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Went for a goat hunt yesterday. Put in the hard yards, but no luck. The forest floor was very dry and noisy to walk through. Spooked two goats on separate occasions. Both went off like rockets. They certainly weren't going to stand around waiting to be shot in the head with a subsonic round! How to hunt in these conditions? Go after heavy rainfall? Sit in a likely spot and wait for something to appear?
If there is any stream beds that are dried up they are usually good to cruise slowly down especially ones in thick bush so nice and cool and quiet, usually the wind only runs 1 way down them too so no swirling
Thanks. Good thought. Unfortunately, no significant streams.
The good thing about dry forest litter is when (not if!) you spook the deer you can get a pretty good idea how many there are, because they also make a lot of noise running away. I've got the exact same issue, maybe worse given HB is typically drier than Northland. It makes it pretty hard going, and disheartening to spend hours poking aorund then one mistake and it sounds like half the forest is collapsing as a dozen reds run away.
Deer, goats etc make noise when they are walking in those conditions. Try to simulate what a deer/goat does and walk like them. Go slow, stop every few paces and use your eyes....
Have a look at this.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_C_I8lTsYw
If you do step on a stick and break it, dont move any further........I normally 'freeze' and without moving my head use my eyes to scan the area for any movement. Any deer hearing a stick break will lift its head and move it around trying to locate the source of the noise..........If you keep moving they will run immediately.
I also have a couple of camo hoodies which I had made.......the hood part is a lot bigger than the ones you would buy and I can wear a cap under them. The cap bill keeps the front of the hood off my face and keeps my face in shadow. By stopping immediately I snap a branch I can scan the area with my face hidden using just my eyes.
The most important thing in those conditions is to move slowly in my view.......
Your mileage may vary....
wetsuit boots and take your time when you start smelling them
goats are pretty predictable now you know where they are geographically
goats dont tend to be anywhere shootable when its raining
If it is related to the one I got, they are very fast on their feet and would be great on goats.Quote:
Originally Posted by mimms2
When I’m on crunchy ground I kinda just give up :( or before taking steps (maybe two steps a minute in stalking mode),move leaves to the side a little with my boot, though that still makes noise. It feels easier to stalk quietly on steeper slopes because actively used game trails have fewer leaves and sticks on them. But of course goats beings goats, the trails they leave can be difficult to follow if they tunnel under bushes or hop over boulders. Will be keeping an eye on this thread myself.
One of the comments on that video has great advice in it as well. Pretty much what I’ve been trying to do, but it is painfully slow and mentally tiring. Results have been good so far though, been getting closer to animals before they spook.Quote:
Originally Posted by Allgood
Attachment 184932
Yep what @Bill999 said, also old school Gym Boots (the ankle covering canvas kind, think they are back in fashion now )are good also due to both having very flexible soles ,l have carried Dive Boots as my stream crossing /camp/stalking boot for years & use them a lot when stalking in on Sika in the thick stuff as the flexible soles allow you to feel your way around snappy twigs etc & you find yourself unconsciously moving stuff away with the boot .Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill999
When you are getting up close on anything a often over looked stalk buster is metallic/foreign scaping noises from hollowed out Syn stocks ,uncovered suppressors etc .
One block I hunt is really noisy underfoot. The worst are the rewarewa leaves, closely followed by dry punga leaves and stems.
I try to time hunts after a day or two of good rain if possible, a short heavy burst of rain doesn't do much to make it quieter. On the plus side, I hear most of my deer before I see them.
I like piwakawaka's idea of sneaking down the streambeds, especially in summer as they are cooler and probably where the deer will be too. Unfortunately in this block it's also where the supplejack is!
Yeah my big hollow metal suppressor scraping on a branch has busted me so many times and I got so sick of it. What I’ve done now is wrapped the suppressor in a soft fleece fabric, and then secured it on with cloth tape. Works very well.Quote:
Originally Posted by bunji
If all else fails just wear your gumboots and kick them off when you get in close thick socks are the quietest of the lot
try put your boots somewhere obvious tho as they can be really hard to refind
the other trick is put a salt block in the area without crunchy leaves
Beech leaves... It's like walking on cornflakes. Shoes make it much worse. Ambush may be the best solution on dry crunchy days.
Thanks for all the replies, much more sensible than I thought they would be!
Well you haven't heard my sensible two cents worth...I just follow the dog, if I fart or snap a stick too loudly she will turn her head, tilted towards me with lips pursed to one side give me "that look" as if to say...boss, do that one more farking time you can fark off back to the car and STAY STAY STAY...I will get the farkers without your useless help.
Well you haven't heard my sensible two cents worth...I just follow the dog, if I fart or snap a stick too loudly she will turn her head, tilted towards me with lips pursed to one side give me "that look" as if to say...boss, do that one more farking time you can fark off back to the car and STAY STAY STAY...I will get the farkers without your useless help.
I'm actually not kidding.
That reminds me, I love it when a sudden gust of wind picks up because the sound of the forest rustling about masks my steps. When wind picks up, or if an aircraft flies overhead, i see it as an opportunity to take a few sneaky steps or push through some noisy dry crown fern.Quote:
Originally Posted by 7mmwsm
This also applies during the roar. Only move while the stag is roaring and he only ever hears himself.Quote:
Originally Posted by 7mmwsm
I know a guy who hunts sika and he wears two pairs of thick socks to stalk in.
the good old bata bullets...how can a kid be a kid without a pair of bullets?.....Quote:
Originally Posted by bunji
they have flash new name for them now but are still the same as of old....
heavy woolen socks arent bad..... but slowing down is the best...RUMPY is the ONLY person I ve ever hunted with who can walk quietly with vibram soled boots.....years chasing sika do that to a fella.
In the bush, give them a chance to move into your zone of awareness. Find where they're living and just hang out there, gradually drifting through the good habitat. A bow hunting book suggested that ungulates make a double footfall when they move, like Tik-tish Tik-tish then tik-tish tik-tish ... So you can try and sound like an animal by putting your toe down first then a tiny pause then your heel. Then a long pause while you pretend to eat a few leaves or grass. They will hear you but maybe think its another animal. Animals make quite a bit of noise pushing through branches and vines but seldom snap twigs. Think like a goat, move like a goat, live like a goat, smell ...
Goats like open areas and steep areas and dry areas. Travelling steadily, checking out a lot of slips and shooting them from a distance can be just fine in dry conditions. Goats won't hear you if you're more that a hundred metres away.
Haha, just checked and you're right they still do make them and they are on sale at the bargain price of $50 atm, https://batastore.co.nz/collections/bata-bulletsQuote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
years ago learnt hunters walk on muscle,trampers walk on bone......I put feet down little toe----big toe NOT heel then toe....walk barefoot on rough tarseal and you will VERY VERY quickly learn the lightest way to place feet down...when I start to thump or stumble...time to stop,used to be smoke time..now its cuppa if a big day planned or just a break.
mQuote:
Originally Posted by JessicaChen
I used a length of motorbike inner tube to cover my suppressor, works well, is cheap and nothing to snag on vegetation!
mates Mrs trail runs wearing those......not silly at all bud...buggerall ankle support and the wasps will love exposed ankles,but not silly.
Pretty good advice. I dont do so much hunting in the summer but always like it straight after rain. Going after a downpour is always good.Quote:
Originally Posted by Allgood
Hunting in light drizzle is very good as well.
Goats you can normally get close to in dry condations no problem, at least to see them to shoot. Deer, can be a little harder but i have lots of places to hunt in DOC.
Some are more suited for dry condations, ie tracks, river beds, open ridges and go to those which makes moving around quieter.
Moving slower and more so, just stopping in good areas to listen. Often hear animals moving around in the dry and just a case of very careful stalking to get them in view.
Key thing is stop more, and listen. often deer esp just over a brow might hear you coming and when you stop you hear them moving and then you in the best postion
to maybe get eyes on them and get one.
Middle of summer i hunt river beds or wait until some rain if you really want success.
Watch your step and avoid branches to step on when you can.
Consider Carlos Hathcock, USMC sniper aka "white feather" and how he snook up on a NVA general, only inching forward when the wind moved the grass around him, 3 days to get in range, 3 days to sneak out. But your work probably does not allow for 3-day goat stalking.Quote:
Originally Posted by JessicaChen
https://www.warhistoryonline.com/vie...awledback.html
I've always fancied making goat skin moccasins for stalking. Bit of poetic justice there.
May have to do that soon. Normally the skin gets looked at once it's tanned and then "Nah, too pretty to cut up." May have to shoot an ugly one next time.
Use the udders, might give you softer steps.Quote:
Originally Posted by MFP
Most of my trips happen to be in summer and this use to frustrate me.Quote:
Originally Posted by MB
Now I just go slow, like incredibly slow, some of the guys on here said if you think your going slow go even slower. Lots of stopping and sitting and listening., helps if you know your area well and know a good spot to sit and glass for some time. I’m quiet lazy and have a lot of patience so this works well for me.
Gym boots were the flavour of the day for myself and other like minded dudes,great for pussy footing. You could actually sorta feel if a dry stick was about to snap,hard to explain really but yeah they are the bees knees for doin the first gear low ratio thing for sure.Quote:
Originally Posted by bunji
I still have a pick or two from the Gym boot error somewhere ,last pair were red I think lol.
Never tried the dive boots but did float around in shearers moccasins at times chasing the grey ghosts.
I listened to his book on YouTube during the last lockdown, awesome storyQuote:
Originally Posted by Cordite
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6EUznV6NDV8
Update. Deliberately went out in the rain and changed my approach according to the advice given here. Basically went slow, watched my footing and had a look around every couple of steps. What a difference! Got in to the middle of a small mob of goats. One animal was almost close enough to touch. Shot it in the back of the head. Job done! Goat can be easy to hunt, but these animals get hit pretty hard on surrounding private land so are quite skittish. Trip report to follow when I get a chance.
do you remember the canvas sided,rubber soled "jungle boots" we could get from milserp shops for a while???Quote:
Originally Posted by doinit
