Tracking--Signs of Man, Signs of Hope: A Systematic Approach to the Art and Science of Tracking Humans [Hardcover]

This is one of a very few exclusive titles on the subject of tracking humans (man-tracking) available, most are out of print and hard to find. This past year has brought "us" two outstanding books on this very subject. First is Joel Hardin's mammoth book "Tracker: Case files & Adventures of a Professional Mantracker" (which unfortunately is unavailable for purchase on Amazon, but may be obtained at Joel's website; http://www.jhardin-inc.com/) and now Diaz's "Tracking: Signs of Man, Signs of Hope" both of which I highly recommend for the trackers professional library, whether you are military or civilian, track humans or animals.

One interesting aspect of this book is a paralleling short story at the end of each (most) chapter about a Special Forces tracking team on tactical follow-up mission in Korea. The author uses this fictitious story to familiarize the reader with the employment of man-trackers and at points to illustrate the topics and learning's of the chapters covered. The story was interesting and somewhat entertaining but I do not know if it truly hit the mark, for what it was intended for, and I do not know if this will appeal to any other trackers other then military or Law enforcement trackers. I personally liked the concept but would have rather heard about his (Diaz) actual exploits and use of these techniques whether operationally or just in his training experience. I do not know how valid my compliant will be seen (by others and Diaz) as the whole of this book is based on his (Diaz) experience and knowledge of the subject.

The meat and potatoes of this book are seven chapters. Starting with Chapter One, which covers tracking history and an overview of tracking to set the tempo of the book, over all it is done in a broad stroke of the brush, as stated it was brief coverage. Chapter Two gets into the details of getting into the "mind" of the quarry or as used in the book the "Chase". Chapter Three covers in detail how the senses are used in tracking and used to see and find "sign". It covers human sight, auditory tracking, scent tracking and finally tactile tracking. This chapter goes into detail often missed in other works but essentially in the end the same information is covered. Chapter Four begins to explain the substances that make up visual tracking, and what cues alert or ID "sign" to the tracker. Given detailed information about ground sign, middle sign and top sign. This section also covers gait and stride measurements of the quarry and finally factors affecting "signs", Diaz covers this in four broad factors; terrain, weather/climatic conditions, time, and human/animal disturbance. Chapter five covers aging. This is the cornerstone of tracking, and this is what separates the groupies from the rock stars. Also this is the hardest of all tracking subjects to put to paper (excluding Tom Brown's mythical and sometimes comical system of pressure releases). Diaz in this section covers flora and fauna as well as human and animal excrement in helping the ageing bracketing of sign. Something I have not seen covered in other tracking titles is the coverage Diaz gives to Forensic pathology in aging a corpse. Also in this chapter is detailed coverage of building and maintaining an aging stand or laboratory. Overall the reader gets a good foundation to start with and build on. Chapter Six covers detailed information for maintaining tracking records and logs, filling out tracking reports to help save and disseminate information/intelligence. Also covered is information on determining quarry size, speed and direction of movement, morale and other factors. Details are given on search techniques and patterns, as well very detailed section on blood spoor and blood trailing. The finale chapter covers the tracking team employment, duties and structure, as well as tactics, immediate action drills, and track search procedures. This section also covers training techniques for the tracker and tracking team.

The end matter is also detailed providing the reader with an epilogue, Tracker's Creed, five appendixes on various reports and logs, glossary, recommended reading which I felt was totally inadequate and incomplete (this is minor pet-peeve), and finally a very detailed index. Between the index and footnotes through out the book I feel Diaz more then made-up for his weak recommended reading list.

The book is a hard cover (which will be available in soft cover also, ideal for field work) with full-color dust jacket. It is profusely illustrated with line drawings, charts, tables, color and B&W photography. The photography of the different "sign" ranges from super to useless, the later being less prevalent. Overall the photos are a great source for the novice providing detailed insight to the text. Page count is I-XIII pages of front matter, 242 pages of subject matter, forty pages of which is end matter.

Overall all I found this book to very good with no major flaws, it covers details missed or ignored in most other titles and brings the reader sound knowledge from a reputable source. This book will not please all trackers but will bring a smile to the military and law enforcement tracker as for this book caters to them specifically, but the information is still of use to all trackers. Remember as with all tracking books the title is not meant to make you a master tracker but will help you along on your endeavor to becoming a competent tracker. Finally the information in this book will only be as good as your dedication and "dirt time".

This book is primarily focused on the needs the military tracker, and that is the author's background. It does, indeed, attempt to present a systematic approach to the subject and largely succeeds. Although I am primarily interested in civilian search and rescue tracking, I found a lot to learn and consider in this book. An excellent complement to this book is "The SAS Guide to Tracking" by Bob Carss. Tom Brown's "The Science and Art of Tracking" also deserves a place on the tracker's bookshelf as well as Jack Kearney's "Tracking: A Blueprint for Learning How" and Tom Brown's "Field Guide to Nature Observation and Tracking."

I originally purchased this book as an add-on with an animal tracking book. My background is animal tracking with an interest in Search and Rescue (SAR). I thought this would help me with possible SAR missions in the forests that I frequent. To be quite honest, I didn't think I would ever really read this entire book because my schedule is tight and finding time to read -any- book is a challenge.

On a business trip I decided to take it along for killing time on the two hour flight. I began reading it and got half way through on the first half of the round trip. I found myself unable to put the book down. The meat and potatoes of this book are the fundamentals of tracking humans with practical application. Where I became addicted was the millitary account of an actual tracking scenario. This account is told alongside your learning of the basics.

If you are remotely interested in tracking people I highly recommend this book for you. It will definitely teach you fundamentals of tracking and tell you how to apply what you are learning. Make sure when you do begin to read the book that you have a few hours of time set aside because you will not be able to put it down.

Military personnel, this book is probably mandatory reading. The military aspect opend my eyes up to things I had no idea. I am not a military person but I now have a newfound respect for those serving in any service area.

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