Tracker-Klamath Falls

‘Klamath Falls’ is the first episode of the Tracker series. Colter’s handlers send him to Klamath Falls, Oregon, to investigate the disappearance of 14-year-old Gil Brown who is suspected to have been taken by his birth dad with a criminal background. This article is part of our 5 episode recap.

Prepping for Season 2!

We are ramping things up for premiere day, October 13th/24.

Coming into Tracker Week, we are pulling together the family-rich episodes from the first season to highlight the mystery, intrigue and questions we still need answered. First up is S01, E01, Tracker-Klamath Falls.

Season 01, Episode 01 – Klamath Falls

Season 1/Episode 1 – Aired: Feb 11, 2024 – Klamath Falls

Shaw Family History

– Dad taught the kids how to hunt, track people and animals, be self-sufficient, forage for food, rock climbing, how to handle weapons, always be prepared, and “never let panic take the wheel.”
– Both parents were professors at Berkeley. Something happened that triggered Ashton to move the family off-grid, into the wilderness. Colter remembers at first it was an adventure, then something changed and his father believed that people were after him.
– Colter has a flashback of the night his father died. He was 15, his brother Russell was 18 and his sister Dory was 9.
– It was storming outside. Ashton told the kids to grab their bags it was time to go.
– Their mother was absent so Dory challenges her father to not leave without her.
– He turns violent and Russell steps in to protect his sister. His dad pulls a knife on him.
– Ashton calms down, apologizes and tells the kids that it’s him who “they” are after, so he leaves the cabin alone.
– Colter wants to go after his dad, but Russell says to let him go, “he’s getting worse” and they’d be better off if their father died.
– This really upsets Colter, so Russell agrees to find his dad and bring him back.
– After an hour passes their mother returns home, so Colter sets out to find Russell and his dad.
– He finds his father’s lifeless body at the bottom of Devil’s Notch, and when he looks up to the top of the cliff, he sees his brother. “Russell, what did you do?” Russell says nothing and walks out of sight.

Episode Notes

All during Colter’s tracking assignment, we can see that he keeps getting calls and texts from 682-555-0125. By the end of the episode we know that this number belongs to Colter’s brother Russell, who informs him that he isn’t going away and that Colter needs to hear what he has to say. The final scene is Colter standing beside his father’s tombstone, talking with his mother. He tells her that Russell is trying to make contact. She tells him to block the number and “for everyone’s sake, leave it be.”

Questions

1-1. What incident happened that made Ashton Shaw uproot his family and move into the wilderness?
1-2. What changed their life from “adventurous” to “being on the run?”
1-3. Who or what are they running from?
1-4. What happened after Russell walked away from the top of that cliff?
1-5. What does Colter’s mom mean “for everyone’s sake?”
1-6. At this point of the season timeline, it seems reasonable to assume that Russell is guilty. His guilt explains why Colter refuses to speak with him, and his mother’s insistence that he doesn’t. Is it true? Did Russell kill Ashton Shaw?
1-7. Why the attempts at contact now after 20 years of estrangement? What changed?