Stalking a game animal isn’t as horrible as it sounds, and you may find it a very effective hunting method.
So, how does it work properly? Stalkers move slowly and softly through the undergrowth until they spot the game, at which point they strive to get near enough for a clear shot. This is a common hunting technique used by deer hunters.
Although it may appear to be a peaceful stroll through the woods, snooping on the game will need skill. Remember that game animals’ hearing and vision are far superior to yours and will be challenging to overcome.
The most important thing is to travel against the wind to leave your scent as you progress. After then, look for a path to follow. When you are keyed up on survival skills, you quickly find this type of hunting trophy hunters use as it takes the most skill.
In our guide, you can learn more about in still hunting, what do hunters do, and how it differs from stalking.
By the end, you’ll know the still hunting definition, glassing hunting, and more. No matter what you use, you’ll have a great day’s hunt and plenty of prey to show for it. (Learn How To Keep Feet Warm While Hunting)
What Is Stalking?
Hunting big game through stalking is regarded as the ultimate and most sporting. However, to stalk an animal begins with “glassing,” hunting can’t begin until you spot the game, and here binoculars come into play.
Trophy hunters like stalking because they can check the trophy size beforehand without wasting time pursuing inferior animals. Most prepared stalking hunts include a professional guide, or “stalker,” who helps you negotiate unfamiliar terrain and discover your target animal.
Often, as you get closer to your prey, it moves away from you, and you never know where the chase will lead. Therefore, you must predict the prey’s next move.
This makes a successful stalk one of the most fun and rewarding hunting methods. First, you must anticipate the animal’s next move before he does, using your observation, instincts, and understanding.
Various Ways How to Stalk
Irregular Stepping
The most challenging component is getting near enough to place a clean, accurate shot without causing the game to panic and flee. Because game animals travel in hesitant, uneven patterns, varying the pattern of your footsteps will help to mask your footsteps.
Here’s a little tip: Try to walk in odd-numbered steps while walking silently. For example, take three steps, then stop, then take another step, then stop, and so on.
Stalking Grouse
The stalking technique used by grouse hunters is to approach the birds stealthily to flush them out of their hiding place. When it comes to grouse, you’ll need to be inside shotgun range when they burst from their cover.
Stalking Waterfowl
Duck hunters utilize a stalking strategy in which they discreetly drift, paddle, or wade along marsh borders and creeks to sneak up on the ducks and flush them into the air while they’re still within shooting range.
However, be in mind that certain places can be slick. For example, every duck within two miles will be gone if you crash into a slimy rock in the creek.
Trail Grooming
Trim back a stalking trail if you own the land where you’ll be hunting. It only needs to be clear enough to avoid snagging trees and making a disturbance when sneaking up on your game.
Spot and Stalk Hunting
All hunters need to complete one of the courses, and you can find many topics that can relate to the spot and stalk hunting course type you need to complete.
Here’s a sample you can find:
- Wildlife Conservation Topic
- Game Topic
- Wildlife Topic
- Bow and Arrow Topic
- First Aid Topic
- Preparation Topic
All these wildlife management and conservation principles can encompass the below and much more.
Elevation.
Find a vantage point with a higher elevation, such as trees, rocks, or steep ground. Make a comprehensive inspection of the region. If you don’t notice anything, move to a different vantage point and investigate the next region.
Fresh Tracks.
Moving slowly, a few steps at a time, frequently stopping to scan and observe the surroundings and looking for new tracks and signs. Always be prepared since a shot may appear out of nowhere. (Read our Hunting For Beginners Guide)
Wind Direction.
To avoid an animal sensing your scent as you approach, be aware of the direction of the wind. To avoid being discovered, stay downwind of the animal so you feel the wind in your face.
Walk Quietly
Stepping on sticks and other debris can make a lot of noise and alert animals to your presence. Because the ground gets quieter when leaves, pinecones, and other woody materials are wet, soggy, and less brittle, stalking circumstances improve in rainy or damp weather.
Clothes
Dress comfortably in soft, silent, odor-free clothing to allow you to move freely and quietly.
Hearing
Please pay attention to everything around you as it has the potential to expose an animal’s location. For example, squirrels, crows, or deer snorting are signs that animals and birds are aware of your presence.
Sight
Look around for prey-identifying forms, colors, and movements. Because animals frequently move outside a hunter’s sight, peripheral vision, or knowing what is off to your sides when looking ahead is of high importance.
Stay Calm
Bowhunters who see an animal they’re after but don’t get a shot must keep using the same strategies to find the animal again.
Stalking skills is a marathon compared to a sprint and are half the fun of the sport, even if you don’t get as many successful kills as you could using a still hunting strategy.
Still Hunting, Stalking, and Elevated Stands
Regardless of the type of hunting you are doing, be it for sport or food, you all need to go through the same courses. However, sections such as the online boating topic don’t relate to using an elevated stand to shoot a whitetail with a bow and arrow.
They cover skills you’ll need and have lots of information you may not know you need. Why you need to read topographic maps, why you need to determine the species, and why you need a clear shot are all vital bits of information. (Learn How High Should A Tree Stand Be)
You will be moving slowly and methodically until you spot game—before it spots you—in still hunting. In most cases, the hunter will be walking a bit at a time with deliberate steps before standing or squatting for many minutes, examining the entire area for the game.
Still, hunting takes meticulous attention to your surroundings, such as distance from big game animals, wind, sunlight, and weather.
When stalking, the hunter spots the game and moves slowly and deliberately into shooting range and position for a successful shot. If the animal has observed you, you should try to walk in a diagonal path rather than directly toward it while stalking, as this is a less frightening movement pattern.
Glassing is when you sit for a long time at a vantage point and use binoculars or spotting scopes to spot the game from afar. Then, you stalk the game after it has been spotted.
Typically give the most effective ways for hunting good game animals, particularly in the Western United States, Canada, and Alaska, where a lot of traveling and spotting is required.
Both firearm and bow hunters can benefit from elevated stands (high seat or tree stands). Above-ground seats or blinds that conceal the hunter above the quarry level are known as tower stands. Tree stands are structures built into or against trees at a suitable distance and angle from the kill zone. (Learn Where To Shoot A Deer)
These distinctions can be tough to make, especially when you’re looking at a half-spooked animal through a thicket and have only a few seconds to assess its legality before it bolts.
In summary, rash hunting decisions might land you in serious ethical and legal difficulties. Hunting on the go (spot and stalk) helps to reduce the risk.
