Advice ?

[Tim.243]

Practice Practice Practice
Practice your marksmanship on paper, preferably over different distances, using the techniques you'll use stalking. e.g.
Sticks, standing or sitting, prone of rucksack, or whichever you intend to suit your ground.

The paper will highlight 'your' optimum range limit for each technique. So you'll be confident about, when you can take a shot, or when you lnow you need to get closer.

M.

Paper does not move, turn around look back, wander into a hedge, face you with only a head shot, sit there in cover blinking (fox) run after you missed and pull up a 100 yds and look back for a second chance.
The thing to put tension in your shoulder is a quarry not wanting to stop so shouting at it does not work with a piece of paper

 

[Ratel]

People used to laugh at me running over the ground to get the knife in, and the deer bled out as soon as possible after the shot.

Didn't know you were of that faith N.

 

[Ratel]

Advice from a farmer when out after Fallow with his .22 rimfire in my youth.
"When you've fired and hit and it runs, watch it and never run after it, cos it'll beat you every time. Give it half an hour to settle".

 

[MAH]

Paper does not move, turn around look back, wander into a hedge, face you with only a head shot, sit there in cover blinking (fox) run after you missed and pull up a 100 yds and look back for a second chance.

Hi Tim.
You are partly* right when you say the above.
And that's exactly why it's important to know our limitations. eg. Using your scenario above.

If the OP was standing, using sticks, with a roe broadside at 100m.
He will probably know that his average group size on paper makes this shot viable of sticks.

However, if as he's getting ready, it turns to face head on, then that as you know is a much smaller target area. And his paper practice with give him the confidence to make a decision.
Which, as the OP is a "newbie " the average group of sticks might be 2" or 3", the decision would probably be wait for it to turn again.

*Our range has moving targets.
Not that I'm suggesting I shoot at move deer.
But waiting for the target to appear, then shooting it in a availability window, does help manage pre match nerves.

M

 

[Darkwoodecho]

Don't spend too much time looking down at slots.
"you're looking where they were, not where they are"

 

[Bowland blades]

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?

Walk a Little , look a lot!
Why? Because bumping deer you did not see will tend to follow its actions along with it

 

[Mike1979]

Paper does not move, turn around look back, wander into a hedge, face you with only a head shot, sit there in cover blinking (fox) run after you missed and pull up a 100 yds and look back for a second chance.
The thing to put tension in your shoulder is a quarry not wanting to stop so shouting at it does not work with a piece of paper

Shouting doesnt seem to work with foxes for me at the moment..."stop you ginger f****r didnt even work the other night

 

[Madu]

Walk slowly, glass often
Never shoot the first one you see
Squeezing the trigger is the easy part
Oh, and you're not as young as you used to be.

 

[Mungo]

Never shoot the first one you see

I don’t understand this one?

I prefer ‘never pass up at first light a shot you would take at last light’ - ie. Shoot the deer you see. Don’t try to find a ‘better’ deer.

 

[Madu]

I don’t understand this one?

I prefer ‘never pass up at first light a shot you would take at last light’ - ie. Shoot the deer you see. Don’t try to find a ‘better’ deer.

I think its an old Native American Indian thing.lol

 

[Tim.243]

Hi Tim.
You are partly* right when you say the above.
And that's exactly why it's important to know our limitations. eg. Using your scenario above.

If the OP was standing, using sticks, with a roe broadside at 100m.
He will probably know that his average group size on paper makes this shot viable of sticks.

However, if as he's getting ready, it turns to face head on, then that as you know is a much smaller target area. And his paper practice with give him the confidence to make a decision.
Which, as the OP is a "newbie " the average group of sticks might be 2" or 3", the decision would probably be wait for it to turn again.

*Our range has moving targets.
Not that I'm suggesting I shoot at move deer.
But waiting for the target to appear, then shooting it in a availability window, does help manage pre match nerves.

M

You have missed out last light strong winds or both. The only range I went to was in 1975 shooting .303s got 5 from the 7
windows. for 50p. There is no dry mouth/heart/hand shaking/arse twitching with a paper target so I don't buy that pre match nerves part, it is like people "having a round of clays" before the first days of shooting pheasants when clays are nothing like them lol

 

[Mike1979]

You have missed out last light strong winds or both. The only range I went to was in 1975 shooting .303s got 5 from the 7
windows. for 50p. There is no dry mouth/heart/hand shaking/arse twitching with a paper target so I don't buy that pre match nerves part, it is like people "having a round of clays" before the first days of shooting pheasants when clays are nothing like them lol

Have to agree with Tim here. No pressure or nerves shooting a piece of paper or steel target at 200 yards but when its an animal my adrenalin kicks in its a whole different ball game...not sure my arse twitches ...but the rest is fairly true

 

[cooksey]

You have missed out last light strong winds or both. The only range I went to was in 1975 shooting .303s got 5 from the 7
windows. for 50p. There is no dry mouth/heart/hand shaking/arse twitching with a paper target so I don't buy that pre match nerves part, it is like people "having a round of clays" before the first days of shooting pheasants when clays are nothing like them lol

I agree but a few targets or clays occasionally is good to keep you in good habits and know what range you can comfortable shoot at but as many have already said it's very different pinging bullets down a range to the buck/stage youve been after all season when your out of puff!

 

[VSS]

Have to agree with Tim here. No pressure or nerves shooting a piece of paper or steel target at 200 yards but when its an animal my adrenalin kicks in its a whole different ball game...not sure my arse twitches ...but the rest is fairly true

I'm the exact opposite.
No pressure or nerves shooting a deer, but when it's a target everything goes to pot.
But apparently I'm not normal.
So my kind friends of the SD have told me.
Many times.

 

[Tim.243]

I agree but a few targets or clays occasionally is good to keep you in good habits and know what range you can comfortable shoot at but as many have already said it's very different pinging bullets down a range to the buck/stage youve been after all season when your out of puff!

Had a small bag of pigeons to day as they were working on the big field and this should have been shot yesterday but I was busy, decent wind and sorry to say but clays don't dip a wing and roll over like they do then if you get up a bit early making your timing off. My good habits where taught on my beginning in 1972.

 

[MAH]

You have missed out last light strong winds or both

Once again, you're right Tim..
There are many things a "Newbie" needs to learn.
The list is long.
But the OP asked for 1.
Each to their own, but the most important thing I felt was worth passing on was - practice.
So you know your limitations.
And you can make decisions, based on those limitations.

Are you suggesting that's wrong?

M

 

[mudman]

I’m in East Yorkshire nothing but roe around me, so if a fallow comes out of the wood im
Shooting it

And maybe that kind of reasoning is why we no longer have wild fallow in East Yorkshire?

 

[Tim.243]

Once again, you're right Tim..
There are many things a "Newbie" needs to learn.
The list is long.
But the OP asked for 1.
Each to their own, but the most important thing I felt was worth passing on was - practice.
So you know your limitations.
And you can make decisions, based on those limitations.

Are you suggesting that's wrong?

M

I am sticking to this 1
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.

Before muntjac turned up around here I would shoot somewhere around 50 + foxes a year now it is the other way around but the field craft I gained on foxes was invaluable and with the only difference is the time set out in the deer act and the foxes get a hedge ticket.
Wait ages to gain time out staking deer or go out 2/3 time in the week on other quarry! Seems like no contest to me!

 

[MAH]

I am sticking to this 1
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.

I can buy into that, but before you shoot rabbits, you still need to practice on paper.
M

 

[Sol]

I'm not sure it even needs to be a "good" one. To stir the pot even more, I wouldn't advise new stalkers to use thermal, as I think the things you learn without one are fundamental. Perhaps a threshold of 20-30 deer killed without thermal would be enough to lay down the necessary knowledge.

The people I first started shooting with, mainly hunted from the road (engine off, off course) with quick glances of fields with the thermal since the intended goal was checking pheasant pens, with a rifle there incase a fox strutted out.

I started stalking in august "properly" old gear, no thermals Its rewarding to spot deer, I still struggle with deer close that arent moving little or at all, but at a distance I pick them up very well even with no movement.

Hard to tell there's even a deer there, but hey Its a little doe couched up probably 500 yards out that I spotted probably within a minute of glassing, she soon stood up then sat back down and vanished for almost 30 minutes.