and the first thing to know when bringing a map and compass into the backcountry is that if you didn't use them (properly!) to get in, it'll be hard-to-impossible to use them to get you back out. There's more to it than you think!
Orienteering is a deep enough subject to be a tool, hobby and sport. Recommended skill, just for the entertainment value
Side note: Oriente(e)ring is still, AFAICT, part of phys. ed. in Nordic schools just like it was decades ago when I went. Conscription also helps, of course.
On the whole, I'm pretty damn satisfied with the overweening cradle-to-grave nanny state, making sure you get at least the rudiments of basic life skillz and all.
Orienteering is a deep enough subject to be a tool, hobby and sport. Recommended skill, just for the entertainment value