Joyful exploration in the same old Town

Kyle Forest
Apr 3
3 min read

I've lived and explored and tracked in Tamworth for 8 years now. It's a small town but I've noticed that my routines and habits and attention reduce the size of the town. I tend to walk the same paths, roads, and hiking trails.... and of course I walk them in the same direction. I get caught in the habit of familiarity. I first walk a path in a certain way to explore, did I walk it the same way the next time so I didn't get lost? Maybe I walked it the third time in the same way because it felt comfortable or maybe I enjoyed the new friend of a path in the way I experienced it? And then years pass by and I am stagnant in the paths I walk and the way I walk them.

Part of the reason why I love tracking is because it lures me to new areas. I see a southern rocky outcrop and ask, "I should look for bobcat and porcupine up there!" I see the color of fresh disturbance and I am caught like moth to a flame. I might be hiking on a trail but I get pulled into the thickets following a fresh bear trail. Tracking pulls me out of my rigidity and habit and throws me into a phragmites marsh where I stick my head into a Muskrat tunnel in the snow-- No one goes there unless they have the pull of curiosity.

Our Town Recreation director wanted me to do a program at the Tamworth Recreation Fields. I had never been there and my internal gut reaction was, "No"... I didn't say that. Why is that my reaction? I think it is the fear of the unknown. The fear that I might not find anything of interest. Boring people with a thousand squirrel tracks (My apologies to the squirrels!) Instead, I chose to lead with curiosity, and over 2 trips we found some excellent Track and Sign. I think the moral of the story is, don't let fear make your choices for you, and don't let habit stifle your curiosity and exploration.

Bearcamp Trackers exploring Jeremy's new trail system by Mill Brook behind the Rec Fields

Across the river we could see a wide track leading to some feeding sign. The saplings were cut down at a 45 deg angle like a punji stick.

The tracks on our side were a little melted out but you can see 2 large hind tracks with a large heel on the left side of the photo and a smaller front track on the right side. All pointed to the right.

There was ample feeding sign close to the river. The incisor marks were large and digging into this large tree.

Beaver sticks were found throughout the river along with slides.

Some folks found some melted out otter tracks coming out of the water

And slides over land.

On the walk organized by the Recreation Department, we found a Fisher trail bounding down a hill and then delicately walking across this snow covered log.