Hunters with super senses?

woodchopper said:
well 40 years hunting, I've never hunted from a stand, always spot and stalk

and 10ish years working as a forester in the woods looking at trees and land, might have given me a bit of an edge

however I may be out a practice a bit, it takes a week or 2 in the bush before I really start to get back in the groove

I hunt a bunch of different areas and try to hunt a few days in a new area or an area that I have not hunted for years or decades, more like a bit of scouting for next year or to find areas that have good sign for future hunts
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I started hunting with a buddy this year that bunkers down for hours. It took me a bit to get used to and I actually found it really boring. I enjoy walking around slowly with my eyes peeled.

As for OP I don't have any super powers. Sometimes in the woods I'll have a shiver run down my spine and I usually get out of the area. Is it a cougar watching me or the ghost of a dead hooker? Noone knows.
 
The last 3 trips out white tail hunting I walked about 10km and saw 11 white tail (6 bucks ranging in age from yearlings to 3 year olds), 24 mule deer (3 bucks ranging from yearling to 3 year old), 2 calf moose, 15 sharp tailed grouse and 1 ruffed grouse. I would consider this below average for this time of year considering the rut is in full swing. I've included a few pics of the deer I've passed during that time. I could have made shots on virtually all the game I encountered as much of it was unaware of my presence and well within the 400 yards range I'm comfortable shooting to.

If I could add anything of value to the conversation I would encourage you to hunt the most miserable blowing snowy days and seek out the buck bedding areas. It will be much easier to get a good mature buck when he cannot easily hear or see or smell you due to inclement weather. Otherwise you won't have a very good chance at even seeing a mature deer on a calm day if you're moving around the forest cracking twigs and crushing leaves as you search for the older deer. Either you find them or hope you cross paths with one on his terms. And good bucks almost never move around during daylight so you will have to intercept them when they move or have them come to you.


This guy was a good mature deer probably 225 pounds and all of 3 years old. A thick 4x3 and at 100 yards would have been an easy shot for the 30-06 with hornady 165 grain ballistic tips.

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Here are a few young deer that I passed on while sitting in the blind at 25 yards. What a pleasure to see so close. I hope they make it a couple more years.

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Here's a little friend I made in the forest.

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Keep your eye on the prize. Never lose focus, work to achieve your goals and don't compromise your principles.

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Most, if not all , off the last dozen or so deer I took out of the bush around Cold Lake, were from still hunting.

Truly, the fact is, the more time you spend in the bush, the higher your 'luck' is!

Learn that the woods is NOT a quiet place. Learn to move through the woods and make noise that sounds like you belong there. Learn how to sit still when you need to, and only move slowly, if you must.

It's not really all that hard, but it does take some time, and some observation of cause and effect!

My "Gold Standard" for a good day in the bush, was that I saw deer. Every one that ran away from me, taught me something about how I should be moving out in the bush.

With time and experience, I became "Lucky".
 
Different people definitely do "hunting" things well, and differently.

I don't have great hearing when people are mumbling when talking, but put me in the woods, and I can generally tell you what's going on around me, even if I can't see it.

I can pick out deer trails, etc., pretty well.

Not so great at seeing the deer themselves. But I've been with people who had terrible woods skills but could see a deer a mile away.

Some people seem incapable of walking quietly, let alone silently. For others, it's second nature.

I noticed BEFORE I worked on a commercial fishing boat, that my friends from the fleet could see ducks wayyyyy further off than I could. Later, when I started fishing too, I could also see and identify ducks a long, long way away .... and now that I'm a keyboard jockey again, I can't see anything again!
 
My brother is vegetarian, and is constantly tripping over deer in the woods. I suspect deer can smell the vegan off him. Not that helps with hunting, but perhaps some people have less death smell to deer than others.
 
norlandgeese said:
Just curious about something for bush deer hunting. I know a few hunters who seem to always report hearing and seeing some movement of deer most of the time they walk around any bush during hunting season. They never worry about scent or wind direction, they do not sit at a stand, and they do not need to know the lay of the land. They just walk around any random bush wherever they hunt, even at places they do not know well. Just wondering if some hunters just have superior senses and have developed superior still-hunting skills at not disturbing deer. And how does one develop skills to that level? Thanks!
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I do not think they have super senses. I, think it is experience they have. I, for example hunt with a friend who has been hunting for about 30 years and his knowledge, his vast experience acquired over the years is what gives him the edge over others with less experience including me.

One can study, watch, read and listen to obtain the knowledge but nothing replaces the hands on work.

One summer him and I hunted hard for a few months and the amount of knowledge I gained is priceless.

So, in conclusion it is the hands on experience that tells you what works and what does not and is the best teacher.
 
When I'm still hunting or walking through the woods, I've learned what travel corridors are and what bedding areas are and what feeding areas in the area that I am hunting. My speed differs for the three. But I'm also never in constant motion. I hunt into the wind or sidewind. I take the time to sit as well in between these areas. I never look for a deer, I always look for a horizontal line, there are very few things that are a Straightline in the bush like a deer's back. When I'm spotted, I turn sideways to the deer. I think they've associated the human outline as danger. As far as super senses, absolutely not, just implementing the things I've learnt over the years to use to my advantage.
 
valczer said:
I do not think they have super senses. I, think it is experience they have. I, for example hunt with a friend who has been hunting for about 30 years and his knowledge, his vast experience acquired over the years is what gives him the edge over others with less experience including me.

One can study, watch, read and listen to obtain the knowledge but nothing replaces the hands on work.

One summer him and I hunted hard for a few months and the amount of knowledge I gained is priceless.

So, in conclusion it is the hands on experience that tells you what works and what does not and is the best teacher.
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Very much so, and the other posters here pretty much say the same thing.

Take the time to learn and exercise your body in the bush, and your senses and body adapt.

The absolute worst deer hunter I know is a guy who "walks" once a year. The concept of stealth is lost on him, because he's never experienced it. He would be better off buying spam.
 
Given enough time you can get more adept at spotting game, in the conditions you are used to. We look with our eyes, but we see with our brains. The mind registers something; like the flick of an ear, a bit of white, or a horizontal line where there shouldn't be one and then your eyes snap into focus and you finally see what was always there to see. Its not super vision, just a skill that can developed. For instance I was just now focused on my computer when my eye snapped into focus on the 5 point whitetail standing on the edge of my yard.Laugh2

I like to think that I'm decent at spotting game in close cover, semi open terrain, wide open prairie or a moving vehicle. That describes where I live after all. Put me glassing a mountain slope where it could take a day to get to something you spot and I basically fall on my ass. It's a different skill set and I'll be back to looking without seeing. :(
 
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I find for spotting game you do not look for the animal, you look for what doesn't belong or what doesn't look like everything else. Its amazing how a 200lb deer can hide sometimes only 20-30 yards away in thick cover.

Horizontal lines like the deers belly or back lines. Most horizontal lines (logs) are much lower.

Textures like smooth deer hides compared to rough tree bark.

White/black nose, eyes, inner ears are easy to spot when similar looking things like birds and squirrel holes are usually up higher.



To help with hearing, wear ear plugs for a while before hunting and on the way to the bush. No car radio, windows up to keep it silent. Once you get there and remove the ear plugs sounds are amplified and you can practically hear a mouse fart 50 yards away ;)


Think like your quarry. Where would you hide? What routes provide cover? Where do you want to go? Answering these questions really helps with planning a stalk or where to wait for an ambush.


Its really tough to try and explain how to be a ninja in the bush.
 
One guy in our hunt camp can spot a game camera , tree stand , fence line way before anybody else can . Even a fire pit covered with a old cloth cammo tarp at about 200 yards . Says he just sees shapes that look like they dont belong there
 
In my experience, the way to spot deer is to be hunting for grouse and woodcock with 7.5 or 8 shot in the gun and no tag. You'll see plenty that way, but no grouse. Then when you meet up with a deer hunter, you can report all the deer you saw and he'll tell you about the scores of grouse he kicked up that he's convinced kept scaring away the deer in front of him.
 
LE303 said:
One guy in our hunt camp can spot a game camera , tree stand , fence line way before anybody else can . Even a fire pit covered with a old cloth cammo tarp at about 200 yards . Says he just sees shapes that look like they dont belong there
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I have read that the WW2 air photo folks, found that the color blind guys, for some reason unexplained, were far better at picking out the various pieces of equipment that were buried under Camo nets and the like, when scanning over the Air Recce photos.
 
LE303 said:
One guy in our hunt camp can spot a game camera , tree stand , fence line way before anybody else can . Even a fire pit covered with a old cloth cammo tarp at about 200 yards . Says he just sees shapes that look like they dont belong there
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We have one in our camp as well. He doesn’t look for deer, just deer parts or unnatural things in the bush.
 
I do not think I have any "special" skills when it comes to hunting, but time spent in the field does help a lot.
I have been accused of having a horseshoe up my a$$, because I seem to be able to spot game easily.

But like Dogleg said, you look for things that don't really belong, then scrutinize that area. Often it turns out
to be an animal. I use my binoculars a lot, even in thicker cover. It is amazing what shows up when magnified.

I love the time spent in the field. Every trip teaches me something of value. Dave.
 
Heres a trick to using binos in heavy cover; helps if you have quality glass that focuses sharply. Take your first sweep trying to see everything first. Then focus at a specific distance and do it again. Then repeat at a slightly farther distance and keep repeating. Your eyes naturally wants to look at whats in sharp focus, and this is a way to pull the bush apart with a system.
 
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