Stand Hunting vs. Stalking Techniques

[Polishrifleman]

There seem to be a lot of new or just starting hunting questions as people get excited about the upcoming seasons.

I have been hunting for about 17 yrs. but all of my hunting has been in Washington and Idaho where we do a lot of stalking.

On TV I see a ton of stand hunting primarily back East and in the South but really wouldn't know where to begin on my home turf and would probably get bored after a couple of hours sitting in the same place.

I think that a discussion on techniques, and planning for each would be very helpful especially for the newbie so they can get a better handle on their particular situation and ask more specifics than general questions.

Any and all input is appreciated and will be a great learn for myself.

Thanks

 

[birddog]

I hunt primarily the northeast. During bow season, I hunt mostly from treestands, because that's the most productive method I've found to ambush deer in the early season, though I have stalked and killed two whitetails on the ground, which I consider to be a couple of my best hunting accomplishments. During gun season, I prefer to hunt from the ground, but will occasionally use a tree stand, too. I think you need to tailor your method to the area / terrain / and type of game you're going to encounter. In my experience, there's no such thing as "the best way" for any type of hunting.

Should be a good discussion.

 

[nico]

In the two years I've gone hunting we (my dad, a friend of his, and I) have always sat in tall grass next to a fence that deer jump over to go from one farm to another. The shot distance of every deer we've killed has been under 150 yards and the longest realistic shot one could take there is maybe 300-350 yards. Generally, it seems like if you move around (the fields get pretty marshy if it rains and you can't help but make a lot of noise) the deer hear/smell you coming and move before you ever see them. A couple times, when we sat in our spot for 3 or 4 hours without seeing anything, we decided to move around. Every time we either didn't see anything, or we saw deer that we flushed long before we were close enough to get a shot (we'd see them moving away from where we were about 500 or 600 yards away).

I'd love to go out west and try stalking, but it seems like around here it won't work. There are a couple guys who the past few years have been trying to do it on a farm adjacent to the farm we hunt on. This past season, as we were sitting, we saw 4 or 5 deer moving at a pretty quick pace through a clearing on the other farm. About 10 minutes later, we saw the other hunters coming from the same area the deer had come from.

 

[Art Eatman]

Two places where stands work best: First, in brushy country where you just don't see deer unless you have some elevation so you can look DOWN at an angle into the brush. The other is in wooded areas where the biggest problem is avoiding noise when stalking--dry leaves or many dry small limbs and twigs.

I don't really have the patience for stand-hunting, so I usually take a paperback book. I've trained myself to read maybe a paragraph; look around; read another paragraph...And then just watch for a while before going back to my book.

Ya gotta do some scouting around before picking a spot to set up or to build a stand. Look for scrapes and rubs, and travel-paths to and from feeding areas. Consider the common wind patterns, as well as views. You want to be looking into or across the prevailing wind; sometimes this takes two locations depending on the weather.

Rubs, where a buck has been rubbing off the velvet, merely indicate the presence; once the velvet's off, the buck generally doesn't come back to that exact tree. The height of the rub give some indication of size.

Scrapes, where a buck scuffs the ground and then pees on it, are visited fairly regularly.

For me, the best success in stalking ("playing sneaky snake") is in the learning two things: First, how to walk quietly/softly; then, how to not walk with any rhythm in the steps. You can't be totally silent, but neither is Bambi--but Bambi or cows or horses don't march in a military manner.

I look ahead and down for just a second to figure my next two or three steps, and then look for Bambi as I take those steps. I may take just one and stop and wait and look; then one or two more and repeat the stopping and looking. I like crepe-soled boots like the RedWing 20-mile or the Russell BirdHunters. I always work into the wind or quartering into the wind...

Don't be in a hurry. If you spot a deer trail, back off and sit down and wait a while. Same for a scrape. And always remember to check behind you; Ol' Biggie will often wait until you go by before sneaking away.

Open country walking-hunting is a whole 'nuther deal. Later.

, Art

 

[ALASKACAJUN]

When my Dad grew up in Southwest Luziana, there weren't that many deer. So he didn't hunt them until he was in his 30's. Since he grew up duck hunting, a deer "blind" made all the sense. So the only way he knew how to hunt was from a stand. I was a squirrel hunter on the other hand and didn't take to deer hunting until I was out of the military. But I saw plenty of deer in the woods while squirrel hunting, because I was still and quiet and covered much more area than dad in his stand. I think both stalking and stand hunting are effective methods of seeing and bagging deer. But spot and stalk is more like hunting in my mind. Also since all Dad ever did was sit in a stand over a food plot, he never really taught me how to hunt deer. So I watched video's and read lots of books and magazines. I got into calling deer in and became pretty good at it. I bagged my biggest deer yet by using this method on a lottery hunt in the Tensas WMR in 2000. (235 lbs. 8 point, 18" inside spread)

I know it seems like I'm rambling but I said all that to say this. Stand hunting can be just as effective as any other method. But it takes skill to spot and stalk. I hunt everything by this method, from moose to bear! The only time that a tree stand become's a very good choice in my mind is when you are in a lottery type situation with a bunch of hunter's in the woods. You don't know where everyone is and could spoil someone elses hunt. Or get shot... Also we employ a tree stand while baiting black bear in Alaska. It gets you over the bait and out of harms way, if you get my drift...

- Clint

 

[Specialized]

Here in the upper Midwest, deer season is usually fairly cold, especially the late seasons. Stand hunting is good, but in the places I hunt (west central IL, far north east WI) the deer will hunker down after the first day of the gun season, and there isn't usually much deer movement during the day from then on.

I have a routine that works well for me, and I typically see more deer than anyone else in my deer camp because of it. I hunt from a permanent stand in the morning, getting in place before first light and staying put until about 11am. From there, especially on cold, sunny days, I get down and begin still hunting. The deer will typically bed at or near the top of a ridge (and there's plenty of those where I hunt) where they can sun themselves and gather warmth while they sleep or rest. They typically pick a place where they are somewhat obscured by a deadfall or tree trunk, but with good visibility ahead so they can see potential danger approaching. They rely on their sense of smell to detect trouble behind them.

If you can find a ridge that gives such exposure, and then work across it into a headwind (or, ideally, a cross- or quartering wind), you can work your way across and usually spot deer 100-150 yards ahead of you with decent binoculars. At that point, it's a stalk to get into position for a shot. I took a nice buck in WI last year just this way. The deer was almost at the top of the ridge, behind a large downfall tree with just his head and neck sticking up over the top. He had the wind behind him and slightly to his left. I saw him at about 175 yards and began moving slowly across the ridge, looking for some opening through which to shoot, only moving when the wind blew to disguise the sound of my boots on the dry leaves. My shot was from about 50 yards, and he never knew I was there. It wasn't the biggest buck I've ever taken, but I can't say I'm more proud of any other hunt.

If you're careful, you can spot a deer bedded like that from a distance, then slip over the ridge and slip back to his side into a closer, better shot. This is tricky, because you don't know if he's changed positions while you were out of sight and he can bust you when you reappear. If you ease into view, many times you'll catch him before he has a chance to register the fact that you're there. It's an incredibly exciting way to hunt! I've popped back up and been busted, found out they've moved, and in one case miscalculated and shot the deer from 15 yards (that's TOO close!). Many things can happen, but they're all pretty exciting.

Hope this helps -- good luck!

 

[ACP230]

I liked to still-hunt when I was younger. That meant getting into good deer country and moving slowly through it looking around for deer.
I often moved too fast, and saw them a bit too late, but sometimes was able to get fairly close without being seen. I didn't get a deer this way for years, however, since the population was low and bucks were hard to walk up on.

Later, I bow hunted in an area where there were a lot more deer. I'd spot them in clear cuts, or on roads that had been closed and seeded in clover. I stalked quite a few but never quite got a shot. Saw the biggest buck I ever saw in the woods in one of those clear cuts. He was 60 yards out, saw me after a minute or two and took off. Twelve other deer had spooked and run just before. I'd been sitting on a log for two hours and they saw me stand up.

I got a nice little buck with my 16 gauge shotgun by walking up on him once. I followed a line of big scrapes down a ridge line in early afternoon and spotted him in a clearing.

I liked those ways of hunting best, but got more deer from stands.
Now that I'm older and having problems dealing with the cold due to asthma, I sit in blinds most of the time. It's not the same, but it is still hunting.

 

[Subby]

Here in PA, we have 900k-1mil guys out on opening day of rifle season. Generally, your best bet is to find a good bench(flat spot on the hill/mountain). The deer will tend to travel over it, since it saves them energy. If you can find a spot where you can overlook 2-3 benches, hopefully near a saddle, or some other sort of bottleneck, you're in business. Another good technique is to try to figure out where the guys will be coming in the woods, then make sure you're on the "other side" of the woods early in the morning. Come sunup, guys will be stumbling thru the woods searching for a place to sit, and they push deer towards you. I think the whole key to not getting bored on stand is to acknowledge and accept that you only have to get lucky for about 5 seconds to make meat for the whole year. I try to do all my moving at once(stretch legs, water the flowers, poke around in the pack for something to chew on, etc). If nothing's going on, I'll look for a few minutes, then slowly get up, do what I gotta do, then sit back down, muscles stretched, belly full, bladder empty. Giving yourself 5 minutes of downtime every two hours or so will make your day a whole lot more enjoyable and relaxing. I always have plenty of grub, a couple cans of snuff, and plenty of water. If it's not raining too hard or superwindy, you should be able to sit just about indefinitely, if you're properly clothed.

Sub

 

[Art Eatman]

Yeah, I know what you mean, Subby. My problem is that when I go sit in a stand and all's quiet, I get to thinking about "stuff". And, "Aye, there's the rub": When I work, I work hard. When I sit, I sit loose. And when I think, I go to sleep.

, Art

 

[scotjute]

Never use "doe" scent if you're going to be sitting on the ground.

 

[Spoonman]

Down here in south GA, most deer hunting is done from tree stands, although I have been successful quite a few times from ground blinds. The key to stand or blind placement is to do your homework (pre-season scouting, placement of stand/ blind before hunting season begins, and marking/clearing trails so that you can move quietly to your location). Once in the stand, be still and scan slowly and carefully (watch for movement and colors or patterns that seem 'out of place'). Don't forget to listen, deer sometimes make quite a bit of noise while moving and communicate vocally (low grunts and bleats). Sometimes my aching old bones remind me that my mom was right about motorcycles and I can't sit still in the stand. At those times I wander slowly and quietly from shady spot to shady spot in the hardwood creek bottoms, standing for several minutes and watching/listening for deer and/or pigs. I usually manage to put a deer or two in the freezer every year with this method. **DISCLAIMER** Wear blaze orange when doing this to reduce the chance of some bozo shooting you by mistake ("Hey, Ted. I just bagged a big'un. No horns, but he musta weighed 300 lbs. I shot him on a dead run at 500 yrds." )

Whatever method you use, remember that hunting is about being out there. Taking game just adds to the experience. Look, listen, feel, enjoy the gift of the day in the woods. Take a kid hunting.

Clif

 

[22-rimfire]

I prefer to hunt deer from the ground or slightly elevated position. I don't like tree stands, but if I just have to sit in one, along say a field or something, I do it. I tailor the method to the environment and what firearm I'm using. But, I think one of the reasons that people are not seeing as many deer in the woods is the common practice of portable tree stands. Deer just bed down and don't move around.

If I get cold, I sometimes still hunt> ie move a few steps, look around for a couple of minutes, move again and repeat the process.

The big question? How far do you walk from your stand to p*e or do you take a bottle with you?

 

[rick_reno]

I've hunted in Idaho - for deer we've always done stand hunting. Find a spot where you suspect or know deer move thru and wait. I've never failed to harvest a deer doing this. I've hunted elk by what I guess is stalking - lots of walking until I figure out where they are. It's effective too. I'll often kick deer up doing this, so I suppose it'd work for deer too. I'm just not willing to walk that far for a deer.

 

[Mannlicher]

I let the terrain pick the hunting method. When I hunt overlooking a peanut hay field, I like a tree stand. If I am heading off into a swamp, or into thick woods, I still hunt. Both methods work, if you know the area, practice your woodscraft, and have patience.

 

[Smoke]

hmmmmpphhhhh...grummble, mummmmbllllle

Folks in these parts hunt deer one way and one way only. Feed deer all year long and leave your stand in place. Go out a couple of weeks before and see if anything good shows up. (Althought the new fangled cameras have eliminated that step for the terminally lazy) Get drunk the night before and sit in the stand all day the next. Hope a deer walks by or comes to the feeder before full dark.

I call it deer waiting....it shore ain't huntin'....(mumbles some more)

When I used to lease out out ranch I tried and tried to get the hunters to just go set a ridge overlookin some of the draws in the open country. Those smart old bucks learned real quick that the brush was dangerous that time of year. They'd bed down in the tall bluestem and moe in the draws. I'd seem it too many times. Most "hunters" wouldn't beleive me.

When I want a little venison, I go to where the deer are. I know where they are because I've been out there and seen them all year long. I know where they hang out, how they move, and the time of day. I might not be 100% accurate every time, but I will have a deer in a day or three.

I prefer to get out in the pasture and move around a little. Never could sit in a stand. To hyper-active and I have a short attention span.....

I really used to frown on people that went to the high fenced places and shot deer that were basically in a feedlot.....but not anymore.

Smoke

 

[Sunray]

"...a discussion on techniques..." Well put.
"...On TV..." Even the hunting shows, such as they are, on TV, aren't real. One of 'em up here will actually say we saw nothing and that just being in the bush is good enough. Mind you, that show is sponsored by the group that has done nothing to fight the BS hunting or the stupid gun laws up here. The rest are a vehicle for advertising.
However, stand hunting is about being in the right spot when the game is moving. You find a few game trails, preferrably that cross, or where the game has been seen and set up a blind accordingly and wait, with the wind in your face. In most places, deer don't look up. A tree stand gets you out of the deer's scent pattern, so to speak. Always, always waer a safety belt in a tree stand. You could be 20 feet up in one and a 20 foot fall will hurt you severely.
Stalking,anywhere, requires a woodsman who knows how to move into the wind absolutely silently. You know yourself that most new guys can't do that. You'll also notice that most of the lads are talking about hunting over deer food.

 

[Art Eatman]

When moving along playing sneaky-snake, I don't try to be absolutely silent. Unless the leaves are wet, that's not possible. The deal is to not march, not have a steady rhythm. Cows aren't silent. Deer aren't silent. But, they take a step or two, nibble on grass or forbs, and then take another step or two.

Slow steps. Stop every one or two steps. Walk softly, and avoid breaking sticks or clacking rocks.

I commonly look at the ground, just flicking a glance, to figure out my next two or four steps. I then keep an eye out ahead and around as I slowly take those steps and pauses.

And never forget to keep an eye out for that smart old buck that waits until you've gone past before he tries to sneak away.

Art