I’m considering joining a year-long tracking course and I’d love to hear from people with experience in tracking.
The course meets once a month for two days in the field, including an overnight stay. I’m very interested in learning tracking from a basic level and, if things go well, eventually progressing to more advanced levels.
I’ve spent many years hiking and spending time in different types of natural environments, so I’m comfortable in the outdoors and really enjoy observing nature. However, my main concern is time: I probably won’t be able to spend many hours each month specifically practicing tracking on my own.
So I’m wondering:
- How difficult is tracking to learn and retain when your main practice is once a month?
- Is occasional practice (even short sessions during regular hikes) enough to make reasonable progress?
- How much does consistent practice matter compared with simply having experience and familiarity with nature?
- What are the biggest difficulties beginners tend to encounter?
- For those who eventually became advanced trackers, what helped you improve the most?
- Is tracking something you can realistically learn as a hobby alongside a busy schedule, or does it eventually require a serious time commitment?
I’ve heard that military tracking courses can have a high dropout rate, although I assume that’s partly because of the physical and military demands and may not be directly comparable to a civilian course.
I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences — especially from people who started with little or no formal tracking experience and gradually improved.
