Stalking and Movement

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pikey30

Joined
Sep 9, 2004
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I am trying to gather information on anything under this topic. The ability to stalk and touch animals is very apealing to me and i was wondering to hear anybodies personal experience or any information sources on this topic. Natural camo as well. thanks.
 
I have never heard of this before, you let me make sure that I understand--you want to sneak up behind an animal so that you can touch it?
 
As a kid I remember stalking a deer and getting within about 12 ', I was thrilled .I've been at that distance with bear and other animals but not from stalking them. Always respect animals -that means never attempt to touch ,or feed animals .That is unless your name is Treadwell !! Animals are not there just for your pleasure Many have died like Treadwell and the Crocodile man and many mor e were injured playing the feed them and hug them game. There was an excellent video of a woman studying whales .At one point she felt she had to touch one.Only snorkeling ,she was grabbed and taken down deep .At the very limits of her endurance she was finally released.
 
Stalking within touching distance of an animal and then watching it wander away without ever knowing you were there is an awesome goal. The closest I've come is sitting in one place still and long enough to have birds land on my hat and knees and squirrels climb across my feet.

Trying to touch an animal will only serve to startle it (crue!) and many animals are just as likely to attack as run away. Had to fight a raccoon off once that realized I was only two feet away from him and didn't appreciate the surprise! You can kick a coon a long ways and they'll come back for more! ;)

As far as stalking, it's essentially all about moving quietly and DELIBERATELY (not necessarily slowly). Know where every part of your body is and what it's doing. Some basic suggestions:

- Wear soft-bottomed shoes so you can feel that twig before your break it.
- Always keep your weight centered comfortably so you can stop all movement without falling over.
- Look by moving your eyes more than your whole head.
- Try to keep to the shadows as much as possible to help break up your outline.
- RELAX!!! It's very common to tense up completely when we're trying to be stealthy which will wear you out quickly!
- Don't look your quarry directly in the eyes. Don't know why, but every time I do, they see me!
- Keep repeating to yourself, "I'm a stump, I'm a stump, I'm a stump..." whenever their head comes up and they look in your direction!
- PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE! Learn to walk quietly everywhere. Try to climb the stairs in your house without making them squeek, etc.

Getting REALLY close to nature is super cool, but do it in a kind and humane manner. If you want some entertaining suggestions/examples, just read some of Ted Nugent's stuff!

my $.02, take it for what it's worth...

J-
 
Start with our feathered friends. I've sat still in the woods hunting deer and had birds land on the barrel of my shotgun. While small and insignificant most of the time, its a rare treat to have a wild bird land just inches from your hand and not even notice you.

cs
 
We had a guy get killed here yesterday in Ellenburg, NY, by one of several deer he had penned in. This one was a big buck and this is in rutting season. The guy got gored. He had a casual relationship with this buck before, but hey, a doe is a doe. How many times have you seen a guy go nuts over a piece of ass? When you're messing with an animal that is at least your size and weight, with things like horns and hooves and teeth, what do you think your chances are?
 
Ya know, it hasn't happened yet, but I expect it...the really sad thing is that DEC will probably have to come in and put the animal down...the buck, for doing what it does naturally...it'll get shot down in a pen...instead of getting hunted in the wild, where it belonged in the first place.
 
I was going to recommend reading the books by Tom Brown Jr but by what you say in your post I guess you already have.........am I right?
 
To merge with nature you need to become as one with nature and this is something not easily done.
I liken it to meditation,as you enter the forests attempt to leave all your everyday thoughts behind and empty your mind....not many people can do this and wander along with only a small part of their available vision and focus in use.Once your mind is clear the sounds and sights of the forest will start to open up.Practice this and then add other techniques such as camoflauge,scent masking and speed/style of movement etc.
I know this sounds a bit heavy but trust me you might not be touching deer straight away but you will be amazed at how much more you see !!!
 
Yes I have 1Whitefoot, stalking and awarness has not opened up for me as much as tracking has and seeing how they all fuse together they are important to me. I am having trouble reading thru the lines on a few things.
 
Get a puppy or a cat,if you want to touch someting furry or buy a fur hat.....wild animals bite,scratch,claw and could injure you or you could cause them to die from stress or heart attack without proper training.
You can get close to them without touching ....very close,I have had wild animals and birds touch me while being camoed out but not for long.
 
pikey30 said:
stalking and awarness has not opened up for me
Click to expand...

Not to get metaphysical or such,
there is an area in you that is the 'observer'.
It sets behind the 'thinker'
the 'observer' just 'is'.
from that area is where you gain the ability to be one with
and a part of nature and move though it without causing a disturbance.

Tom's world-view is his way of getting into that 'state'
It works for him and so that is what he teaches.
There are other 'ways' to get there, it'll come to you.:thumbup:

Physical skills are good, and intention makes it all happen.:)
 
Heart attacks? Aww come on! Deer and most other wild animals live day in and day out with stress, but without greasy cheeseburgers. Well, city coons might be the exception. You don't want to tangle with one of those. As mentioned, when they are in fight mode, they don't quit! The advice to not project predator thoughts, not to make eye contact is valid. Call it a sixth sense, or whatever, prey animals can sense a predator. "Zoning out", "getting into that special place", no matter how you describe it, it is an altered state of mental awareness. Read a book writen by a real-honest-to-goodness sniper, and he'll describe it. Some people can do it, and some can't.

Codger
 
Personally I believe sitting and being still is the most effective for getting close to wildlife. I've spent hours sitting, waiting in the woods. It takes about an hour before you and the woods have settled down enough to blend together. I had a barn owl fly so close to me i felt the wind from it's wings. I have to admit, it came so fast and so silently, I almost freaked out and jumped out of the tree.:D Similar experiences with red tail hawks. One landed in the same tree i was in, 10 feet away. The moment I moved my head to get a better look, he was gone.
Spending hours in the woods over numerous years gives endless opportunities to experience these kinds of things. Just takes the time and patience. Stalking has never been high on my list as an effective way to view nature in it's natural state. Things just always seem to know you're there. Sitting still for a couple hours in one spot still gives you plenty to look at... if you're looking. And what the heck, you've got to walk in and out of there so practice the stalking.
 
Look up GL Drew knifemaker, He's got a story of having to beat a porcupine away with his hat. It wanted in the tree he was sitting in.;)
 
Deerslayer71 said it well, I have harvested deer while stalking especially in rain or going into a strong wind both of witch will help control your scent and cover any noise you make. When deer can't hear well or smell well they tend to hold tight in my experience so if you are using cover to your advantage and going slow you can get pretty close like inside of 10 yards if your lucky.
That being said I have seen far more wildlife much closer in a make shift ground blind or in a tree stand then I have ever stalking.
A book that helped me out a lot in the beginning is Dr. Ken Nordbergs Whitetail Hunters Almanac.

Good luck
Helle
 
I snuck up on, and touched a hummingbird once. I approached it very slowly over the course of, I suppose 10-15 minutes (it was coming and going to the feeder we had in a tree). It was a slightly breezy day, and I only moved when the branches of the tree were moving from the wind. Initially, I just wanted to see how close I could get, but when I realized I was within touching range, I figured "what the hell" and slowly moved my arm up while the breeze was blowing and stroked a tail feather, whereupon it zoomed off.

The reason I did this is that I knew that the hummingbird wasn't going to turn around and bite, gore, claw or maul me (that would look damn silly on the insurance report, wouldn't it? -- "mauled by a hummingbird"). I'd advise against touching anything larger -- even if its a small mammal. Can you be certain that the reason you got so close isn't that it's too sick with rabies to run away?
 
I've also noticed something else -- at least with the squirrels, chipmunks and birds that wander into my yard. They seem to be very attuned to and frightened of stalking behavior (fixed stare, slowly moving directly towards them) and will run off much sooner than if I keep them in the corner of my eye and kind of move randomly around, getting closer to them overall, but not in a consistent way (kind of like I was foraging for acorns too).
 
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