I originally learned my map-reading in the left seat of a fast-moving rally-car at night where turning the map to track-up was a complete no-no and you had to be on top of your game in a vehicle that changed direction every couple of hundred yards. Getting on top of it was an intensely satisfying experience and that satisfaction has remained with me to this day. (It did make for an interesting conflict with early Flight Instructors when I found it almost impossible to read the chart any way but North Up but we got over it!!)
After nearly twenty years of hacking my way along from piston-engined singles via turbine singles and light turbine twins to my present FMS and Moving Map Display equipped ride, the most satisfying thing I've done in a long time after a rush of recent visits into Battersea (EGLW) is to be able to follow the H3 at night by looking out the window and recognising the various landmarks along the route with the Map Display turned down (rather than off) and only the paper chart on my lap.
To make a point, the question I ask is - "Do pilots not derive any personal or professional satisfaction from being able to find their way from A to B along a route they decided upon before they departed while knowing where they are during the trip?"
Or are more recently trained pilots simply growing up on a diet of digital wizardry (bit like my kids and all things electronic) with an attendant loss of ability in the basics?
Or am I just being an old fart?