Watching wild animals in their natural habitat is one of the most thrilling adventures. An indescribable feeling of delight comes over you when you manage to get within just a few meters unnoticed and capture a moment in the life of an animal without disturbing it.
To experience this, you need to master two interconnected skills: observation and camouflage. In army practice, recruits are taught: observation is the ability to detect the enemy, and camouflage is the art of hiding from his sight. For a scout, these skills are an invaluable part of the arsenal.
I was fortunate to learn this skill from the San Bushmen living in Namibia (South Africa). This tribe are unparalleled trackers. It was an honor for me to watch how they move and "read" the terrain. What an untrained eye would consider an ordinary bush or thicket is a source of many clues for a Bushman.
They move attentively and silently, noting every detail, quietly exchanging remarks. Following a trail, they not only look but also listen, and then, having driven, for example, a hare into its burrow, they extract it with minimal physical effort but with colossal mental work. Their main weapon is cunning, which allows them to outwit the animal. The Bushmen have learned this art over generations, and their experience is an invaluable lesson for anyone who wants to become a skilled observer and tracker.
Next guide: The Art of Observation: From Kim's Game to Finding Trail Signs Previous guide: The Most Important Skills for a Hike: Signaling for Help and Reading a Map Correctly You can view the full list here: Survival Guides for the Mountains
