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Photo by Avelino Calvar Martinez from Burst

When it comes to some important life lessons, all of us are late bloomers. 

Case in point: road map reading. It's one of these life skills—like changing a tire or using Excel macros—that increasingly seem to pass us by. 

That all stops today. The date we're publishing this article—April 5—is National Read a Road Map Day. On this highest of high holidays, the automotive experts at Daniels Tire Service are here to impart this vital lesson. 

#1. Know Your Orientation

Understanding the cardinal directions is the first step toward adequately reading your map. 

Most maps will come with a compass rose; if you don't see one, it's safe to assume the top of the map points north.

#2. Read Your Roadmap's Index For City and Street Names

The index is designed to help you find specific locations on the map. It's an alphabetical list containing the locations of city streets and landmarks—you'll usually find it on the map's backside. 

Next to each defined area, you'll see a combination of letters corresponding to the grid's columns and rows. 

#3. Get to Know the Grid

Your map's grid is designed to help you narrow the locations of specific streets, cities, features, and localities. Usually, the vertical columns are counted by number, with horizontal rows designated by a letter. 

Cross-reference these grid designations with items on the index to help you find the locations of specific cities and areas. 

#4. Establish Elevation With Contour Lines

What are those concentric squiggly lines dotting your map? They're called counter lines, delineating elevation changes across your map. 

Each line helps convey the terrain's height or depth, showing in numbers its distance above sea level. The closer together the lines are, the steeper the gradient. Conversely, lines spaced far apart represent more gradual elevation changes, like valleys and hills.

These markers can be helpful even if you're mostly traveling over relatively flat territory. 

With their aid, you can get an idea of how much additional distance you'll travel in elevation. And since inclines consume more gas than flat land, reading height shows how rapidly you'll be depleting your fuel supply. 

#5. Understand Your Map's Scale

The map scale shows the ratio of map distance to real-life distance. Each scale is different, but let's say the scale is 1:190,000, and the distance between two destinations is five inches.

All we do is multiply 190,000 by 5—950,000—and divide that by the number of inches in a mile (603,360), which gives us approximately 14.9 miles. 

Simple as that.

#6. Use the Legend to Translate Map Icons

If there's one part of your map you already know, it's probably the legend. Here, the various symbols that dot the map are defined.

Each map has a legend, and the symbols are generally represented and defined similarly across different maps.

• Mountains come in shades of green or brown
• White shading delineates peaks large enough to get snowfall
• Lower sections are often shaded darker and get lighter as the elevation increases
• Blue surface area represents water 
• Forests, parks, and golf courses are usually solid green
• Buildings in residential areas depicted in black or gray blocks (with pink- or yellow-hued borders)

Knowledge for When The Batteries Run Out

Easy to assume that you'll never be in a situation where you don't have access to digital technology. But, in reality, such cases are all too common. After all, batteries, die digital services GPS die, and sometimes will find ourselves more vulnerable than we thought possible.