Tactical Tracking-Alabama

bearthedog · Mar 18, 2012

Here are some photos of the tracking class taught by Jimmy Dunn this past week in Fort Payne, Alabama.
Great group of people and I learned a lot from Jimmy, David, Spaz and Tracy.

Tracking Basics

Tracking Sticks for an exercise

Hugh Coffee (author of Ditch Medicine) http://www.paladin-press.com/product/Ditch_Medicine/Survival_Medicine
was there to lend his expertise in combat medicine, with his own brilliant fashion.

Bum Camp

Hugh Coffee and I lived in the Jimmys woods during the duration of the class. There were a few rainy nights, but it was fun.

Hobo-Hugh

In the field

Confirmation

Gonna have me some fun tonight.

This whole thing made me sleepy so I took a nap

Cool tool Tracy showed me. A hawk head with a gut hook that can accept a sapling screwed into the threads.

Alabama

bearthedog · Mar 18, 2012

I think I hate you

dialton · Mar 18, 2012

BTD, I enjoy your posts from all over the place. Makes me envious and a bit curious. If its not too noesy, care to share a bit of what you do that allows such varied travels and adventures?

kgd · Mar 18, 2012

Great documentary Bear. Didn't look like a very cuddly group there but some great exercises and training. Love the beetle rising shot! On the last shot 'I hate you' is it the thorns you are disparaging? This time of year the brambles seem especially bad, the wood is more stiff having survived the winter and there isn't any foliage to provide any buffer to the sharps.

kamagong · Mar 18, 2012

That leuku looks interesting. Who's the maker?

Allen R. · Mar 18, 2012

FT payne is about an hour north of me, I love when people post stuff like this so close to my home. Awesome Thread!

bearthedog · Mar 18, 2012

dialton said:
BTD, I enjoy your posts from all over the place. Makes me envious and a bit curious. If its not too noesy, care to share a bit of what you do that allows such varied travels and adventures?

The love of the game.

kgd said:
Great documentary Bear. Didn't look like a very cuddly group there but some great exercises and training. Love the beetle rising shot! On the last shot 'I hate you' is it the thorns you are disparaging? This time of year the brambles seem especially bad, the wood is more stiff having survived the winter and there isn't any foliage to provide any buffer to the sharps.

These guys were all law enforcement from various walks of life. I knew a few of them from two different survival classes held in Alabama and two of the guys (Jimmy Dunn and Patrick Rollins) are RAT/ESEE survival instructors and we always have a good time. The other officers were also very cool and didn’t mind me with my bazooka-like camera in their face. Even I annoyed myself.

The brambles were the source of my great aggravation, especially in the early morning hours when Hugh and I would walk out of the woods in the dark.

kamagong said:
That leuku looks interesting. Who's the maker?

I don’t know. Jimmy just got it from Finland and asked me to use it in the woods. I ended up cutting a couple of saplings for the litter they made. If you really want to know the maker let me know and I will ask Jimmy.

Allen R. said:
FT payne is about an hour north of me, I love when people post stuff like this so close to my home. Awesome Thread!

Jimmy lives there and although this was a law enforcement only type of party, Jimmy is up for training people who want to get into tracking animals or lost hiker’s.

lowery399 · Mar 18, 2012

It was a good time BTD and it was good to meet you and have you along with us for most of the class.

bearthedog · Mar 18, 2012

lowery399 said:
It was a good time BTD and it was good to meet you and have you along with us for most of the class.

Matt it was my pleasure. Not just saying this, but the officers from Georgia were my favorite group to photograph and hang with. You guys also were the best team there.

-RB

Erasmus · Mar 18, 2012

Nice shot of the poison dripping off the knife. I'm not allowed to play with poison.

lowery399 · Mar 18, 2012

bearthedog said:
You guys also were the best team there.

-RB

Thanks again, look forward to seeing you before too long.

KuRUpTD · Mar 18, 2012

Great thread Bear ... looks like you guys had a blast !

kamagong said:
That leuku looks interesting. Who's the maker?

Looks a lot like a Seikku Leuku

John A. Larsen · Mar 18, 2012

Bearthedog, I would like to know the makers of both Leukus. I took part in a Tactical Tracking class some years back taught by David Scott-Donlean, ex Rhodesian SAS, Selous Scout and Combat Tracker. It is amazing how you can read someone's trail after being taught what to look for. Thanks. John

TheGame · Mar 18, 2012

Fantastic pics. Definitely looks like an interesting class to take. Really nice looking Leuku, too.

bearthedog · Mar 18, 2012

John A. Larsen said:
Bearthedog, I would like to know the makers of both Leukus. I took part in a Tactical Tracking class some years back taught by David Scott-Donlean, ex Rhodesian SAS, Selous Scout and Combat Tracker. It is amazing how you can read someone's trail after being taught what to look for. Thanks. John

John,
I will find out about the Leukus.

Was the class you took by TTOS?

-RB

Quirt · Mar 18, 2012

Bear, what is the name of this training group? I may have missed it.

coaldigger · Mar 18, 2012

Nice pics 'OlBud !

bearthedog · Mar 19, 2012

John A. Larsen said:
Bearthedog, I would like to know the makers of both Leukus. I took part in a Tactical Tracking class some years back taught by David Scott-Donlean, ex Rhodesian SAS, Selous Scout and Combat Tracker. It is amazing how you can read someone's trail after being taught what to look for. Thanks. John

Got this from Jimmy.
Ilkka Seikku is the maker of the thicker bladed knife. The handle is birch and caribou. This is Ilkka's site, http://www.tuluskivi.suntuubi.com/ .His work is relatively inexpensive even after shipping from Finland. The current lead time on his knives is only about 4 weeks now.

The other was made by Eric Bergland out of WA. Unfortunately he no longer has a website and I have no contact information.

-RB

John A. Larsen · Mar 19, 2012

Bearthedog. Thanks for the information. I thought I recognized the second leuku but just could not access the information from that floppy disc I call a brain. I know Eric and hope to see him at Eugene next month. Yes, it was a class by TTOS, way back in June 1999. Thanks. John

kamagong · Mar 19, 2012

Too bad about Eric Bergland. That second leuku looks like a great piece. Oh well, at least it's much easier to find good puukkos and leukus now than it used to be.