Harry Potter couldn’t cross the Beartooth Range, or be a thru-hiker, because of character attributes that are not compatible with long distance wilderness travel. You see, Harry Potter suffers from arrogance (he’d think he knew where he was when he really wasn’t), impatience (he wouldn’t evaluate all of his route options), and anger management (he’d get really ticked off when he discovered he was lost).

Plus, spells and stuff don’t really work in the wilderness.

This is why you should teach a boy to read a map – because spells are inherently unreliable – and careful map reading breeds the humility, patience, and perseverance that allows you to travel a long way across unknown terrain.

What wilderness are you traveling, and what map are you reading to navigate it?