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Ounce a track is located and the dogs are released, do you monitor there
position with the tracking system and wait for the treeing collar switch or possibly the sound of the dogs at the tree, or would you immediately follow pursuit after the dogs.question being is last year i released my dog on a lion track and unfortunately she went up a high steep mountain side that took me about 2 hrs to climb by the time i reached the top she had already traveled a great distance from me. long story short i made it back to the truck and was able to track her from the truck and found your her about 3 canyons over coming off the hill.

Track and trail right of way, the race may or maynot be that long, and not all dogs are as broke as you may find, the race may go on for a while especially if its a deer.

young inexperienced dogs and I run the race with them to keep them lined out if they make a loose, older dogs and I wait it out some with the tracking system

I think it depends on how much Coffee you have left in your thermos. I say if its gone get 2 hiking buddie.
I personally wait for the tree switch just 2 see what i'm up against, you'll end up close 2 another road a lot of the time.
I didnt have collars for years so i paid my dues, but i learned a hell of a lot about cats that way 2.

follow the dogs best ya can, you will see more game that way. You can help dogs pick up losses. especially in big rock country Bluffs and such.

cal

If you are taking a poll, I vote: follow your hounds best you can.

You will become twice the houndman in half the time. (does that equal four times the houndman in the same amount of time?)

Yes, you will get thrown out of the race at times, but the times you get to be right in the middle of it more than make up for it. Many times you will be to the center of things long befor you could have got there on roads with a truck. You will get tougher and tougher, faster and faster just like your dogs. And you will know and understand much more about your dogs and about the game and about what actually happened.

For one thing, when you are on foot, you can hear. Driving down the road you can not. You will miss some important elements of what happened by driving around all the time.

If you hunt with a buddy, let him stay with the truck, and you will see what I mean. You will usually be at the tree long befor he will, depending on the road system in the area. It is nice to have him though when it is time to walk out, as he might be able to get closer to you with the rig. Keep a collar in your pack so he can locate you.

When you are back together, Quiz him as to exactly what happened in there from what he could tell. If he is an old expert road hunter, you will be shocked at how wrong he is about what actually happened and what dog did what. Dont try to tell him he's wrong. Just listen and learn.

Ilike staying mobile as long as possible, especislly on bear.
They can flat leave the country quickly!
80 % of the time beat the walker there!
My exsperiance in our country.
Mobile is horse mule or anything with an engine!

well i bought and restored a sweet 68' Rokon and i let them line it out and i jerk it out of the truck and roll we dont get a ton of snow most of the time so i can stay most times with in 100yds of them, in the hills that stretches a little because you go around a lot more, but you are definetly close enough to tell who is working and who is me tooing, and if they jump it you get to the tree a lot quicker, and i don't hear as well as when i was 18 so being closer to them i can hear what is happening better, the only problem is i shut it off a lot so i can hear,and that old carb floods easy, so there has been times when the rest of the crew shows up and i got that carb in my lap, and the plug laying on the seat, and too mad for anyone to talk too, lol so i think i'll paint across the top of the tank,"shut off the gas meathead"so it don't happen again

I think that every track is different and so is the terrain. If the track is old you might stay by were you started the track to see were the race is heading this could save a lot of walking away from were the end of the chase is. If your into walking in deep snow over a mountain to end up back by the truck hours later start walking.I walk when i have to and ride when i can because if you have hounds longenought you will get lots of walking.

I feel going with the dogs is the best way to learn. That said, I have learned I make far more trees in the logging country I live in with trucks and sleds. It is frustrating to to follow your dogs all day on foot crossing two or three roads all the while they are getting farther and farther away. Around midnight the when the truck and the dogs are miles away from you it generally becomes clear you goofed. Lets face it, there are different degrees of purists out there. With all of the technology available today it is possible to have three, four or five races in a day in heavily roaded country if you have the game. It doesn't matter if you follow track for track or drive around, the dogs still are doing the work in most cases. While the result may be the same there is something to be said for the guy that hunts in country that has little or no motor vehicle access. If your dogs are green you are better off going with them to help on tracks that they have trouble with, but keep in mind even fresh tracks occasionally turn into ordeals. This does not pertain to bears. I usually don't hit the brush on a bobcat race until the cat is treed. the exception being those cases where everything is tangled up and I can help the dogs gain a little ground.

Thanx for all the great advice it is very well taken and appreciated.