If you are a tracker, you likely collect books about tracking. If so, this book, Combat Tracking Guide, by John D. Hurth, certainly belongs on your bookshelf. This guide fills a niche that few tracking books fill. It won’t replace Scott-Donelan’s Tactical Tracking Operations, or Kearney’s classic book on the subject, but it certainly is a great companion book to add to your collection. These books offer information and strategies that complement each other and should be studied.

This book is primarily written for a military audience, but tracking is a skill that is used in so many applications that other trackers will find good information here as well. Trackers are curious by nature and most of the trackers I know enthusiastically try to learn as much about this skill as possible. As a tracker, I found that the first two chapters offered a thorough overview of the tracking skills that soldiers need to have. Covered subjects are basic tracking, gaits and interpretation of the tracks.

The third chapter covers organization and tactics. The techniques taught here are designed to keep the tracker team safe while staying on the trail and moving quickly enough to close the time-distance gap between the team and their quarry. I found this to be an interesting section as animal trackers and SAR trackers generally do not track armed quarry. It is good information to know for SAR trackers though. Who knows what you will run into out in the wilderness when tracking someone who is lost? It would be best to be prepared and to know how to keep your team safe. I must put a disclaimer here and state that I have no military training or experience whatsoever, so I cannot attest to the accuracy or completeness of that portion of the book. That being said, from the perspective of a non-military tracker, it certainly seemed to be a complete look at the many aspects of tracking in a combat environment.

The operational employment chapter includes photos of common footwear patterns, as well as rifle butts. These are items that leave sign in the field and that trackers need to be aware of. (There is also a complete appendix in the back of the book that shows the tread pattern of a large variety of tanks and other battlefield equipment.)

The last chapter deals with counter-tracking, mines, and booby traps. I hope that these techniques are taught to all our soldiers who have to operate in a combat environment, especially the section on booby traps. A list of signs to look for is provided so trackers can learn how to avoid areas that might contain mines or booby traps. The counter-tracking techniques that could be used by the quarry were described and diagrammed so that trackers can learn how to defeat these attempts to hide the sign.

The last part of the book has details on tracking in low light or nighttime conditions, urban tracking, and how to work with K-9 teams - all very useful information for a tracker team. The appendices provide a look at things that I was not familiar with due to not having military training. They include: order formats and checklists, mission debrief format, fire support, air operations, support requests, and a photographic section detailing a combat tracker’s load. I found that section interesting, and it would be of interest to SAR trackers as well. There are many items that combat trackers carry that SAR trackers could use in the field too.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It gave me a glimpse at tracking in a totally different environment than I will ever be in. It gave me a lot more appreciation for the military use of tracking skills and a firm belief that all soldiers should be trained in this skill. If nothing else, they can use tracking skills to be aware of possible mines so that they stay safe. If I had to find a negative with this book it would be that the acronyms used throughout the book were not all listed in the glossary. Of course, these acronyms could be commonly-used in the military world and not something a civilian like me would have a clue about. For that reason, I can’t say this is really a negative. This book was packed full of good information and would be a great addition to any tracker’s bookshelf. Whether you are a combat tracker, or just a civilian tracker looking to learn more about the skill, you will find this book very useful. It will certainly make you a more well-rounded tracker. ( )