B.S... they don't live by creeping up on predators... and if their curiosity did get the better of them, their senses would be zoned in on you and your location and they would be on high alert... be silent, be present, be alert... you might get away with being sloppy a hundred times, but then the one time it really counts it costs you dearly (or deerly)… spend enough time in the wilderness pursuing big game of any sort and you will discover this... Murphy's Law in full operation.
Quieting snacks/food?
- Thread starter Suther
- Start date
B.S... they don't live by creeping up on predators... and if their curiosity did get the better of them, their senses would be zoned in on you and your location and they would be on high alert... be silent, be present, be alert... you might get away with being sloppy a hundred times, but then the one time it really counts it costs you dearly (or deerly)… spend enough time in the wilderness pursuing big game of any sort and you will discover this... Murphy's Law in full operation.
- Location
- Queen City
Get a few WW II army cotton ration bags with draw strings or make copies. Wash them when you are done and reuse. I have been using them for decades. They pack well, are clean and easy to pack in a rucksack. If carrying cheese simply wrap the cheese in wax paper or paper towels and stuff it into the ration bag. The external pockets on old style rucksacks were made specifically to carry ration bags with a day's supply of fresh food.
I usually use paper towels to wrap my sandwiches and other food. If I use zip-lock sandwich bags, I open them up at the bottom of my back pack to reduce any noise. My coffee thermos is placed inside 2 wool socks, to keep it warmer and to prevent unwanted noises.
canadian hunter312
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Brant County
I suppose the dozens of times i have had curious deer sneak within bow range while eating loud snacks, cooking on a fire, field dressing deer or other animals, going up a tree in a climbing treestand, felling trees or coyote hunting with loud calls were all just my imagination?
A food wrapper making some noise is a non issue and i cant help but laugh at people who think a food wrapper will ruin their hunt.
- Location
- The Conservative part of Ontario
Motion and noise are your enemy. Food = both IMO. Plus odor.
I starve on stand, and take only water in a heavy plastic bottle that makes no noise.
Walking I pack a sandwich, or an apple with that water. I often don't eat it.
I starve on stand, and take only water in a heavy plastic bottle that makes no noise.
Walking I pack a sandwich, or an apple with that water. I often don't eat it.
Ardent
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
All I gotta say is show your bucks and bulls, proof is in the pudding.
I’ve seen Hoyt’s, he knows what he’s doing. A few times over the years moose and deer have for some reason walked right in on us while undergoing an activity that a guy would think would scare off any game for 100 yards or more.
Like chainsawing firewood and making all kinds of racket talking over the saw and stacking in the truck..... and along comes "the biggest bull I've ever seen!"(for 100 mile house area anyways) ….. true story.
Twice now we have taken respectable bucks while setting up the treestand and for whatever reason they ignored the human sounds and came walking right in.
One of the largest racked mature black tail bucks our group has taken was while 3 of us were celebrating over the fresh kill of a nice 4x4 and prepping to dress it out when a mature 5x5 comes down the same shooting lane and we all scrambled for our rifles. Deer was curious enough to bound 20 yards away and turn and look at us..... down and out.
I've been on the slope solo gutting a fresh kill and been near run over by other deer coming down the slope while I was making all the noise I could in case of bears/cougars/wolves.
That said, my entire gear set up is for maximum silence, comfort and ease of access. Snacks in the soft silent pouches I mentioned earlier and water in the hydration bladder in my camelback. As a hunter, I like hiking in and ambush hunting over sign , from the ground with natural cover. I seldom build blinds and only recently put a treestand in one spot I go to.
Ambush hunting requires silence and being absolutely still. Move your eyes without moving your head. Make movements with your hands 10x slower than feels normal and become part of the forest. If the squirrels are running over you and birds landing on you..... you are doing it right.... no matter how many trophies adorn your wall.
Like chainsawing firewood and making all kinds of racket talking over the saw and stacking in the truck..... and along comes "the biggest bull I've ever seen!"(for 100 mile house area anyways) ….. true story.
Twice now we have taken respectable bucks while setting up the treestand and for whatever reason they ignored the human sounds and came walking right in.
One of the largest racked mature black tail bucks our group has taken was while 3 of us were celebrating over the fresh kill of a nice 4x4 and prepping to dress it out when a mature 5x5 comes down the same shooting lane and we all scrambled for our rifles. Deer was curious enough to bound 20 yards away and turn and look at us..... down and out.
I've been on the slope solo gutting a fresh kill and been near run over by other deer coming down the slope while I was making all the noise I could in case of bears/cougars/wolves.
That said, my entire gear set up is for maximum silence, comfort and ease of access. Snacks in the soft silent pouches I mentioned earlier and water in the hydration bladder in my camelback. As a hunter, I like hiking in and ambush hunting over sign , from the ground with natural cover. I seldom build blinds and only recently put a treestand in one spot I go to.
Ambush hunting requires silence and being absolutely still. Move your eyes without moving your head. Make movements with your hands 10x slower than feels normal and become part of the forest. If the squirrels are running over you and birds landing on you..... you are doing it right.... no matter how many trophies adorn your wall.
How many of those deer that snuck up on you did you kill?
What cracks me up are all the casual (rookie) hunters that make an observation about wildlife and draw absolutely the wrong conclusion... such as what you have done here... you are not alone... also participating are all of the hunters who have had big game animals walk up on them from downwind, and hunt the rest of their careers with the firm belief that wind direction doesn't matter, when unbeknownst to them, in the original occurence a thermal quirk, of heat and or terrain actually blew their scent away from the animal and it had never detected them at all... and they wonder why their success rate is so low for the next 20 years.
If you think you can walk into a big game animals habitat and be sloppy and careless and consistently harvest animals, particularly older more experienced animals, then you are simply foolish.
Details matter, not always, but most of the time... occasionally some rookie walks into the woods in a jogging suit, smoking a cigarette and shoots a big buck with a borrowed gun, but those episodes are few and far between. Deer, bears, moose, elk get big by avoiding predators, of which humans are but one. To be consistently successful pay attention to details and learn about your quarry's habitat and biology and patterns.
Or you can try it your way, sit around a campfire crinkling up beer cans, telling stories about the big buck you are going to shoot when it eventually walks up and asks for a marshmallow.
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
Biggest buck Ive shot walked by me without a care in the world as I just finished a chocolate bar and stuffed the crinkly wrapper in my pocket.
Obviously this isnt every deer, just a funny annecdote
Obviously this isnt every deer, just a funny annecdote
Everyone who has hunted for years has stories like that, I have several... the stories you don't hear about are the dozens of animals that busted you and disappeared, most times without you even being aware of their presence. Who hasn't heard a whitetail snort when they winded you or you spooked them with movement or noise? How many of those deer get shot by the hunter they busted... not many... most of the time, you don't even see the deer. My point is simply that taking the utmost of precautions results in the utmost of success... I am completely happy if other hunters just "wing it," more big bucks and boars and bulls for me to pursue.... I quoted you, Blasted_Saber, but this post is not directed at you.
Big bore dinosaur
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- NORT OF COW.TOWN.EH
Maybe I over think being quiet in the stand or on a stalk,, snacks included..
bottom line, whitetail, especially dominant buck in that area know what sound and smell is natural.. out of place, and or different to there everyday life.
Try your best, live and learn, eat snacks quietly. It all matters..
Hunting season is around the corner, DONT forget your plant based protein shakes,, guzzel, guzzel ,guzzel, grow....
bottom line, whitetail, especially dominant buck in that area know what sound and smell is natural.. out of place, and or different to there everyday life.
Try your best, live and learn, eat snacks quietly. It all matters..
Hunting season is around the corner, DONT forget your plant based protein shakes,, guzzel, guzzel ,guzzel, grow....
biggest buck I ever shot walked out of the bush line literally right beside me while I stood watching an open area looking to punch a doe tag. Was rememberance day and I had stood there, motionless for a couple hrs. It was a crappy extremely windy day and I was 3km from the vehicle, trees where crashing to the ground with a fairly scary frequency and as dusk was approaching I turned to go and I didn't even take a step, the deer , scored at 165 4pt typical(mule deer) , was staring right at me from feet away..... 5 feet? no more than 10. As it turned to go back where it came from I reacted and the deer was down maybe 40 feet from the shot. I still marvel at that hunt, how a buck like that could make such a fatal mistake but it taught me extremely valuable lessons and validated myself as a hunter who could get it done on my own. I have been fortunate enough to have found good hunting grounds and the time to put in to get to know the animals in the different seasons. Also spending an equal amount of time getting to know the land itself.
- Location
- Queen City
It's the truth -especially with one in each hand!!
Yeah. I love it when you buy hunting clothes and the pockets use velcro closures. Gives you a clues as to the designer's hunting experience. Some of the best hunting gear I've bought was, from all places, Giant Tiger, when they get the Ducks Unlimited stuff - truly practical, quiet and long-lasting.
Sorry for derailing the thread.
