Opening post by Lord Gawen Hunter · #1
before you follow tracks, mark the nearest water on your map... a stream, pond, or well gives the trail a fixed point when the ground turns to scrub. I use a small pin and note which bank the tracks leave from. Do that first, even when the trail looks clear; Brindlemark taught me what a barren season costs when small precautions are skipped.
then check whether the prints lead toward water or away from it. Deer usually drink before bedding, while boar may churn the bank and leave mud on reeds. Follow the fresher edge, not the deepest mark, and pause at every crossing... tracks vanish there, but the next wet patch often tells you where they went.
if you lose the trail, return to your water mark instead of wandering in circles. Search ten paces along each bank, looking for bent grass, clipped stems, and mud flakes on stone. New hunters, do this before calling for help... a marked stream can save an entire afternoon, and I am trying it tonight, whatever it is.