Tracking...

[PhilParry]

Hi all...

I'd like to expand my knowledge of tracking by starting with a book on the subject. The question is, what would you recommend?

Phil

 

[leon-1]

Hi Phil, just moved you to the tracking part of the forum, as far as identification of tracks is concerned try

Animal tracks and signs (Preben Bang and Preben Dahlstrom). ISBN 0-19-850796-8 RRP £14.99.

As far as skills themselves there are quite a few books, but I would suggest that courses may be the way to go as some things have to be shown, if you know what I mean.

I would also suggest getting along to a meet as there are normally a number of people that have done courses by one school or another. Speak to a few of the other guys and get a feel as to the school or course you may want to attend. Keep an open mind as to styles and be inquisitive

 

[C_Claycomb]

Come to the Bushmoot, its not so very far for us over this side of the country
Even if there aren't any official tracking demos (and there is meant to be one!), the sand dunes at Merthyr are a great place to learn. There is even a good selection of interesting critters to track.

Book wise, I like the
Hamlyn Guide, Animals - Tracks, Trails & Signs. ISBN 0 7537 0955 4
personally think it better than the Bang and Dahlstrom book,
I also like the Scott-Donelan book, Tactical Tracking Operations, which though directed at military tracking (including a section on sellecting weapons), has a lot of good info.
Lots of people like the Tom Brown Jr books, I have his Science and Art of Tracking, which discusses what he calls "pressure releases". There is debate about the usefulness of these, but the book is a good at opening the subject, and will give you some tools even if you don't swallow all of Mr. Browns tall tales.

 

[C_Claycomb]

One other thought. Do you ever get to go to Stock Grove Country Park? Its just a bit north of Leighton Buzzard. Large area sandy soil, not a bade place to practice.

 

[Rhoda]

Come to the Bushmoot, its not so very far for us over this side of the country
Even if there aren't any official tracking demos (and there is meant to be one!), the sand dunes at Merthyr are a great place to learn. There is even a good selection of interesting critters to track.

I'm doing a couple of workshops at the bushmoot (saturday and sunday as far as I know). I'm sure we'll find loads of interesting tracks there and the sand dunes make a great location for beginners to learn the basics!
As for books the hamlyn guide is great, there are loads of different books around. I'd say don't just stick to one, read a selection and take what you'll find useful from them.
I agree though (and not just because its my job) courses are the best way to learn.
Good luck!

 

[Brian]

Phil,

I've got the same book as leon-1, it's very good, I've also got Tracking and the art of seeing by Paul Rezendes, ISBN 0-06-273524-1. Another good read, but I learnt a lot more on my Primitive Living course with Wild Live, being shown the tracks on the ground was great and a real eye opener. Try and get a course as soon as you can mate, you'll learn lots more.

Brian

 

[PhilParry]

One other thought. Do you ever get to go to Stock Grove Country Park? Its just a bit north of Leighton Buzzard. Large area sandy soil, not a bade place to practice.

Hey Chris..it's been a while - usually I go up to the woods adjacent to Woburn gold course...also quite sandy, but covered in 2 usual tracks...horse and man!!

Also thinking about the bushmoot...did my bushcraft fundamental course almost a month ago after almost a year of waiting, and I've officially got the bug (and a Shing knife!WOW! :Wow: )



Phil

 

[Ranger Bob]

Animal tracks and signs (Preben Bang and Preben Dahlstrom). ISBN 0-19-850796-8 RRP £14.99.

Second that! Great book.

 

[Hawkeye The Noo]

I have cut and pasted a short review on a book that I left on another thread.
After having reread the book, I am of the same opinion as to its usefulness in the area of mantracking, tactical or SAR.


David Diaz, Tracking book

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rather than start a new thread I thought | would add this to this one. I have just bought and read "Tracking, signs of man signs of hope. By David Diaz. It is interesting to note the books he recomends at the end: Louis Liebenberg, Tom Brown, David Scott Donelan (Tac tracking), and Betser, Moshe/Robert Rosenberg. Secret Soldier. A lot of people here will recognise these names. This book was strongly aimed at tac tracking with a few mentions on SAR applications. What I discovered in this book was an area of weakness in my tracking. The paperwork write up. I recognised that this can be a great tool to help you to realise what you have actually learned. Recognising your own learning is a great tool to building strong foundations for later learning. The book was also a good read with case a major case study and how to write up the report on the case study. In tracking i have heard a lot of people mention Sherlock Holmes, but is it Sherlock we learn from or is it the write up and explanations of Dr Watson. they both go hand in hand. This is one of those books that I am glad to get on the shelf. ( Tracking book number 12) it seems like tracking is fast gaining recognition in the world with more and more books appearing on a fast basis. I am looking forward to when there will be more ways to make a living from this craft. Sorry in advance to those of you who have already topped your budget for this month.

Jamie

 

[pothunter]

Can I sugest another book, a bit dry but very good 'A Field Guide to Mammal Tracking in North America' by James Halfpenny, forget the location its the skills you need to aquire. ISBN 0-933472-98-6

Also don't be put off by man and horse tracks in sand these are interesting to follow, its suprising how quickly you can build up an immage of the person who the tracks belong to, is he/she alone do they have a dog are they carrying a stick where have they stopped and why, was it to look at the view or wildlife. Its interesting to meet someone whos tracks you know and see if your impressions were correct.

Nothing like grubbing about in the dirt, have fun.

 

[stone]

I have cut and pasted a short review on a book that I left on another thread.
After having reread the book, I am of the same opinion as to its usefulness in the area of mantracking, tactical or SAR.
David Diaz, Tracking book
<stuff snipped>

The advice given in this thread are all good!

I'm 3/4 of the way through this book myself, and I am finding it a really good read. I actually started tarcking after doing my Tracker Level 1 course last summer. The book they based the course on was called: "Tracking: A Blueprint for Learning How" by Jack Kearney (Sorry, I couldn't find an ISBN # anywhere). It's mostly about his life as a Border Patrol Agent in the States

I've found if you go with others that have similar tracking skills as yourself or better, you can point out stuff to each other that the other may have missed.

Animal tracking or mantracking have many similar traits and can be fun to follow either sign. I am more into the mantracking through my local SAR group, but plan on more animal tracking to help in my picture taking closeups ...

Practice, pratice, practice, and have fun!

~mike

 

[Wolfie]

You can order Tracking: A blueprint for learning how from www.pathways-press.com

Another book title that hasn't been mentioned yet is The Complete Guide to Tracking by Bob Carss

There are a lot of books on tracking when you start to look for them. Some very good, some very bad. Some are very general in their content others specialise in one aspect of tracking eg feathers or skulls. I would reccommend getting one or two general tracking books and then look at some of the more specialised books.

I just tried to come up with a list of the 3 books I wouldn't do without and its very hard. All the books mentioned so far have their merits (and their faults).

I would go for
i) Hamlyn guide to Animals, tracks, trails & signs
ii) Tactical, Tracking Operations
iii) either Tom Brown's Nature Observation and Tracking or The Complete guide to tracking by Bob Carss

Yes I know that's 4 but tough! Ask me this again in a few months and I would probably come up with a different list

Tracking can be a very personal thing. A style of tracking may appeal to one person and yet be hated by another. Some tracking styles are based on military training, some from a Search and Rescue outlook, some are very spiritual and some aimed more at the naturalist. I suggest that you go to your local library and see what they have got there. If there aren't any books on tracking put in a request to order one of the titles mentioned. That way you can see whether you like the content before you buy it.

Good luck!

 

[C_Claycomb]

I have the Bob Carss book, but rate the Scott-Donelan one as better. Could just be personal preference. The other thing, at the time I got the Carss book a couple of years back, they were out of print and it was a little bit of a hunt to find a good one second hand.

I know that just seeing horse and people tracks could be a bit boring, but equally, up at Ashridge, there are so many deer that trying to track just one over the leaf litter is a pain. I got quite a kick at Merthyr Mawr from tracking people for as far as I gould. The hard part was finding an area where my pathetic lack of ability in time stamping a track wasn't a total liability

 

[Wolfie]

I have the Bob Carss book, but rate the Scott-Donelan one as better. Could just be personal preference. The other thing, at the time I got the Carss book a couple of years back, they were out of print and it was a little bit of a hunt to find a good one second hand.

I know that just seeing horse and people tracks could be a bit boring, but equally, up at Ashridge, there are so many deer that trying to track just one over the leaf litter is a pain. I got quite a kick at Merthyr Mawr from tracking people for as far as I gould. The hard part was finding an area where my pathetic lack of ability in time stamping a track wasn't a total liability

I agree that the Tactical Tracking Operations is probably a better book overall than the Bob Carss but as you say this is just a personal preference.

I've heard that the TTOS book is getting hard to come by so it may be worth getting a copy now whilst you can.

Just had a look on amazon and saw that the Bob Carss book is now fetching nearly £90!! There is however a book called the SAS guide to tracking by the same author that looks the same for about £10.

The thing that I have noticed about many tracking books is the poor quality of illustrations and (especially) the photographs. I think what is needed (especially for man tracking and Search and Rescue) is a well written book with the quality of illustrations that this subject matter deserves. (Please feel free to correct me if there is a book in print that people think does this already !)

 

[Brian]

Wolfie,

I've just realised that I've got the Bob Carss book that is now £90
Cost me about a tenner, it's not bad for a tenner but I certainly wouldn't pay £90 for it The TTOSbook looks quite good though, it's £20 on Amazon at the moment.

Brian

 

[Wolfie]

Wolfie,

I've just realised that I've got the Bob Carss book that is now £90
Cost me about a tenner, it's not bad for a tenner but I certainly wouldn't pay £90 for it
Brian

My thoughts exactly. They can ask as much as they want but whether anyone is prepared to pay that much is a different matter

 

[pothunter]

Woolfie
Agree with you re. illustrations, for my own records I tried taking a few pictures but could not get the detail in a photograph. Have thought since that a line drawing alongside the photograph would be one way of recording info. and usefull for instructors.

 

[Wolfie]

Woolfie
Agree with you re. illustrations, for my own records I tried taking a few pictures but could not get the detail in a photograph. Have thought since that a line drawing alongside the photograph would be one way of recording info. and usefull for instructors.

The rise of high definition digital cameras with the ability to zoom has made taking photos of tracks a lot easier these days. The photos can even be altered on a pc to highlight detail.

I suppose that one problem is that when you take the photo you know what it is that you're trying to show. Other people may have difficulty seeing the detail in the photo. An annotated clear photo or a line drawing next to the photo is a good idea.

This is why going on a course is better than trying to learn everything from a book. The instructors can make sure you can see and understand the detail in the track.

Tell me and I may listen, show me and I may remember, involve me and I will learn.......or something like that

 

[spamel]

Are there any good online tracking sites that could teach of this mystic art? I have done a bit around here tracking deer, wild boar and where birds were moving about, landing and taking off, in the snow in winter. There are some sandy areas around here that make it easy, but once I get into the woodline........

It's addictive, I have shown my daughter basic stuff that I have figured out myself, but this is basically which way an animal was travelling by recognising the front of it's foot / horseshoe! She seems to enjoy it and is good at knowing which way they were going. I am going to have a look in one of the infantry training pams, though I don't expect to get much out of it!!

 

[leon-b]

my local woods usually have hard ground so it is difficult to track, i will wait untill it has rained alot and then give tracking a go, i no what a deer track looks like, and i understand that a fox track looks like a big dog, my question is how do you tell the difference between a big dogs track and a fox's track
p.s any tips on tracking ?
leon