THE ART OF TRACKING
Last month we discussed some of the terminology surrounding the art of tracking. This month I want to look a bit more at track interpretation, but before I start, let me just reiterate something I mentioned in Part One.
Many people new to the skill assume tracking is all about following a well-defined trail of footprints; if it was only that easy, everyone would be a tracker. No, you will spend a good deal of your time using supplementary signs; what we call “sign tracking”. This can include disturbed foliage, dew on grass which has been brushed off, twigs which have been broken, displaced stones, evidence of feeding/browsing, tufts of hair on a tree trunk, or any one of a number of other signs. Many of these signs may be overlooked by the novice tracker/hunter in preference of the physical tracks themselves, when in fact they are a vital element of tracking, because you will need them when the trail goes cold.
MORE THAN SIMPLY AN IMPRESSION
When working with spoor (footprints), bear in mind that it is far from being simply a flat depression in the
