Tracking and Counter tracking

[Selous]

I was watching the Discovery series Lone Target/Manhunt and was reminded about my own tracking experiences in the veld in South Africa. I decided to create this thread in order to discuss tracking (both human and animal) and counter tracking. Please share tips, techniques and stories. Does Pakistan have a dedicated tracking unit or school ? How good are the people who live in rural areas at tracking ?

I will begin by sharing a story of my own. In South Africa we have the San people (Bushmen) who are known for their phenomenal tracking abilities. However it is not only the San who can track. Almost all the Africans who grow up in rural areas can track to some degree but some tribes are better at it than others due to lifestyle differences. Some of the best trackers come from the Griqua people. I was hunting with my family on a farm outside the town of Kimberley. My tracker was a Griqua man. The size of the land we were hunting on was about 27 thousand hectares so it was a huge place. Anyway one of the members of my party shot and wounded (it was just a graze above the shoulder) a blesbok. The animal ran away and since we were on foot we could not follow very quick. The tracker decided that we would come back the next day to look for the animal since it was not seriously wounded and in about half an hour the sun would go down. At the spot where the animal was standing was just one drop of blood on a blade of grass. The next day this tracker found that same drop of blood on the blade of grass in a sea of grass...I mean there was grass as far as the eye could see with some trees here and there. He then proceeded to track that animal for the next 8 hours over some of the worst terrain that I have ever hunted in (the grass eventually gave way to rocky land) until he found the animal and we shot it dead. I am a decent tracker myself but most of the time I could not even see what this guy was following...especially in the rocky areas...there was no blood, no hoof prints nothing...I had a feeling that he was following by scent. It was unbelievable.

 

[Sine Nomine]

@Selous may we have any dedicated Tracking school or not,but peoples from Waziristan,Thar,Cholistan and some areas from Baluchistan are very good at tracking, even in rural areas of Punjab there are "khojees" who are best at manhunt but it seems this wonderful art is dying.

 

[Levina]

..I had a feeling that he was following by scent. It was unbelievable.

Awesome isnt it?
Tracking needs a lot of patience ,bad weather and terrain do test a tracker's patience.
Afaik bent blades do give a hint when there's a lot of grass where you begin tracking and also the top of the grass will point in the direction the person is walking. If the animal has passed through after sunrise, the dew will be disturbed and a faint darkened area will reveal its trail. Broken spiderwebs,over turned rocks and so may other trails..
Tracking terrorists is a different game altogether.You must know a lot about 'em before start the chase like how many terrorists 're you tracking to begin with. keeping alert is so important because if the terrorist knows or suspects he is being followed then he will try to set you up.And the game is over...

I hope some really experienced army professionals post their experiences here.

 

[Northern lights]

I was watching the Discovery series Lone Target/Manhunt and was reminded about my own tracking experiences in the veld in South Africa. I decided to create this thread in order to discuss tracking (both human and animal) and counter tracking. Please share tips, techniques and stories. Does Pakistan have a dedicated tracking unit or school ? How good are the people who live in rural areas at tracking ?

I will begin by sharing a story of my own. In South Africa we have the San people (Bushmen) who are known for their phenomenal tracking abilities. However it is not only the San who can track. Almost all the Africans who grow up in rural areas can track to some degree but some tribes are better at it than others due to lifestyle differences. Some of the best trackers come from the Griqua people. I was hunting with my family on a farm outside the town of Kimberley. My tracker was a Griqua man. The size of the land we were hunting on was about 27 thousand hectares so it was a huge place. Anyway one of the members of my party shot and wounded (it was just a graze above the shoulder) a blesbok. The animal ran away and since we were on foot we could not follow very quick. The tracker decided that we would come back the next day to look for the animal since it was not seriously wounded and in about half an hour the sun would go down. At the spot where the animal was standing was just one drop of blood on a blade of grass. The next day this tracker found that same drop of blood on the blade of grass in a sea of grass...I mean there was grass as far as the eye could see with some trees here and there. He then proceeded to track that animal for the next 8 hours over some of the worst terrain that I have ever hunted in (the grass eventually gave way to rocky land) until he found the animal and we shot it dead. I am a decent tracker myself but most of the time I could not even see what this guy was following...especially in the rocky areas...there was no blood, no hoof prints nothing...I had a feeling that he was following by scent. It was unbelievable.

You should watch movie Rabbit-Proof Fence.

 

[Selous]

You should watch movie Rabbit-Proof Fence.

Ok will do.

 

[Selous]

@Selous may we have any dedicated Tracking school or not,but peoples from Waziristan,Thar,Cholistan and some areas from Baluchistan are very good at tracking, even in rural areas of Punjab there are "khojees" who are best at manhunt but it seems this wonderful art is dying.

Why is it dying out ?

 

[Selous]

Awesome isnt it?
Tracking needs a lot of patience ,bad weather and terrain do test a tracker's patience.
Afaik bent blades do give a hint when there's a lot of grass where you begin tracking and also the top of the grass will point in the direction the person is walking. If the animal has passed through after sunrise, the dew will be disturbed and a faint darkened area will reveal its trail. Broken spiderwebs,over turned rocks and so may other trails..
Tracking terrorists is a different game altogether.You must know a lot about 'em before start the chase like how many terrorists 're you tracking to begin with. keeping alert is so important because if the terrorist knows or suspects he is being followed then he will try to set you up.And the game is over...

I hope some really experienced army professionals post their experiences here.

True...please go ahead and tag members who might know more or have experience.

 

[Sine Nomine]

Why is it dying out ?

Simple there are no forests left in Punjab,so no kinda hunting tracking,khojees were used by police to track thieves but you know after introduction and ease access to firearms art of theft is dead and tracking is dead also in this field,also my grandfather is very good at this because he did both manhunt and hunting,i tried to learn but as you told it needs patience, but it also needs passion so i was not enough to learn this wonderful art.

 

[Levina]

True...please go ahead and tag members who might know more or have experience.

Hmm I think professionals can help @Joe Shearer @SvenSvensonov.
@LeveragedBuyout @sandy_3126 @sancho

 

[LeveragedBuyout]

Hmm I think professionals can help

I hope I've not implied that I am a military professional, I'm not. If I may also tag @gambit , he may have some knowledge in this (not sure, since his experience seems air force related). And for good measure, @Nihonjin1051 .

 

[SvenSvensonov]

Hmm I think professionals can help @Joe Shearer @SvenSvensonov.
@LeveragedBuyout @sandy_3126 @sancho

Tracking enemy electronic signals and locating said enemy based on their poor use of communications and limited, if existent, grasp on EMSEC? I can do that better then just about any. Tracking an enemy by following environmental clues... I'm hopeless and sometimes can't even find my dog in my own backyard!

My former job in EMSEC deals with countering an enemies attempts to track our communications, signals and electronic signature... though the same principles can be turned around and used to track an enemy. I have a lot of experience with this, but much of the protocols and procedures are classified and thus I won't spill too many secrets.

https://www.nsa.gov/about/_files/cryptologic_heritage/publications/misc/elint.pdf

ELINT: A Scientific Intelligence System — Central Intelligence Agency

http://fas.org/irp/nsa/almanac-elint.pdf

http://project2049.net/documents/ch...lint_satellite_developments_easton_stokes.pdf

 

[Aepsilons]

Tracking the enemy requires one to physically be ready , and nimble enough to evade the one being tracked, at the same time the use of psychology is also necessary.

Some general rules to tracking:

1) All members of the tracking team should be trained, experienced trackers
2) Four men seems to be the best number for team size
3) If possible, never separate a team once formed. Teamwork saves lives and get results
4) Get the trackers on the spoor as soon as possible
5) Once the tracking team commander is on ground, team leader is boss.
6) Rotate tracker and flanker often. Tracking requires exacting concentration and pressure is absolute. Team leader should watch for these signs always
7) When operating, use hand signals at all times. If you have to, whisper if you need to talk, but silence is crucial.
8) Rest is important
9) If possible, leap frog guerillas.

 

[Aepsilons]

I hope I've not implied that I am a military professional, I'm not. If I may also tag @gambit , he may have some knowledge in this (not sure, since his experience seems air force related). And for good measure, @Nihonjin1051 .

Thanks for the tag, Sir !

Tracking enemy electronic signals and locating said enemy based on their poor use of communications and limited, if existent, grasp on EMSEC? I can do that better then just about any. Tracking an enemy by following environmental clues... I'm hopeless and sometimes can't even find my dog in my own backyard!

My former job in EMSEC deals with countering an enemies attempts to track our communications, signals and electronic signature... though the same principles can be turned around and used to track an enemy. I have a lot of experience with this, but much of the protocols and procedures are classified and thus I won't spill too many secrets.

https://www.nsa.gov/about/_files/cryptologic_heritage/publications/misc/elint.pdf

ELINT: A Scientific Intelligence System — Central Intelligence Agency

http://fas.org/irp/nsa/almanac-elint.pdf

http://project2049.net/documents/ch...lint_satellite_developments_easton_stokes.pdf

Interesting input. Definitely its important to maintain communication, but there are times when its important to go cold. I also want to say that there are times where its best to use tactical knives to silence targets. A deep cut into the jugular can easily dispatch even the greatest opponent.

 

[SvenSvensonov]

Interesting input. Definitely its important to maintain communication, but there are times when its important to go cold. I also want to say that there are times where its best to use tactical knives to silence targets. A deep cut into the jugular can easily dispatch even the greatest opponent.

Without question! But tracking and placing said knife into an enemy is far beyond anything I have practical experience with. Our drones, our missiles, our war-fighters track enemies using electronic signals, and our enemies attempt to track us, I can help with this. But offering advise on stalking an enemy silently, while maintaining radio-dark protocols... forget about it! I can't do anything of the sort.

Our enemies know we can track their comms... how couldn't they its been in the news with the NSA leaks, but fortunately for us, there is more then one way to gather electronic intelligence. Your phone doesn't even need to be on for us to track it. Scary isn't it?

Do you have experience with man tracking?

Also, for those in the US that are interested, there are tracking schools.
Courses and Certifications - National Association For Search And Rescue

And for additional, and in-depth information on tracking I would recommend these link:
COMBAT TRACKING (MANTRACKING)

Sign Cutting and Tracking Methods Employed by the US Border Patrol : ITS Tactical

@Selous @levina you guys might like these.

 

[Aepsilons]

Do you have experience with man tracking?

Yes, I have.