Stalking vs Tree Stands

[Abe89]

Ones not better than the other, just different tools for different people. I'm curious about the different preferences and techniques people go about them.

Myself, I prefer stalking. Ive done a few sits in the early morning, usually tracked and stalked through mid-day then found a spot to sit for the evening...and I find I struggle with the patience of sitting still! All the deer I or my friends shot was while stalking on the move, one of which I got to within 15yards, one at 100.
Took 2-5 steps to a tree, slow. Paused and glassed, 2-5 steps and paused. Time consuming but loved every minute. I find if I sit I struggle with the confidence that "I'm in the wrong spot". Maybe that will change with more experience.
Anyway, what do you do?


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[alpineguy]

My personal preference is spot and stalk although I do often sit in a spot at first light. I'm too antsy for a tree stand but have respect for those who can handle it. Tree stands can be very productive as can stalking.

[wildwoods]

I use all methods but prefer ground blind hunting. It's a little hybrid of a system. It allows you to stalk of the situation calls for it.
My quarry can see hear smell many times better than I can. I like to play the wind and have the element of surprise on my side

[bowhunter9841]

Originally Posted by Abe89

Ones not better than the other, just different tools for different people. I'm curious about the different preferences and techniques people go about them.

Myself, I prefer stalking. Ive done a few sits in the early morning, usually tracked and stalked through mid-day then found a spot to sit for the evening...and I find I struggle with the patience of sitting still! All the deer I or my friends shot was while stalking on the move, one of which I got to within 15yards, one at 100.
Took 2-5 steps to a tree, slow. Paused and glassed, 2-5 steps and paused. Time consuming but loved every minute. I find if I sit I struggle with the confidence that "I'm in the wrong spot". Maybe that will change with more experience.
Anyway, what do you do?


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I'm a lot like you, can't stand sitting still in an area that I'm not 100% sure that I'll see a deer. I have had some pretty close encounters in a tree stand though! My bowhunting success has dropped dramatically since I started hunting on foot! But it is much more of a rush, when you're eye to eye with your quarry.

[Ultimate Predator]

I like to be on the ground calling elk moose or stalking mule deer early but in the trees for whitetail for sure

[gs100bert]

spot and stock and a ground blind also just sitting and waiting for a deer to come by have very little patience to sit always on the move but as i get older i'm slowing down more and waiting longer spend more time in the blind and becoming more successful . but you do have to do the work to know where to put your blind .

[Moo Snukkle]

The key to stand or blind hunting is location. My best spot for whitetail I found by dumb luck. Just an unmarked place where deer cross a wide pipeline heading to food one way and an elevated bedding safe haven the other. I could sit there for a week and not see a thing but have confidence that a buck eventually has to check that trail out. Tracks in the snow have confirmed this. And, in a spot like that, there is the chance there are others are watching that path, like the wolf I got 2 winters ago. At this point in my life, I'll let the game do the walking.

[Okotokian]

I think a knowledgeable hunter can likely harvest more game from a stand or blind than from spot and stalk or still hunting. I just find sitting for long periods boring so I rarely do it. And I can't stand watching it on TV.

[Smokinyotes]

If it's not too cold I really enjoy sitting from about 2:30pm until the end of legal light. Did this with my antler less elk last December. A guy can pick and choose which animal you want to take when a herd comes out and they have no idea you are waiting for them.

[300magman]

Originally Posted by Ultimate Predator

I like to be on the ground calling elk moose or stalking mule deer early but in the trees for whitetail for sure

Ditto

[catnthehat]

still hunting is my favorite type of hunting, although I love spotting and stalking as well.
Cat

[Roughneck Country]

Originally Posted by Okotokian

I think a knowledgeable hunter can likely harvest more game from a stand or blind than from spot and stalk or still hunting. I just find sitting for long periods boring so I rarely do it. And I can't stand watching it on TV.

X2 a stand on a good game trail I could see a guy making a kill pretty easy. Spot and stalk is what I like though

[Disastro]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=U2EeappH-zY

These are hella cool


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[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by Disastro

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=U2EeappH-zY

These are hella cool


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

They sure are, but too pricey for me!
Cat

[josh_beeks]

spot and stalk mulies, i live for september first to get out and get up close and personal to those giants. i love spending time glassing and can sit in a spot for hours when i have lots of area to glass. Its my passion and thats why i dont treestand hunt (much) I love seeing the country and finding them in their beds. Some days I dont even go out until noon or later until i know theyre bedded as not to spook them on the way in.

[Lefty-Canuck]

I use all the tools in the tool box every season. I have never hunted with a firearm in a tree stand however. Archery everything is utilized.

LC

[Bushleague]

I used to do all three, eventually I hit a point where I got good enough at still hunting and tracking that I don't need to sit anymore. Maybe I could kill bigger animals if I knuckled down and forced myself to hunt a stand, but I would enjoy a very small percentage of my hunting season. Instead I wander around and look at tracks, explore new territory, I enjoy every minuet of it and I almost always manage to shoot something half respectable. All my best areas are places I found while following tracks in November, if I could have back every hour I spent hunting a stand, and instead spend it tracking, I might not have killed quite so many animals but I would certainly be a wiser hunter.

While stand hunting often puts up the better results, under abnormal conditions such as the last couple of seasons, where the deer are not plentiful or acting the way one expects them too, the hunter that stays mobile and on fresh sign has a better idea what is going on and will often be more likely to punch a tag.

I'll take a rifle with irons, a good pair of boots, and enough timber to get lost in over a tree stand on a hayfield any day.