Deer hunting on the move, or still hunting, is typically misunderstood as to what it is and how to go about it. It is following deer, not waiting on a stump or in a blind for the deer to come up to you. It can be the most gratifying deer hunting experience you can do. It can also be the most discouraging, since it is a skill which calls for you to slow everything - your sight, your breath and your walking gait. But the rewards go beyond the hunt to your better enjoyment of nature itself.
These few simple techniques can be used on your next hunt - whether you choose to still-hunt or not, the principles are the same. These techniques will also make your deer hunt a richer experience. Quietly walking thru the woods enjoying nature is very relaxing and rewarding. It's all about: you're outdoors - enjoy the scenery, hunting or not.
However, deer, and all prey species, have eyes designed to detect motion. Deer and all prey species have eyes on the side of their head, and this aids in perceiving motion first, long before the animal can make out whether what they see is a threat, or just some pattern-breaking motion in the woods. When still hunting for deer, we must adopt to the way they see. We must see motion first, patterns out of sync second, and the deer last. The only way to do this is to relax our focus and broaden our field of vision.
You see it all the time - the hunter walking through the woods as if he's hunting on rice paper. It doesn't work. As a hunter, you're going to make noise. But then, so do deer and other game. So does anything living and breathing in the woods. What you want to avoid is making the rhythmic gait a hunter makes when he's running, usually after a deer, or doing everything he can to be quiet, when he doesn't yet see one.
Walking toe-heel is the way to walk, because the palm of your foot can be more flexible in its response to the softwood twigs and deadfall underfoot - like deer, whose hooves make relatively light contact with the forest floor. Walking heel-toe makes for a heavy, stiff step - a human step. Walking heel toe, take a few steps, pause, and, using the soft-focus described above, take in the environment, in a holistic way.
Be careful, if you find yourself entering in to a steady, rhythmic gait, break it up. You also want to avoid any obviously human sounds sounds coming from anything man-made, such as metal or hard plastic. Bottom line - brushing past an oak stump is o.k. marching in cadence is not, nor is that canteen banging against your hunting rifle strap buckle.
Finally, walk into the wind. Yes, this is rule 1. But several hunters, especially those used to staying in a relatively insulated hunting blind, blank out on this cardinal rule. I've stood with my bow drawn on a buck 10 yards away, with the buck distinctly trying to figure out what the heck this would-be rambo was up to - only to watch it bounce to life once the wind shifts, and thanksgiving was a bit - leaner that year.
Don't even bother still hunting on blustering days, with no prevailing winds. The bottom line, when you are hunting deer in this style, is to get used to is slowing yourself down, for hours at one time, and softening your focus to "deer hunt" for motion - not deer. But act like, see like, deer, become more a part of where you are, and you will reap many payoffs - whether you take a deer or not.
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