Advice ?

[MarkL]

What’s the best piece of advice you received when starting stalking?
Or what single piece of advice would you pass on to a newbie?

 

[Freeforester]

Slow down.

 

[VSS]

Don't shoot the first fallow that comes out of the woods.

 

[Mungo]

Exactly as @Freeforester says: slow down. And then slow down some more.

The other thing that really stuck in my mind was ‘the deer are where you are’.ie. Don’t plough on with a specific spot in mind. Take your time to check every step of the way.

And the final very useful bit of advice: you don’t need all the gear you think you do. I often fail to stick to this (I think we all do). But you really don’t need much, and none of it needs to be expensive. @VSS probably kills more deer than many with an entire set up worth less than the jacket some people are wearing.

 

[TringSaint]

Be patient and only unload when you are back at the car!

 

[Dorsettaff]

Time spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted

 

[Tim.243]

What’s the best piece of advice you received when starting stalking?
Or what single piece of advice would you pass on to a newbie?

Gaining field craft from other types of quarry before shooting deer is by far the best advice I would say followed by
If it is safe in season don't dither shoot it.

 

[Mr. Gain]

Keep asking yourself "If I were the deer I'm after, where would I be meeting my needs right now?" You won't know the answer to start with, but it will sharpen your observation and give structure to your stalking.

 

[Mungo]

Keep asking yourself "If I were the deer I'm after, where would I be meeting my needs right now?" You won't know the answer to start with, but it will sharpen your observation and give structure to your stalking.

Getting a soil and geological map changes your understanding radically!

 

[Cottis]

Keep asking yourself "If I were the deer I'm after, where would I be meeting my needs right now?" You won't know the answer to start with, but it will sharpen your observation and give structure to your stalking.

Indeed. The best food and shelter is always just over the boundary.

 

[GIMLET61]

Buy an air rifle and stalk into rabbits, learn to use wind and available cover and shade.

 

[Cheviot]

Walk little look lots ,

 

[bullet chucker]

If the ground is up and down, remember the beast has to be extracted.

BC.

 

[Taff]

Don,t look at what’s there, look for what should not be there,

 

[Mr. Gain]

Getting a soil and geological map changes your understanding radically!

Interesting. More info, please

 

[opticron1]

There's a huge difference between looking and seeing......Often the seeing part takes years to get the hang of!

 

[VSS]

There's a huge difference between looking and seeing......Often the seeing part takes years to get the hang of!

Very true.
I spent most of my life never seeing deer.
Once I started stalking, and began to get the hang of it, I started seeing deer all over the place. They were probably there all along in some of the areas that I travel through, but I had never noticed them.

 

[Tim.243]

There's a huge difference between looking and seeing......Often the seeing part takes years to get the hang of!

I have taken people out they walk like people in the towns do...

You have to question why do people by-pass the time served learning process (which is out there) only wanting shoot deer!

Gunsmith trade is a good example the fine detail engraving of a top end gun/rifle is not done by the person just started on Monday!

 

[Moose67]

Plan for extraction as you make entry onto the stalking ground

 

[Mungo]

Interesting. More info, please

Deer in areas with poorer soils (like a lot of Scotland) often show a preference for patches of soil that are more nutrient rich than the average.

So if you have a geological map, and can see outcrops of calcareous or less acid rock surrounded by acid rock, there’s a good chance deer density will be higher there. Especially at times of year when they’re a bit nutrient stressed, like late winter or after the rut.

You can also read the vegetation - especially the grass and other ground flora. Again: the plants can be strongly affected by the soil, so noticing where the grass changes from acid loving to neutral or calcareous loving grass will tell you something about where the deer are more likely to be.