Map cases seem to have gone out of fashion and we've no idea why. Even in sensible countries where they print maps on waterproof material, it's still so much more convenient to have the right bit of your map always to hand – and it's even more important in the UK where our Ordnance Survey sheets turn into wet bog roll at the first sprinkle of rain. Constructed in heavy-duty 0.3mm TPU/PU material, this roll-top map case from Silva is completely waterproof – and has the added bonus of being touchscreen compatible, so you can combine your traditional map and compass nav with your phone/GPS. This will also allow you to have a nice heated argument with your walking companions about which method is better.
| Inner Dimensions | 297 x 297 mm |
| Outer Dimensions | 340 x 330 x 7 mm |
| Material | 0.3 mm TPU |
| Weight | 103 g |
It’s a bit of a cliché to say, ‘this brand needs no introduction…’, but sometimes it really doesn’t. If you ever did scouts, guides or cadets, got epic blisters on a D of E expedition or went on an outward bounds residential, chances are you did it with a Silva compass in the pocket of your boil-in-the-bag cagoule.
Like so many world-changing inventions, the Silva compass began as a problem that needed solving. Back in the day, your standard compass wobbled all over the shop, making it tricky and time-consuming to get a decent reading. That is, until 1933, when four Swedes invented a liquid-filled compass. The resistance from the fluid slowed and stabilised the needle, meaning you could nail a reliable bearing in seconds. Navigation was never the same again.
But iconic as the compasses are, they’re only one part of the Silva story. They were one of the first companies to make reliable electric head torches for the outdoors, and they’ve also branched out into optics, trekking kit and other navigational gear. Tried and tested for the better part of a century, Silva’s precision instruments have literally been the difference between life and death for generations of outdoor adventurers – and as brand pedigree goes, that’s pretty much impossible to beat.
