In the winter months, we run wildlife tracking tours in Hungary’s Northern Hills, Slovakia’s Carpathians and the mountains of Transylvania in Romania.

These tours focus on finding and learning about the various tracks and signs that the region’s wildlife leave. The evidence that betrays the presence of animals includes hoof and paw prints, claw and toe marks, tracks and trails, dung, scat, spraint, pellets, nests, burrows, dens, holes and food remains. Tracking trips take place in the field, typically from November to February, require some walking and usually concentrate on mammals and forest birds, although no wildlife is ignored. We regularly find the tracks and signs of Beaver, Beech Marten, Brown Bear, Lynx, Otter, Red and Roe Deer, Red Fox, Red Squirrel, Wild Boar, Wild Cat, Wolf, plus a range of bats, owls and Woodpeckers, and we sometimes see the animals themselves.

Our tracking tours are designed, customised, and often guided, by Gerard Gorman, author of two books that are good background reading and references for these trips: Pocket Guide to Tracks and Signs (Bloomsbury) and Central and Eastern European Wildlife (Bradt).