Basic Terrain and Land Nav Terminology

Author: CptAwesome

Here is a basic list and example of terrain features and what they look like to aid in land nav and communication. There are 5 major terrain features you will encounter in land nav.

Hill, Ridge, Saddle, Valley and Depression

https://i.imgur.com/3nWaQjI.gif BROKEN LINK

As well as 3 "minor" or derivative features, which exist with and augment the major features.

Draw, Spur, Cliff

A basic idea of how these terrain features look and function can be visualized by making a fist and open hand.

Hill

pretty self explanatory. It is a raised terrain feature that has elevation descending it on all sides

Ridge

an area that stretches laterally, functionally composed of a series of Hills joining together, with the in-between areas still remaining higher than the surrounding area.

Saddle

alternatively, "pass", is the lowered area between two Hills which links the two. A Saddle generally exists as part of a Ridge but it can be used to indicate other much shallower areas between two points of interest.

Valley

the opposite of a ridge. A long lateral area which has a reasonably flat "floor" that winds and runs between Hills and Ridges. Valleys are a common place for roads and other such features that require level ground.

Depression

similar to a valley, but it has the distinction of being isolated, and not running any long distance, entirely ringed by higher elevations also commonly referred to as a "bowl." Minor features exist in conjunction with major features.

Draw

is a small narrow recess that usually runs the length of a hill, and is depressed beneath the general slope of the terrain feature it derives from. It is usually very narrow, and runs to the "floor" of the valley.

Spur

the opposite of a Draw and consists of a raised area that runs away from the peak of a hill or ridgeline. They are generally much broader, and the sides are characterized as being quite steep. Useful for defilade, Spurs can provide hard cover, and defilade for rearward manuver I shouldnt need to define and illustrate a Cliff. If you're on one, you'll figure it out pretty quickly. A lot of this is common sense when you're looking right at the terrain features, but being able to ID them on a map or during planning can greatly aid your team's safe movement through terrain of all types.