Snow Tracking
There's no better time to track activity, than when there's snow on the ground
The winter months are a great time to get out and do some hiking, as long as you're fit enough to handle the cold. It's so easy to get in a sedentary pattern of excuses for not getting enough exercise, and for the resulting weight gain. Often, I look for things outside that interest me, things that are constructive, or at least informative. Tracking in the snow has always been one of my favorite outdoor activities when it's cold. You don't have to be a hunter to find animal tracking interesting. I see it as a matter of safety and awareness in some cases, For the most part though, it's an activity that you can do with your kids, your partner, for a daytime date activity, or yes, for varmint control and hunting.
The best time for tracking in snow is probably mid to late morning, until mid-afternoon, although you could find tracks well after dark, I wouldn't want to venture very far out into the wild on a cold evening. Personal safety is an absolute necessity, and avoiding hypothermia or frostbite must be a priority, so keep track of time, and be aware of temperature changes, or changing weather conditions. If you're tracking after a snowfall, you might want to go earlier than later, because melting snow will erase the details that could identify the species that you are tracking. The first accessory that I'd want, is a chart of typical local wildlife, usually available from your state Fish and Wildlife agencies. Your mobile phone could be just as effective in identifying tracks with apps similar to google lens. These apps compare your pictures to the WWW database of images associated with animal tracks. For example, in my area, it would be good to know if you're tracking a groundhog, opossum, Raccoon, or a skunk!
My personal preferences for snow tracking, is to start after 9;00a.m. An overnight snowfall of 3 or 4" is good, but you can track animals with much less accumulated snow, The details of the tracks will likely melt off if the temperatures rise with the mid-day sun. Heavier snowfall amounts just make the tracking much more physically demanding. stepping over or slugging through heavy snow makes for a good workout though! Other disadvantages of 5" or deeper snow, are: 1, The fact that you have to get much closer, to be able to look down in the deeper snowy tracks for details. 2, safety becomes more of an issue in the outdoors. Keep in mind that escape is much harder in deep snow, and the visibility of things like holes, uneven terrain, deepening snow, and other snares and obstacles, are easily hidden under the blown and drifted snow cover. Snow has a way of leveling these things out and giving the appearance of smooth level ground. Lesser amounts of snow are not as deceiving. Once you've found a clear and unbroken track leading in a certain direction, a pair of binoculars is good to have, it will allow you to see where the tracks go, and sometimes you might see them peeking back at you, from holes in the ground where they live. These holes and mounded dirt berms are the Dens where they live. The ground temperature keeps them from freezing, and some animals can burrow very deep in the ground with tunnels that connect to other surface holes where they can escape, or they might choose to mount an attack while you're looking at a different hole. lol... Do not approach a den without considering the risk. Most animals defend their dens accordingly. Sunglasses, preferably polarized lenses will help keep the glare of the reflected sunlight from the snow from blinding you. Some animals are very long travelers, some are very locally oriented, and snow is a factor that contains some animals that would normally travel many miles in a day's time. I won't follow a long traveler like a deer or coyote very far, but I take note of where they stop and turn, where they rest, and where they come back repeatedly. Places where they assemble together are cool to find, the tracks are everywhere and so many that you could lose a track if there's not something significantly different about the tracks you follow. A chip in a hoof, or an especially large track.
As you can see, I get a little excited about tracking, and the nuance details, but it's something I enjoy doing, and it's something that You can do, and share with others too!
Stay safe out there!
Your old buddy Tom
