Ellensburg
Wildlife Trailing
Course

Ellensburg Wildlife Trailing Course

Note: this is not a Trailing Evaluation

Thurs/Fri September 10th & 11th

(two world class instructors two separate 4 person workshops)

Please join us for trailing opportunities in Eastern WA with Rob Speiden author of two SAR tracking books: Foundations for Awareness, Signcutting and Tracking and Tracker Training. Your other instructor is Marcus Reynerson is a Lead Instructor and Facilitator with Tracking the Kalahari, a non-profit that facilitates groups visiting the CyberTracker Kalahari Master Tracker Project in Northeast Namibia.

Shrub-steppe is a very diverse ecosystem and has species found nowhere else in Washington!

East Cascades will be explored here too! As this region is where these biomes meet.

Shrub-steppe is a vital habitat for sage grouse, pygmy rabbits, mule deer, pronghorn antelope and dozens of other bird and animal species, the sagebrush sea is a sprawling shrub-steppe ecosystem stretching from the eastern flanks of the Rocky Mountains in Montana and Wyoming through the Great Basin of Nevada and Utah north to eastern Washington and Oregon. Core winter range for mule deer and home to endangered grouse, pronghorn. Shrub-Steppe description from Conservation Northwest.

At a Trailing Workshop, every participant takes a turn as lead tracker. The goal is to follow an animal’s fresh spoor (any presence of the animal) to locate it on the landscape, guide the group to approach and observe it, and, finally, to exit the area without alerting the animal to any human presence. Every tracking situation is different, so we are always in the position of having to “figure it out.” This uniqueness also results in variations to the exact experience of each participant, dictated by field conditions and animal behavior.

We teach participant how to follow spoor (any presence of the animal), recognize and interpret tracks & sign, anticipate where the trail is going, read the trail for danger, interpret the ecological context of the trail, and approach the animal, if the occasion arises.

We typically follow any of the ungulates, especially deer, elk, moose, feral hogs, javelina, and bighorn sheep; however, participants should be prepared to follow the trail of any animal large enough to leave sign, e.g., bears. To understand more and get a description of Trailing Workshops/Evaluation click here. There is a great video here Dave & Casey did that explains what Trailing and animal means.

Your instructor Rob Speiden began his tracking experiences while growing up on a dairy farm in Orange County, Virginia. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Biological Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech. Rob is an active member of the Search and Rescue (SAR) community, and he has assisted with well over 400 searches for missing persons since 1993. He is a Search and Rescue Tracking Specialist, Lead Tracking Instructor and Evaluator for the Virginia Department of Emergency Management

Your Instructor Marcus Reynerson has had an affinity for the living world since childhood. He is a naturalist, educator, and photographer. He has worked in wilderness education, outdoor leadership, and conservation for numerous organizations and communities across North America. He is engaged in telling stories that bring to light and life, the complexity of humans living in the 21st century. Originally from Louisville, Marcus currently lives in the Snoqualmie Valley in Washington State, just east of Seattle, where he is the Lead Instructor for an internationally renowned environmental leadership immersion program for adults at the Wilderness Awareness School in Duvall, WA.

Full Refunds minus $50 processing fee given before 30 days of program after that I will honor a credit If I can fill your spot!