OS map Grid Refs gone!!

David, as regards digital maps, just like paper. As long as the relevant area has been downloaded, it is usable without the internet. The system I use allows me to download any of the UK on 1:50000 and 1:25000. The maps are available on my windows laptop, which gives most functionality, as well as pad, or phone. I think 5 devices are permitted. These days we tend to use them in electronic format, rather than print them off. Although for more hostile environments such as mountains ( getting rarer theses days ☹️) paper map back up and compass are essential. An advantage over paper is that they accept coordinates in various formats including lat and long.

JohnM20, if you are at home with internet access NG coordinates are available on the CL page. This of course does not help if you are in the middle of a field with no 3/4G and no WiFi.

Given the space requirement they really should have been included. It's not as though, except for new additions, they had to be sourced from scratch.

Back in 2014 the OS were consulting on whether to introduce an overlay showing latitude and longitude to bring maps in line with GPS devices, did this ever happen? If it has the GPS co-ordinates are actually given in the site directory.

On the point of CL's saying not to use sat navs that is usually because people use post codes (some built in devices will only accept post codes) A GPS co-ordinate should be as accurate as any grid reference and that was my point about POI's which are based on those co-ordinates?

David

I don't think I have bought any paper maps since 2014. The 25,000 I just looked at does have lat and long around the sides, but there is no grid across the map, so would be difficult to use with any accuracy. 

As you say my built in sat nav only uses addresses and post codes, which can be way off. You can move the destination to the correct place. However, this does mean you need to know where it actually is.🤔

showing latitude and longitude to bring maps in line with GPS devices

Both are shown along the edges of most OS maps, and there is a map symbol for the intersection points that is only omitted when it clashes with other information. It takes but a few minutes with a ruler and a pen to draw in the lines of latitude and longitude on a paper map.

However, if you do, you will find that these lines are not straight, but curves. This is because the world is shaped like a ball and not like a sheet of paper. The lines of latitude (meridians) also all get closer together the further from the equator one looks. So an angular measurement of, say, one degree close to Southampton is a different distance on the ground, or map, than the same angular measurement close to Edinburgh. What a pain to exterpolate between lines.

What we need is a reference system where the lines are always the same distance apart, say 1 kilometer. One can then use a ruler to consistently plot the part of the reference that falls between two lines wherever it might be, though regular users can become very accurate doing this by eye.

Fortunately, in Great Britain, we do have such a system.  It is called the National Grid and is what is shown on Ordnance Survey maps. It is also shown at the 10 kilometer interval on the map distributed by The Caravan Club! 

Following David Klyne's helpful reply to the CL owners group I contacted Nicola at Skybarn and received the following reply

Thank you for the link to the thread on CT.  The CL owners group is aware of it and a discussion was started about it last week sometime.

hopefully those who have posted here regarding this omission from the handbook may aid the discussions.

Thanks B2, well done. Hope that the CL Owner Group has sufficient influence to get the OS Map references re-introduced in the next SD, as I can't see HO doing anything about it till then, if at all.

Well done Bakers. Let's hope the group can get someone at EG to see sense and print a rectification somewhere soon.

Thank you everyone for your feedback which has been forwarded to the publishing team for their information. Having spoken to my colleague I can advise we always try to assess the impact of removing any data from the Handbook, but as more CLs add information like email and website addresses we have to look to cut down information in other areas to make sure that the directory stays at a manageable length for production and postage costs.

We did previously include a lot of location information, such as full address, directions, lat/long co-ordinates and OS map references so this seemed like the best place to cut down the entries. Similarly with the Club Site pages, we’ve been asked repeatedly to include more information such as local supermarkets and whether they are accessible to motorhomes, and more information about the local area. While we know that paper maps are still quite widely used, the co-ordinates can be used across more functions, such as online mapping tools and sat nav, so we made the decision to remove the OS map references instead.

We apologise for any disappointment this has caused members. The editor of the Sites Directory and Handbook will keep a close eye on the level of complaints regarding this, and will look to reinstate them for the next edition of the Sites Directory if there has been a significant proportion of members inconvenienced by this.

While we know that paper maps are still quite widely used, the co-ordinates can be used across more functions, such as online mapping tools and sat nav, so we made the decision to remove the OS map references instead.

On line mapping tools also accept NG coordinates. As to Sat Navs, many only take post codes, which can be way off the mark. The one in my car will dump you in the middle of the post code and let you move the destination marker to the exact location. If going to a CAMC site the entrance is usually fairly obvious and can be checked on street view, the marker can therefore be moved with certainty. In the case of more remote locations, the same cannot always be said. Therefore anyone who relies on paper maps is at a distinct disadvantage. The amount of space NG Coordinates take up is minimal and cannot really be compared to the space required for supermarket information. In many cases there is enough space left on the last line of the entry, so no extra page length required, just a bit of ink.

Looks like we will have to complain, and not just on this thread. I wonder how many complaints it will take???