Tommy Hoff has one time of the year when he doesn’t fear intruding in a big buck’s sanctuary. He just does it carefully.
“One of the things you can often get away with during the rut is pressing ever deeper into the known hangouts where bucks hold up,” said Hoff, who does a lot of his hunting in the wetland areas around Enid Lake. “This doesn’t mean you can just go bust up into the woods’ thickest thicket without forethought or a plan. It does mean you better play the wind right, and maximize your scent control.
“One of the tactics I use in this strategy is returning to the old school deer hunting style of still hunting. I put on a pair of knee high Muck Boots, spray down with a scent killer, and slip along the edge of the swamp with gun at the ready. I don’t cover much ground, but I do jump a lot of deer this way. Sometimes I surprise a buck, too, because the last thing he expects to see in these areas is a human.”
Sneaking into a buck’s lair isn’t always so easy, but it can be done during the rut when bucks have their minds, hearts, and instincts focused on does. One mistake hunters make is not focusing on does, too, and they can mess up a hunt by having a random antlerless deer bust up the hunt. Stalk with your wits about you, and understand exactly what still hunting is and how to use it during the rut.
Frankly a lot of deer hunters especially young ones, don’t even know the philosophy of still hunting, or what it is all about. Ironically, still hunting is not really hunting still; it is more like hunting in slow motion — think stealth stalking.
Still hunting is moving 10 yards in 10 minutes, watching where you step as you constantly scan the entire span of peripheral vision ahead of you.
At every short piece of turf covered, stop and take long minutes to look for parts and pieces of a deer before it bolts out of the scene. To say that a hunter has to stay on their toes while still hunting is a gross understatement, but done correctly it’s a top strategy for territorial intrusion.
Be the first to comment