Why is backtracking important?
We have the will to outlast everything!
Finally standing over that ridge taking the photos you’ve
been after for the last couple of hours, you’re filled with a sense of
accomplishment. Unfortunately, it’s soon replaced by overwhelming panic, when
you can’t remember which way back to camp. It doesn’t really matter whether it
was the excitement, the long walk, or mesmerizing surroundings, either way, you’re lost. At this point backtracking your way to camp is the only chance of making it out of the wilderness.
One wrong move now and it could be your final, fatal
mistake. Years ago, backcountry guides seemed to have a real nose for
direction, after all, their living depended on it. Most modern outdoorsmen, however, can’t devote as much time to learning
orientation. The average person spends at least five days a week scratching out
a living in town, and many consider themselves
lucky to get out once a year.
That’s not nearly enough time to develop a finely tuned
sense of direction. So what can a person do, simply keep on guessing and taking
chances, or perhaps leave the outdoors to the professionals?
The absolute best method
of ensuring your safe return is to understand
thoroughly, and learn to use a map and compass. It’s even possible to
navigate exclusively by tall, easily recognized landmarks. In fact, if you’re
like most people you use a combination of both.
But what about those times when you spot something you’d
love to explore further, but were totally unprepared?
What happens when the forest is so tall that it’s impossible
to take compass readings? How is it that some
people seem to navigate flawlessly, even on moonless nights?
Backtracking is one of
the most reliable, yet often overlooked methods of finding your way back.
Basically, all you do is track yourself, and it’s a perfect way to supplement a
compass in some very tough situations. It’s much easier than it sounds, and
with a little practice, you’ll soon be
able to enhance your trail by leaving clues along the way.
Anytime you’re working in a particularly rough, hilly, or
thickly forested area; it’s a good idea
to deliberately mark the trail periodically (especially when you’re exploring
new terrain). Not too long ago guides would cut a mark in a tree, facing the
direction of return. Though we avoid this practice today because of the damage
it does, there are certain things you can do to make your mute back easier to
follow.
When it comes to backtracking, probably the most important step is to study your own boot print thoroughly. Many people that track quite a bit will actually cut a notch in their sole to make it easier to identify. It does you absolutely no good to follow a “trail” back to someone else’s camp, only to find they’re long gone!
One of the best ways to
enhance your trail is to make a
habit of leaving good footprints behind. Usually,
that means stepping on anything on the trail, that’s pliable enough to hold it
(within reason). Snow and drying mud are ideal, and have a very good
“memory.”
Sand isn’t quite as good, simply because the sides cave in
after a few hours, obscuring most of the detail. If you can’t find soft material
along the way, periodically kick your heel into the dirt, and you’ll leave very pronounced markings.
Sooner or later, you may run across an area, where it’s
impossible to leave a single print. Should it be large enough, the problem soon
becomes serious and could get you lost. Thick mats of pine needles, running
water, and rock faces are only a few of these areas.
Used almost exclusively by search and rescue teams, one of
the best ways to mark a problem route is with flagging. Basically, it’s any bright strip of paper, tied at eye level or
above in trees along the trial. Bright yellow and orange are visible by flashlight and stand out well in the woods. I
prefer crepe paper streamers over engineer’s tape
because it’s lightweight, biodegradable (in case you forget some), cheap, and
easy to find.
I’ve also seen people stack rocks, or use a stick to scrape
an arrow in the trail. I don’t like either method, simply because they’re
almost invisible at night, and when you keep the flagging in your pocket, you don’t need to bend over quite as
often (stacking rocks is not fun with a full backpack).
Actually tracking a lost person is entirely different, and in my mind, one of the most enjoyable outdoor skills to learn. On more than one occasion, the U.S Border Patrol has used this Indian art not only to arrest illegal drug traffickers but to save a lost child.
Just like before, the first and foremost step is to identify and study the person’s footprint. If it’s in a high traffic area, or about to be obscured by other well-meaning searchers, somehow protect and isolate at least one good set of prints. Once you begin tracking and are miles away, you won’t be able to refer to this good track, so make a habit of taking notes.
Measure the footprint from the front of the toe to the heel’s back. This overall length is
usually not the same as shoe size, though it can be. Then measure the widest
part of the heel, the ball, and the thinnest part of the track (usually between
the two). This gives you a pretty good “fingerprint,” but always make
a rough sketch just in case.
Locate the person’s very next step, and measure the distance between the two. Known as stride length, this too varies widely and is the single most important piece of backtracking information available. Long lengths are typical of tall, fit people, while a child’s short legs force their steps closer together.
Even when you’re tracking the same person, stride length can at times vary. While uphill stretches will usually see it shorten, it’ll lengthen again on the way down. Tired or heavily laden people have shorter strides than those that are fresh, or without a burdensome pack (assuming they started with the same stride length). This knowledge makes it possible for a tracker to assess the relative physical condition of the person he’s after without ever seeing them.
There are no tools or
equipment required to track well, but a “tracking stick” is
very helpful. Basically, it’s any long, straight stick, that ideally has two
rubber bands on it (I use an old walkie-talkie antenna since it stores so
well). If nothing else, rummage around the area until you find something
suitable.
Place one end of the tracking stick on the print’s heel. Now
roll one of the rubber bands to where the toe ends, and your stick conveniently
memorizes track length. Now rotate the tracking stick, until it touches the
very next track. Move the second rubber band there, and it has stored stride
length as well,
As I mentioned before, unless something happens, stride
length usually doesn’t vary dramatically. That means that each time you place
your tracking stick on a print and slowly rotate, it’ll touch the print beyond,
and once you put it on that one… The
big advantage to this system is how well
it points out tracks, even on the hardest ground. When you use a tracking
stick, you’ll be amazed how well you can find even the tiniest of clues.
Sooner or later, you’ll come to a spot that looks like the end of the trail. Particularly when you’re learning, it’s best to continue looking for some evidence of the next step, no matter how hopeless it looks. This is where the tracking stick comes in.
When you rotate the stock, you’re pretty sure of where the
next step should have been. Usually, you
have a general direction of travel, and more than likely a spot you think they
stepped on. Now prove it.
Look for “compression” cracks around rocks they
might have walked on. Believe it or not, when you put weight on a small object,
it digs into the soil. That “compression” is clear evidence. Perhaps they
stepped on a green plant. Look for bruising, and if it’s laying down in a
certain direction. Though you won’t get a clear track, almost invariably plants
lay down and point in the direction of travel when they’re trampled.
One of the most consistent clues
are tiny heel digs. They seem to show up, even on the hardest surface. In rocky
areas, you may only see one pebble, turned over with mud on its bottom. But
that is enough evidence to put your tracking stick down there, and begin to
look for the next print (especially in a wilderness area).
You don’t always have to rely
on the soil for help. Oftentimes, branches are broken or knocked off
when someone brushes against them. Even the simple act of walking between two trees can make the branches go back
unnaturally, though this is very hard to detect (basically one branch goes back
first, then the other, rather than the windswept
intermingling that’s natural).
Even when someone enters a stream, there is usually some
water splashed where they got out. Mud often sticks to lug soles, making backtracking that much easier afterward. If they “brush up” their
tracks, hoping to avoid detection, it’s even easier to follow them. After all,
most areas are filled with hiker, rabbit, deer, and car tracks —an area without
any almost looks like a paved highway once you’ve practiced for a while.
Perhaps the least understood part of backtracking, is the subtle role light plays. Tracking a few hours
before and after twelve noon is murder, and should be avoided at all costs.
At sunrise or sunset, the light hits tracks at a steep
enough angle to reveal even the tiniest detail. If you’re forced into mid-day
tracking, try and shield the tracks from the sun with your hat, and shine a
flashlight or signal mirror at them. Get as low as you can to optimize the viewing angle. Since your direction of travel
is determined by the person you’re tracking, try looking from both the left and right sides of the trail, to
maximize your speed and ease of operation. Those times you’re forced into
tracking at night, get the light as close to the ground as possible.
As unbelievable as it sounds, by religiously using the tracking stick, anyone can become a proficient trucker with a little practice. With how conveniently it points to the next track, you won’t believe the tiny clues you’ll soon find. It’s not long until your speed increases, and you won’t need the stick until the toughest spots. It’s fun and best of all… the life it saves could be your own!
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the number one back-tracking tip I’d offer is something I learned long ago. At any and all direction changes; and at regular intervals even along a straight path, is to simply pause and look back along the trail just traveled. It’s amazing just how different things look even when having just passed down a trail when seen in reverse. Again – this step is crucial @ any ‘Y’ point (or even more multiple choice divergences – *).
I’m sorry, I have serious reservations concerning this article. Some of this critique is going to seem harsh.
Let me get the positives out of the way first. I could not agree more with the comment the best way to ensure a safe return is learning to use a compass and how to read a map. And no, your GPS and/or the navigator in your smart phone does not supplant having a compass and knowing how to use it. In short get a compass and a map, learn how to use them and practice until it is second nature. The only thing you have to lose is your life. Also some of the “hints and clues” in searching for a track have some merit.
Now on to some of the problems.
In general, in other than the best of conditions, the person that gets out only once or a few times a year should not depend on being able to backtrack themselves to camp or any other location. I can’t speak to every area of the world or even the US for that matter, so there may certainly be some regional bias in my opinion but in the western states signs of a persons passage can be very subtle, so subtle in fact that a person not well versed in the outdoors is going to have difficulty in picking up on them. Further nature and the elements conspire to increase this difficulty. Animal passage can obliterate signs of your passing with theirs. Wind and/or rain knocking down overstory can cover well defined tracks in a matter of moments. Windblown desert sand and likewise snow, can erase your signs of passage right in front of your eyes. Snow grenades, falling from the trees can make it impossible to follow tracks left in snow only a short time earlier. Darkness by itself can make it impossible to find even a fairly defined track through the wilds. Combine darkness with wind, rain and/or snow and the novice may be better served finding a place to park their carcass and waiting for daylight and the SAR team to arrive.
On being unprepared – It is the responsibility of every individual venturing forth into the wilds to be prepared and carrying a small kit of essentials with them on every outing is part of being prepared. The aforementioned compass and map is certainly part of this kit. The map needn’t be a large scale topo of the area either, though this is the best option. Even a state level road map will do in a pinch. A discussion of the other items in an essentials kit is too large to cover in a comment.
The forest is too tall to take a reading and How is it that some people seem to navigate flawlessly, even on moonless nights? – The forest is never too tall to take a compass reading or shoot a bearing. I will grant you there are times it may be difficult to impossible to take a bearing to a known landmark due to poor visibility, whether it be tall timber, dense fog, whiteout blizzard or darkness in dead of night to name a few. Low visibility conditions is where compass use really comes into its own. Other than a very few very gifted individuals, routefinding in low visibility conditions is born of terrain experience and knowledge in using a compass and map and that is how some people seem to navigate flawlessly, because they have practiced these skills until they are second nature.
Flagging – Other than in an extreme emergency situation, where time is of the essence, there are several problems with flagging. Unfortunately in my area flagging is not used almost exclusively by SAR teams. Hunters and other recreational users who lack basic routefinding skills have taken to marking their routes this way. Not everyone is going to use a biodegradable flagging material so that flagging can remain for some period of time in the foliage and eventually on the ground. I have never seen someone go back and remove their flagging. Flagging by one or two people is one thing, but once there are hordes of people flagging their paths it becomes a complete zoo. When everyone and their brother is marking their path which flags do you follow? Flagging also presents a negative visual impact as well. I have seen sections of the woods festooned with little pieces of colored plastic flagging waving in breeze. I’m sure the denizens of the forest appreciate the decorations to their living spaces but I sure don’t and consider flagging to be a form of pollution. It certainly violates the leave no trace principles.
Backtracking/Tracking
This article conflates backtracking yourself and tracking others. Though elements of both endeavors can be similar they are entirely different tasks and would be better served as separate articles. On the topic of tracking a large part of tracking is getting inside the mind or habits of what is being tracked and anticipating where they are going to go. Also rather than using a stick to measure/mark where the next track is going to be, the person doing the tracking would be better served by marking where they lost the trail or track and then searching concentric arcs or circles around that point, a few to several feet apart, out from that point until they regain the track. Again depending on the environment and conditions this may never happen. I once spent the better part of forty man hours with several other guys, over a period of a few days, searching for sign of a wounded elk in a constrained area and other than a fleck of blood on the bottom of a leaf several yards from where it bolted never picked up where it went after it came up off its bed.
Notching your boot sole. Being able to recognize a print, animal or human, is important but in over fifty five years of tramping the wilds I have never known anyone to cut a notch in their boot sole so they could track themselves. I believe I read about it being done in a book once, maybe it was Huckleberry Finn, I can’t remember. Personally I find this suggestion to have little merit. I have torn sole lugs off in rough terrain and surmise that any notch you cut would soon be lost to normal wear and tear.
I better stop, I’m starting to come across as an asshole.
~w
I’m a flat lander, living in a locale where standing on a phone book gives you a view. Where I’ve had problems are hiking in the mountains, where you can see quite a bit on the ridges, but go down and the hill sides curve – change directions, confusing you as to where your destination is.
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