One of the big challenges whenever we find tracks outside is Knowing just how long ago that animal was here.

If your goal is to eventually find the animal, it really helps to know whether a Trail was freshly made or if you’re still quite far behind.

Luckily there is a bit of a science behind aging tracks. If you know what to look for you can gain a practical accuracy at knowing which tracks are most fresh by studying the erosive conditions of any trail.

As a general rule fresh tracks will have sharp and well-defined edges without any obvious drying or erosion effects around the edges.

A good method is to make your own fresh track next to the trail you’re trying to age so you can compare the characteristics and consider recent effects like rain, sun, wind & temperature.

It’s also important to remember that because tracks occur in such a wide variety of conditions, we really need to look at each situation individually to accurately know how fresh a track really is.

So let’s discuss the main signs of freshness you can look for.