across open grasslands and rocky hills in the West, or experience challenging forests in the Pacific Northwest. The enormous distances between regions mean that each orienteering trip can feel like visiting a completely different country.

Official event calendar ↗

Major terrains & landscapes

• Rocky forests & glacial terrain – Northeast and New England: Intricate rock features, boulder fields, marshes and detailed contours create demanding technical navigation, particularly in New York and New England.• Open hills & mountain terrain – Western United States: Colorado, Wyoming and California offer a combination of open forests, rocky slopes, grasslands and significant elevation changes, often at higher altitudes.• Pine forests & varied woodland – Pacific Northwest and Southeast: From the complex vegetation of Washington and Oregon to the rolling forests of the southeastern states, competitors encounter very different visibility, vegetation and running conditions.