Many people spend years learning to read a landscape, but modern tools make it possible to understand wildlife movement in a far more direct way. This workshop shows you how to use topography, habitat structure, and free digital mapping software to identify the places where animals naturally concentrate. The benefit to you is simple: you’ll be able to locate promising areas before you ever step outside.

Throughout the morning, we work in the classroom with maps and terrain models, exploring how ridgelines, drainages, benches, saddles, and habitat edges shape animal behavior. You’ll learn how to recognize the landscape features that consistently funnel wildlife, and how to translate those patterns into practical decisions about where to search. By the time we finish the indoor session, you’ll understand how to use your phone as a tool for predicting movement and identifying hotspots with purpose instead of chance.

In the afternoon, we take those skills into the field. You’ll visit the very features you identified on the map and see how they function on the ground. This is where the connection between digital mapping and real-world tracking becomes clear. You’ll practice reading sign, locating fresh activity, and using wind, terrain, and quiet movement to approach wildlife more effectively. The benefit is that you begin to see how these elements work together, giving you a reliable method for finding animals in a wide range of conditions.

This workshop is well suited for beginners looking for dependable places to practice, photographers wanting to increase their chances of meaningful encounters, researchers choosing trail‑camera locations, and experienced trackers seeking fresh trails to follow. By the end of the day, you’ll walk away with a set of skills that expand what’s possible every time you head into the field—skills many people don’t realize can be learned so quickly.