Hi Andsigil,
I agree that Thranduil's wood elves were likely top-notch at travelling and navigating through Mirkwood. However a thick wood must slow anyone down, in comaprison with travelling a flat plain.
Interestingly Legolas mentions that in the attack that freed Gollum, the orcs were new to the forest and unskilled in woodcraft (iirc), this at least implies that they occasionally encountered more wood-crafty orcs. This ties in nicely with Galadriel complaining that Dol Guldur had been re-inorced sevenfold since the days of The Hobbit.
Rhugga, intersting, I must get round to re-reading properly before a considered reply!
