The Nature Instinct: Relearning Our Lost Intuition for the Inner Workings of the Natural World (Natural Navigation)

**The culmination of everything Tristan Gooley has written so far: How to take your knowledge about the outdoors—and make it second nature**Readers of master outdoorsman Tristan Gooley have learned that the world is filled with clues to look for—we can use the Big Dipper to tell time, for example, and a budding flower to find south. But what about the innate survival instincts that told Gooley to move on one night, just as he was about to make camp? Everything looked perfect, but something__felt__wrong. When Gooley returned to his abandoned campsite to search for clues, there they were: All of the tree trunks were slightly bent. The ground had already shifted once in a storm—and could easily shift again, becoming treacherous in heavy rain.__The Nature Instinct__shows us how Gooley and other expert observers—from hunters in the English countryside to the Pygmy people in the Congo—have recovered and rekindled this lost “sixth sense;” a subconscious,deeper understanding of our surroundings. By training ourselves through slow, careful observation, we too can unlock this kind of intuition—for finding the forest’s edge when deep in the woods, or knowing when a wild animal might pose danger—without even having to stop to think about it. Introduction 13 Part I: Ancient and New 21 Wild Signs and Star Paths I 23 The Sun Anvil 37 Wild Signs and Star Paths II 45 The Wind Anchor 58 Wild Signs and Star Paths III 66 Part II: Above and Below: Sky and Land 79 The Shear 80 The Ramp 82 The Pink Compass 86 The Sky Map 88 The Invisible Handrail 93 The Light and Dark Woods 98 The Edge and Musit 103 The Fire 107 The Browse, Bite, and Haven 109 The Celebration and Shadow 114 The Friend, Guest, and Rebel 118 The Reaper 121 Part III: Creatures of Meaning: The Animals 127 The Perch and Sentinel 129 The Return 132 The Face and Tail 134 The Point 139 The Peek 142 The Freeze, Crouch, and Feign 147 The Flight 154 The Refuge 164 The Cacophony 168 The Track 179 The Circling 183 The Stotting 188 The Guide 191 The Squall Squawk 194 Part IV: Signs of Wisdom: Advanced Keys 197 Flock, Bubble, and Burst 199 The Retreat and Rebound 208 The Jink 211 The Shimmy 217 The Ignore and Mistake 221 The Eddy 224 The Crook 226 Nature’s Coat 228 Two Frosts 232 The Clepsydra 235 Part V: A World of Signs: Digging Deeper 255 Labels That Come to Life 257 Three Luminaries 264 A Noble Pursuit 271 Tomorrow’s Hunter 281 More Than Machines 284 Umwelt 291 Treachery 304 A Storied Creature 306 The Ikus 313 Part VI: Epilogue 323 The Room 325 Notes and Further Reading 331 Bibliography 351 Acknowledgments 355 Index 357 About the Author 386 The culmination of everything Tristan Gooley has written so far: How to take your knowledge about the outdoors—and make it second nature Readers of master outdoorsman Tristan Gooley have learned that the world is filled with clues to look for—we can use the Big Dipper to tell time, for example, and a budding flower to find south. But what about the innate survival instincts that told Gooley to move on one night, just as he was about to make camp? Everything looked perfect, but something felt wrong. When Gooley returned to his abandoned campsite to search for clues, there they were: All of the tree trunks were slightly bent. The ground had already shifted once in a storm—and could easily shift again, becoming treacherous in heavy rain. The Nature Instinct shows us how Gooley and other expert observers—from hunters in the English countryside to the Pygmy people in the Congo—have recovered and rekindled this lost “sixth sense;” a subconscious,deeper understanding of our surroundings. By training ourselves through slow, careful observation, we too can unlock this kind of intuition—for finding the forest’s edge when deep in the woods, or knowing when a wild animal might pose danger—without even having to stop to think about it. From the New York Times–bestselling author, “a captivating guide to finding one's way in the wild” (The Wall Street Journal).Master outdoorsman Tristan Gooley was just about to make camp when he sensed danger—but couldn't say why. After sheltering elsewhere, Gooley returned to investigate: What had set off his subconscious alarm?Suddenly, he understood: All of the tree trunks were slightly bent. The ground had already shifted once and could easily become treacherous in a storm.The Nature Instinct shows how we, too, can unlock this intuitive understanding of our surroundings. Learn to sense the forest's edge from deep in the woods, or whether a wild animal might pose danger—before you even know how you know.“[A] beautifully written almanac of tips and tricks we've lost along the way.” —The Guardian“A useful owner's manual for anyone who likes to get outdoors and be immersed in something beyond the asphalt.” —Kirkus ReviewsPreviously published in the UK under the title Wild Signs and Star Paths "An exploration of our subconscious ability to "know" our surroundings even when we can't explain how. Teaches how to cultivate an instinctive knowledge of the natural world through slow observation"-- Provided by publisher Explores the "sixth sense," a subconscious, deeper understanding of surroundings, and explains how humans can train themselves to unlock this intuition using slow, careful observation