Lynx Tracking

While tracking the other day on my friends property near Smithers I came upon some great tracks in the snow. There was a Canada Lynx moving through the firs and aspens in search of its prey — snowshoe hares. There were many hares located in this area and the lynx, who specificaly targets these animals was on the hunt. It was great to follow the tracks as it stealthily moved through the thick brush in search of it’s next meal. I found a lay where the animal had rested briefly as well as a fresh scat containing fur and bones of a hare. The trail that I was on was fresh and this lynx was not too far ahead of me. After a good while trailing this animal I ‘let the trail go’ and was thankful for the things that I had learned from this cat. The next day I actually got to see a lynx as it crossed the road in front of me. What a beautiful animal, such long legs and super-sized paws that enable it to stay on top of the deep snow.

On my tracking wander I also came across many other animals including coyotes, short-tail weasels, moose, deer and voles. I even found an old moose kill that was pretty well ‘picked-clean’. There were a couple sets of coyote and raven tracks around the carcass, but not much left to feed on at this point. It was great day of tracking with the Babine mountains in the background and a great view of the glacier cradled on top of Hudson Bay mountain. It was hard to leave this beautiful place after spending two weeks tracking, hiking, snowboarding and socializing. But eventually I left and headed south via the Rocky mountains.