Visual Tracking PDF

 SCOPE DEFINITION OF TERMS POINTS FOR SUCCESSFUL TRACKING TRACKING KITS FUNDAMENTALS OF TRACKING COUNTER TRACKING  DEFINITION OF TERMS: ⮚ VISUAL TRACKING – art of following men or animals through the reading and interpretation of the signs left by them on the ground or vegetati...

 SCOPE DEFINITION OF TERMS POINTS FOR SUCCESSFUL TRACKING TRACKING KITS FUNDAMENTALS OF TRACKING COUNTER TRACKING  DEFINITION OF TERMS: ⮚ VISUAL TRACKING – art of following men or animals through the reading and interpretation of the signs left by them on the ground or vegetation. ⮚ SCENT TRACKING – following men or animals by their smell. ⮚ TRACK SIGNS – telltale marks on the ground and disturbances on vegetation made by persons or animals, whether singly or in groups passing through an area.  POINTS FOR SUCCESSFUL TRACKING Be patient. 2. Move quietly and steadily while detecting signs. Don’t move so quickly that you overlook telltale signs which may cause you to lose the trail or blunder into an enemy unit. 3. Learn to use sense of smell and hearing to supplement sight. 4. Don’t just observe tracks. Interpret what they mean. 5. Develop a feel of things that do not look right. use your intuition. 6. Know your enemy. 7. Be persistent. Don’t lose will if you lose the trail.  TRACKING KITS: 1. Note pad and Pen – Frequent drawings will force you to notice the finer details in any footprint such as wear patterns and sole damage which would enable you to pick it out again later. 2. Map and Compass – Study of the map can indicate heading. 3. Watch – Acting out on the targets trail for a given distance to the determine speed of travel. 4. Flashlight – To be used during difficult conditions. 5. Magnifying glass – To enlarge prints and marks. 6. Binoculars – Reading tracks at a distance and visual contact with the enemy.  FUNDAMENTALS OF TRACKING: DISPLACEMENT – takes place when something is moved from its original position. The most obvious of which are footprints which upon displacement leave an indentation on the ground. By studying it, you can determine many facts: ANALYZING FOOTPRINTS Footprints indicate the following: - Age of the sign - Direction and speed of movement - Number of the group - Loads carried - Gender - Whether the party tracked knows that they are being followed.  ANALYZING FOOTPRINTS 1. Footprints that are deep and has long pace indicate rapid movements. 2. Very long strides with deeper toe prints than the heel indicate running. 3. Deep prints of short paces with scuffing or shuffling signs is indicative of a heavy load being carried. 4. Women tend to be pigeon – toed while men tend to walk with their feet pointing straight or to the outside. Their prints are smaller and strikes shorter. 5. Persons walking backwards have a shorter irregular stride with the prints having unusually deep toe. soil will be kicked in the direction of movement. 6. Last person walking usually leaves clearest prints. 7. To estimate the number of people in the group, count the number of footprints that fall into an area of about a rifle’s length; if the number is 4 or less, that is the number of the group, if 5 or 6 add 2.  OTHER SIGNS OF DISPLACEMENT 1. Directions of grass, leaves, sticks or stones kicked up by the feet indicate direction of movement. 2. Unnatural formations of vines, dead grass, etc, indicate pushing aside and disturbance of natural appearance. 3. Sap, latex exuding from cuts or bruises on protruding roots and barks indicate scuffmarks. 4. Dry leaf on the ground after rain. 5. Change of color when foliage shows underside or darker ones in the case of upturned stones and pebbles. 6. Broken spider’s web and other animal abodes. STAINS – A good example is the mark left by blood from bleeding wounds often from droplet forms. Blood signs can be found on the ground or  OTHER SIGNS OF DISPLACEMENT. WEATHERING – may either aid or hinder tracking. it affects signs in ways that help determine how old they are but rain and sunlight can also obliterate signs completely. By studying the effects of weather on signs, you can determine its age. a. Footprints are greatly affected by weather. When a foot displaces soft moist soil to form a print, the moisture holds the edges of the print intact and sharp. as sunlight and air dry the edges, small particles that were held in place by the moisture, fall into the print making the edges appear rounded. b. Wind affects sounds and odors. If the wind is blowing from the direction of a trail you are following, sounds and odors will be carried to you. If not, then exercise caution. c. To help you decide where a sound is coming from, cup your hands behind your ears and turn slowly. The origin of the sound is where you will hear it loudest. When moving, try to keep the wind on your face. d. SUN – You must also consider the effects of the sun. The times to tract are early morning or late afternoon where the low angle of the sun brings up tracks. Make sure that the tract is between yourself and the light source. e. LITTERING – Poorly trained units may leave trails of litter as they  OTHER SIGNS OF DISPLACEMENT f. CAMOUFLAGE – If the party knows that you are tracking them, they will probably use camouflage to conceal movement and to slow you down and confuse you. Doing so however, will slow them down as well. Walking backwards, brushing out trails and moving over rockygrounds or streams are examples of frequently used deceptions. a. The party may move on hard surfaces, frequently traveled roads or try to merge with travelling civilians. Examine such routes with extreme care since a well-defined approach that leads to the enemy might be mined, lead to an ambush, or covered by snipers. b. The party may exit a stream in column or line to reduce the chance of leaving a well- defined exit. c. If the party walks backwards, the footprints will be deeper at the toe and the soil will be dragged towards the direction of movement. d. If a party leads across rocks or hard ground, try to work around that ground to pick up the exit trail. This process works in streams as well. If you loss the trail, return to the visible sign. From there, head in the direction of the movement in ever widening circles until you find more signs to follow. 6. INTERPRETATION/IMMEDIATE USE – When reporting, do not report your interpretation as facts. Report that you have seen of certain things, not that those actually exist. Quick and detailed reports give your leader and adjacent units information that can be acted upon. For example, you may report that you are 30 minutes behind an enemy unit, which is moving north and that he is now at a certain place. Your leader could then move another unit to attack the enemy or set up ambush  COUNTER TRACKING: In addition to knowing how to track, you must know how to counter enemy tracking efforts. Some counter tracking techniques are in the following: 1. While moving from a close terrain to an open one, walk past, passing a big tree towards the open for about five paces. Then walk backwards to the forward side of the tree and make 90-degree turn or change direction, passing the tree on its forward side. Step carefully and leave as little sign as possible. 2. When approaching a trail, change your direction of movement and approach it at 45 – degree angle. upon arrival on the trail, move along it for about 30 meters. then walk backwards along the trail to the point where you joined it. at that point, cross the trail moving about 100 meters at an angle of 45 degrees but this time on the other side of the trail and in reverse of your approach. 3. To leave a false trail and get enemy trackers looking in the wrong direction, walk backwards over soft ground until you are on a hard ground. you can use this technique when leaving a stream. 4. When your direction of movement parallels a stream, use the stream to deceive the enemy, using these tactics that will help elude trackers: a. Stay in the stream for 100 to 200 meters. b. Stay at the center of the stream and in deep waters. c. Leave the stream at rocks and roots not covered by moss or vegetation. d. Walk out backwards on soft ground. e. When being tracked, best remedy is either to out-distance, or double back and ambush him.