Thread: Bush stalking - not my best skill

When I have gone walking and i mean just walking about in the thick of it, I have spotted fresh signs of deer,
.poo
.tracks
.hair were they have been rubbing or going under branches,even branches of trees have been used for a good old scratch
.even were they have got over a branch on a track you sometimes see scuffs
.then I looked signs were they have been eating and on what
.also sun traps as some parts of the bush have good sun traps in the morning or evening.
.swamp patches,water supply
.It pays to sit tight out the way and not to make a sound
.go slow and where you place your foot
.make note of the wind before i go into an area.
.and you might smell one near by - unless that was a mate who did a fart
Mark on my GPS and look on the map at the start and head in. Also I mark down on a GPS any good signs. Remember tell your better half were your going,then we can ask her where you got that deer from

And when I get my new scope I shall head in and not see a thing

Don't do what a friend did with me which was he got out a cooker and did a cup of tea and then smoked a cig

lads have pretty much covered it all. just keep going back and back and back, get to know the area as best u can. you WILL find them its all about persistance. as far as the lighter trick, i just pluck abit of fabric off my swandri and let it go. it works and it is quiet. the thing with bush hunting as most know it that the wind is all over the place. try going out when there is a strong windblowing. less chance of it swirling in the gully and wind direction is easy to detect. the strong wind also masks the noise you make when moving about. good luck.

I would have replied earlier but its a prick to post from my phone.
Others have summed it up well above.
Without knowing the area its pretty hard to be specific but preferred foods are not evenly spread out threw the forest or Regen
Find a feed area, Grass, willow shoots, five finger, broad leaf, whitey-wood,caprosmas,tussocks, new shoots on fallen beach.
My experience is only with red and fallow, fallow prefer grass reds are browsers but still graze grass.
Stags of both species seem to prefer coarser feed late spring/summer.
Bush stalking is percentage hunting. No better way to put it.
Increase your percentage by finding the likely areas(feed and travel routes to feed) sounds like you have this bit sused.
As others have said wind is your enemy. If hunting a gully with wind coming over the top it will swirl and eddy like hell, I go pretty dam quick if its up my arse till its not. Thick shit just make your way threw and as soon as it starts to open STOP and look! another 5 steps STOP and look!
I often wonder how many deer have snuck of without me seeing them, they have the advantage if your moving.
Keep going back(not every day).
If you haven't been there much do a recon, forget hunting and work out where they are feeding/bedding.You might get onto one or not but will be better equipped to concentrate you efforts in the"high percentage" areas next time
Try to stalk areas that give you a veiw,walking the tops of benches in the bush/heads of gullys where you can go slow and peer down into the bush,look above too but much easier to see from above and most animals dont expect danger from above.

wholy.... u fellas have been at this awhile lol.... some great ideas through all this.

Im going back on friday... cant be bothered with work for the rest of the week!!

Ill give as much of this stuff a go as i can remember...

Lets hope i can post a pic of something i have shot hahahaha...

used to get the "PSSST!" form my old man when younger - "MORE EYES AND LESS LEGS BOY"

Slow down and look more

I like a thread taped to my barrel for wind reading

If you can find another animals shit roll in it, smear it on your clothes face and hair, fill up your pockets. the deer will think your something else
Good info, took me at least a year to learn all that's been mentioned

ba ha ha ha ha ha ha h ah ah ah aha ah ah aha a

Originally Posted by Gutshot

If you can find another animals shit roll in it, smear it on your clothes face and hair, fill up your pockets. the deer will think your something else
Good info, took me at least a year to learn all that's been mentioned

Might as well eat a bit while you're at it so a fat little hind won't know anything is amiss on your breath when you go in for the kiss.

HAHAHAHA, and finally the piss take arrives!! i was going to use a whole bottle of old spice, really get the animal magnetism going, just sit there and they should all come to me ....

Originally Posted by tikka 7/08

HAHAHAHA, and finally the piss take arrives!! i was going to use a whole bottle of old spice, really get the animal magnetism going, just sit there and they should all come to me ....

Old spice only work on dear, not deer... Slightly different species, live capture is lots of fun

Here's some helpful info on tracking, Me and my little brother got bored while hunting in the kaimais so thought we would help people who needed it.

Buy a bow and watch your stalking improve...I thought I was OK at stalking until I started bow hunting sambar in Aus!
When you have to get really up close and personal it's amazing how slow you start to move and how much attention you start to pay to the wind, other animal/bird sounds and the smells and movements in the forest.

It's hard to add much to the previous posts as they contain some great advice but again...SLOW DOWN!!! If your in the right spot (areas with good sign around peak hours) with the wind in your face you will see deer even if you stay still...moving around too fast or too much is often counter productive...SLOW DOWN...and let the deer make the mistakes instead of you!
Good luck!

think where you would like to be on the day and deer are often similar, if its cold they gravitate toward the sunny spots, and visa versa.

you will be surprised how often the deer are looking at you when you spot them, avoid too much noise underfoot, place dont stomp.

and did anyone else mention slow down? haha.

learn the deers patterns when they sleep when they feed when they are more active,

otherwise its like going to the nightclub at lunchtime.

oh yea and practice young butterfly

Say the sun was setting and your in a spot where there are lots of clearings but also very hilly would I be better watching clearings that get the last light or does it not matter just search them at day time and sit on the one with the most sign?

I find it doesn't matter about the sun for watching clearings at last light, particularly this time of year. I have often seen deer come out in the shady part of a clearing or on a clearing with no sun at all.