Originally Posted by
Cast-Iron
I have hunted the Texas white-tail since the early '70s. Hunting from a blind or stand doesn't compare to the stalking of the animal. I can take a portable radio to the blind. Catch a ball game, take a nap, set an alarm to go off 20 minutes before the game feeder and likely harvest a deer if I choose to. This isn't hunting, it's harvesting. We are overrun with deer here in central Texas. Not a lot of size to them, but a lot of critters. Population control is an important part of our management philosophy.
My approach to stalking is entirely different. It simply boils down to finding them before they are made aware of your presence. Making yourself harder to see thru slow deliberate movement, the use of camo or dark earthtones to draw less attention to yourself, noise and scent disciplne. understanding the habits of whatever you're stalking during that time of year and day, familiarity with your location location location, and plain trial and error. You will be outed by some critter. It happens to all of us. Try to understand what gave you away and learn from the experience. With enough time and obervation, you should start to understand the natural flow of things around you and when that flow is interrupted, it is always for a reason.
Watch animals at a food plot or a watering hole. See how they respond when other animals approach. Learn to use their highly developed senses to heighten your awareness of what may be just over a ridge or behind the brush. I continue to see things I've never seen before and gain greater understanding about my little corner of mother earth (even after 40+ years of "schooling"). While I always value the harvest, I value the experience even more.