Mantracking

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They’re great tools, if not essential tools for beginners wanting to progress . You can’t learn to gauge measurements unless you use a ruler for a long period. And that’s what the main stick with bands is for. So you learn the gaits of animals through logging them. Sure, as you progress you can work without them. But it cuts the accuracy if you’re in a busy area with multiple tracks. There are multiple layers in tracking. Depends how serious and to what level you want to take it. Like most modern sciences, for the highest level you need tools. You can’t do accurate forensics without microscopes , measurements and a load of other things that involve chemicals and machines and knowledge that could take decades and multiple teachers. You can do forensics on a basic level without any of those. Depends what level you want. Depends how serious you want to get. If you want to find missing people close to death. It needs to be pretty good. If you want to hunt deer, not so much. If you are hunting or are avoiding dangerous people, that’s another level entirely. And if you want to learn top tier tracking then you need to learn how to use these things and carry the track you are following with you physically. Human beings perception is fallible. But if you have the traits of that animal logged and with you physically. Then that reduces that factor.

Those are just facts. I don’t see how anyone could argue against those. But let’s see. I’m open to learn new stuff about tracking. I love it with a passion. Nearly as much as ophiology.
 
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It takes experience. But if you’re asked to check depressions for firmness, you’ll be way ahead of everyone else with longer fingernails that are using their finger pads instead of the very tips at a 90 degree angle. Think about when you leave your nails too long and then cut them. How sensitive and funny your very tips feel when you touch things with them for a short while. Same principal.

EDIT. And in rain. To check for saturation and moistness/water pools gathered in those depressions.
Don't think I'll need my fingertips to check for saturation today, it's still raining! :D
 
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It was great, we actually went to an indoor riding centre where we tracked footprints in sand. Very interesting and learnt a lot. Learnt how to (very poorly) sketch out a foot print, but more importantly what details are important, learnt the importance of looking for pronation/suspination in determining whether it's a left foot or right foot, learnt about sole types, we took foot and heel lengths & widths, stride & straddle measurements, direction of travel, what a foot print looks like when a person is moving forwards vs backwards, when they are running vs walking. Using light from mirror or torch to identify texture. Probably more that I have forgotten.

Excuse my ignorance but why would anyone be against the use of a stick?
 
Tomorrow we are tracking outside.

I do have one question. How do I practice this in public without receiving funny looks? :lmao:
 
Tomorrow we are tracking outside.

I do have one question. How do I practice this in public without receiving funny looks? :lmao:
You'll end up finding you'll innocently follow people and watch their feet , gait , straddle.

Seeing how their feet makes contact and leave sign on the ground.

Another good way is to walk a circular path yourself and come back to the starting point and seeing if you can find your own sign.
 
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You'll end up finding you'll innocently follow people and watch their feet , gait , straddle.

Seeing how their feet makes contact and leave sign on the ground.

Another good way is to walk a circular path yourself and come back to the starting point and seeing if you can find your own sign.
Yeah, some of the other guys who weren't instructing but had been helping with the course said the same thing, that they end up following foot prints while out walking. I can't wait!
 
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Excuse my ignorance but why would anyone be against the use of a stick?
I’m resisting being teased out of my burrow! I’m not ‘against’ tracking sticks per se. I don’t use one for animal trailing (and the odd person trail). It’s better discussed on a new thread because this is about your introduction to tracking where they can be useful. Have a great day. It’s exciting stuff when you start trailing for real.
 
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I’m resisting being teased out of my burrow! I’m not ‘against’ tracking sticks per se. I don’t use one for animal trailing (and the odd person trail). It’s better discussed on a new thread because this is about your introduction to tracking where they can be useful. Have a great day. It’s exciting stuff when you start trailing for real.
Well responded to Nigel.
Yes - enjoy your day Dan
 
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Well, thoroughly enjoyed the entire weekend. We finished the weekend of with an outdoor search for a misper with an alcohol problem. We practiced both line searches and tracking. Tired no though.

I also got my book signed by Don, who signed it: "Dan, thank you for all you do for mountain rescue. Please keep up the good work and keep on tracking!" which I thought was lovely.

He does still do the search management courses so I'll no doubt see him again in the future.
 
Tracking townies across my shooting permissions (private land) is usually easy as can be. You just follow the broken vegetation and the trail of sweet wrappers, dog mess, and fag-ends.
It's tracking the guy who doesn't want to be followed that puts you to the test ;)
 
Very slight diversion of the thread here... A friend does Mantrailing with her dog. I've seen a couple of short videos of them working and it's quite impressive, including one of them being in the rain around a supermarket car park. Mantrailing is obviously used for SaR, etc., but now done recreationally.

I'll let you get back on track now (groan!)...
 

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