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Oregon Dunes Wildlife Tracking Expedition

"The Oregon Dunes Expedition has given me a newfound appreciation for the magnitude of animal activities that I never knew were going on around me all the time..."
-Paul Schertz

Oregon Dunes Wildlife Tracking Expedition
September 25-28, 2008, 5:00 p.m. Thurs. - 12:00 p.m. Sun.,
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, near Reedsport, OR
$325; camping included, participants provide own food. (Flying in? We can help coordinate travel). Lead instructor David Moskowitz.
Call to register: 425-788-1301

Come study the Art and Science of Tracking in one of North America’s finest tracking environments!

The fine sandy soil of the Oregon Dunes allows for excellent study of a wide variety of wildlife tracks and sign, and provides opportunities for all skill levels – from the most novice tracker learning how to identify the tracks of coyote, bear, and raccoon, to the most experienced tracker studying the intimate details of animals lives or practicing the arts of trailing and interpretation.

In this trackers' training ground and playground we will dive into the technical skills of tracking:

• Clear print I.D. of mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians
• Interpretation of feeding sign, scent marking and numerous wildlife interactions with their environment.
• Trailing wildlife and understanding animal gait patterns

Expect full days in the field which blend training exercises and trailing wildlife such as gray fox, black bear, elk, and river otter.

Evenings are spent around the fire reviewing the day’s discoveries and learning about tracking topics including: human perception, history and lore, and modern applications of this ancient art.

Students leave with a collection of skills for furthering their own naturalist studies through tracking, along with exciting first hand experiences of trailing animals for miles!

What is it really like at the dunes?

Here is one Dunes Expedition experience as told by Evan McGown.

"I invite you to go on a little journey with me for a moment: imagine yourself on the peak of a sand dune, gazing out across a landscape of sand occasionally broken by green islands of vegetation. Imagine it’s a breezy but warm day with the sound of the ocean in the background, and you find an incredibly fresh trail of a fox in the sand, and begin to follow it across the parchment of the ground upon which the story of this wild animal is written. Each track is picture-perfect in its detail, and as you follow the trail, you hear bird alarms coming from a vegetative thicket in front of you. Now you run to the thicket, hearing the bird alarms stop, and you find the fox’s trail leaving the thicket in a full gallop…the fox is running from you! You begin sprinting as you continue following the trail, your heart beating fast and wild, and your eyes scanning the horizon for the quick movements of that usually invisible animal…

Can you imagine the thrill of this experience? This happened to me three years ago when I spent a week tracking at the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area just south of Coos Bay, Oregon. This was the moment when tracking became real for me, when I realized I was learning an ancient art that puts me into direct relationship with wild animals that normally live on the edge of human awareness. And the thing was, I was just a beginning tracker!

We’ve taken numerous field trips over the years, with our intensively-mentored students, to this place that we have lovingly come to refer to as “The Dunes.” Our experiences along the Oregon coast have been so memorable that we decided last year to start running expeditions there that were open to the public.

Second only to snow, the fine sands of the Dunes offer the best tracking with incredible detail. Here participants can follow the trails of black bear, mink, porcupine, coyote, mouse, elk, otter, and many others for MILES! The ability to see these whole stories written in the sand makes it the perfect place for beginner and expert alike to learn and grow as a tracker and naturalist.

I want to invite you to take part in what is sure to be an amazing weekend of learning and adventure in this extraordinary place.

Instructor Biography

David Moskowitz is our lead tracking courses instructor, and serves as a core instructor for the Tracking Intensive, our expeditions and workships, and Tracking Club. He has been studying the art of wildlife tracking for over a decade.

Dave holds a bachelors degree in Environmental Studies through Prescott College with an emphasis on Field Ecology and Tracking. He has been involved with several animal tracking related research projects including snow tracking surveys for rare forest carnivores in the Oregon and Washington Cascades, and currently is the project manager for the Cascade Wildlife Monitoring Project. He has taught tracking courses in a variety of settings and for applications including environmental education, wilderness expeditioning, and training volunteers involved in wildlife monitoring courses. Dave trained extensively with Charles Worsham and Tom Brown Jr.

Along with his tracking expertise, he is a skilled adult educator and has been involved in experiential/outdoor education and instructor training for a wide variety of organizations.

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