Skills & Drills

Resources and activities to sharpen your outdoor observation and interpretation skills

Once you have knowledge of Nature, whether through reading our Natural History Section, school, or through direct outdoor experiences, you will want to hone and apply that knowledge. This subject covers the basics that you should know to ensure a good time while you are out hiking and learning.

Outdoorsmanship & Observation Skills

Orienteering: Finding your way with a map and compass

Low impact hiking: How to hike lightly upon the land.

Tracking: The skill of determining what animals have been using the area, what they were doing, and where they went.

Wild Foods: General Information about wild foods.

Listening: Drills to help you hone your listening skills in nature.

Beginning Bird Watching: The basics of birding and what you will need to get started on this rewarding hobby.

Keep a Frog Log!: Keeping tabs on the annual cycles of amphibians.

Sketching Nature: How drawing Nature helps increase your skills of observation.

Tree Identification: How to recognize trees by bark, twings or leaves in winter, summer, spring or fall.

How to tell common trees by their bark

Spring Wildflowers: Spring ephemerals and what they can tell you about a northeast Ohio forest.

Browse these pages for ideas to help develop your outdoor skills and knowledge. Over time we will fill this area with drills to hone such skills as plant identification, wildlife tracking, map and compass use, weather prediction in the field and many other useful topics. If there is a subject you are interested in seeing covered here, email us at Webmaster@neonaturalist.com.