By Josh Sheldon
Sun Outdoors Columnist
Thank you to everyone for their words of encouragement, ideas for future articles and personal experiences shared with Bob McNitt. Contrary to local lore, I didn’t move to Alaska or back to Virginia, I am not guiding hunts in the Wild West and I’m absolutely not hanging out with those folks looking for Bigfoot. One of the most common questions asked was where I disappeared to after high school. Shortly after graduating nursing school, I developed debilitating health issues that kept me from going out and about. Recent surgery has put me back on my feet, and I am quite ready to move on with life. Anyone with story ideas and memories of Bob McNitt you may contact me via email. Bob’s legend can be kept alive and continue to kindle interest in new outdoorsmen through our personal accounts of his mentoring skills. Unfortunately, many hunters such as myself, had no mentor in the field. This tends to create a sportsman devoid of outdoor ethics and sportsman-like conduct simply because of their lack of guidance. It’s our duty as sportsmen to pass on the life experiences taught us by our outdoor mentors and those who chose to set an example in the field.
–––

As mentioned in my previous article, this week’s topic will be common mistakes bow hunters make that cause them to miss a shot or lose their deer. My hunting education was purely trial and error, mostly error in my early years. I wasn’t fortunate enough to have someone in my life that could pass down their secrets. So, for me, the hard way was my only option. I learned to make a mental note of mistakes and the rare occasions proper decisions were made. I recommend using your mistakes as a beginning point for learning, and do everything you can to prevent the same mistakes from happening in the future. There are so many mistakes that can instantly terminate a hunt, so I am only going to highlight the most common ones.
A hunt can be broken down into several different stages according to the style of hunt you choose. With stalking and still hunting being advanced techniques, I am going to stick with ground blind and tree stand scenarios. Your first mistake may be prevented before you even set out. There are numerous pieces of equipment required to safely and comfortably complete a hunt, which makes it pretty easy to leave something behind. A check list, whether mental or on paper, works best to prevent leaving something behind. *Something I have learned by experience, more than once, is having left my bow home on at least two occasions. The only thing that can make this situation worse is having your buddies standing around to witness your mistake. Trust me, you will never hear the end of it.
The next most common mistake would be improper entry to your hunting set up. Noise, smell, and sight will all play a role in your approach strategy. With smell being the most important step in your approach strategy, plan your approach according to the wind direction. By mapping out your stand locations and noting your most favorable winds for these sites, choosing the most effective location won’t be a problem.
Preparation of your hunting site consists of clearing shooting lanes to prevent arrow deflection, placing range markers at ten-, twenty- and thirty-yard increments to prevent misjudging yardage. Although range finders are very common and work great to range deer, I’ve found in the heat of the moment you may not have time so it is best to just range the trees and mark them with different colored ribbons to prevent confusion.
Clearing and/or designating your entry trail by using ribbon or reflective tree tacks will give you the speediest and most silent approach possible. As for sound, vehicle noises may not run game out of the territory, but will alert them of your presence which may decrease your odds. I like to park and walk as far as I can to my stand without breaking a sweat and giving off scent this will prevent alarming game. You may have to move some freshly fallen leaves and sticks from underfoot while ground hunting. Do so after you get everything set up.
It took me a couple of times to figure out why bucks seem to run me over just before I was fully dressed and sitting comfortably. Upon seeing a buck make a ground scrape, it dawned on me I was mimicking this sound while cleaning out my spot. You may ask yourself why move the sticks or leaves at all? Sound will be the answer. If you happen to step or put your knee on a twig or leaf, it may make enough sound to give up your position.
Obviously, sight can be most easily disguised by walking slowly and using terrain features to obscure your approach. With camo being a large contributor to your success, be sure to pick a pattern that blends in best with the surrounding cover. This may cause you to put a little more strain on that wallet by purchasing different types of camo i.e. sky, ground or snow, but will prove to be well worth it.
Immediately upon taking a seat and becoming comfortabl,e you should draw your bow to make sure you can do so without your elbow bumping the tree, blind or safety harness. I then move from side to side to make sure my bow and arm aren’t going to come into contact with anything which would prevent positioning yourself for a clear shot. As a mental note, your safety harness should be firmly attached to the tree before hoisting up gear and running through your draw check. Although preventing mistakes is the topic for this article, safety should be the first consideration on your check list. Limit your body movement; slow side to side head movements are usually fine just don’t snap your head around fast. Game will pick up immediately on fast movements while you tend to get away with a slow and calculated motion. If you become uncomfortable and need to readjust, scan your area completely using your eyes and ears, then make your movement slow. On calm days in tight woodlots, visibility under 100 yards, you usually hear before you see them. Days such as these you may move a bit more without being spotted.
Hopefully, you have done everything right up to this point a deer is making its approach, and it’s actually on your trail. For the first-timer, you are probably in for a big surprise! This is the moment you find out exactly what’s meant by “Buck Vier, Buck Achers, the Shakes” or a whole bunch of other labels used to describe the internal response caused by the sighting of game. Many people have tried to explain why we have this type of reaction during this moment of truth. To this point ,I have yet to hear a rational inference based on genetic response!
With one of my life passions being archeology, anthropolog,y and the reproduction of ancient weaponry, I have drawn my own conclusion. With accuracy much lacking in ancient weaponry, it was easy to understand a close shot was the name of the game. These close encounters are most likely the driving force behind the fever. Our ancestors found themselves in a life or death battle nearly every time they went shopping. Imagine pulling up to the drive through and expecting a life threatening encounter every time you wanted a burger. My guess is you’d probably be pretty shaken and strapped to the hilt for the encounter.
We, as humans, have inhabited this earth for a disputed amount of time, “Let’s just say a long time.” For a majority of that time we have had to fight for our food. So expect the unexpected, and a jolt of adrenaline is a major understatement. A couple of springs ago, while looking for artifacts in a local corn field, I was attacked by a mid-sized german shepherd. The dog approached me from behind before I was aware of its presence. I got bit once, but stood my ground immediately after, and was able to fend it off with my walking stick. I felt a similar reaction, but surprisingly the feeling was only about half as intense compared to before and after making a harvest. The way I fight through the rush is I remember to breathe a lot. It sounds funny, but even breathing is affected. Your heart can even pound so hard that you hear it rushing through your ears. So, try to breathe and repeat to yourself, “Relax until you make the shot.” This was learned by allowing myself to become so shook up that I was unable to properly go through the motions to make a shot. The truth is sightings can be exciting, but that is only the beginning of a shot routine.
My shot routine begins immediately after the sighting. I first attempt to predict the path the animal will take, and get my body positioned for a shot at the expected trail crossing. Be ready to readjust if its path changes. Just remember movements should be kept to a minimum unless its vision is obstructed. I like to use trees and bushes to block the animal’s vision while I am drawing. Things are about to happen, if you are lucky it will take place slowly. I’ve found a fast walking deer is hard to draw on because its vision may only be blocked for a split second. If that is all you’ve got, get that bow drawn as fast as possible. It’s most favorable if the approach is slow enough to get yourself pointed where you expect the shot to take place, well before the deer is in range. As the deer walk behind the obstruction, make your move. Try not to pick an obstruction that will cause you to hold and wait a long time before the shot. Sometimes you may have to draw and hold as long as it takes for the deer to walk into your sights. I’ve been stuck at full draw for up to a couple minutes, and still made the shot. My only advice is fight the pain and shakes, and just make it happen.
I’ve found it’s best to draw no more than thirty seconds before the shot. This will allow just enough time to settle your pins, and relax before your shot. A whistle or quiet squeak works best to stop most deer without spooking them. The deer will often take an extra step, so try to time your stop noise just before the vitals are clearly exposed. Pick a very small spot to aim at, relax, and squeeze that trigger or let her fly. Pay close attention to where the arrow enters the animal.
This is the point at which, “finders keepers” starts to rear its ugly head. Unless, you see the animal expire, don’t move a muscle for at least 45 minutes. Yyes, it’s hard, but essential to stay put. Depending on your shot placement, you have several decisions to make. For an on-the-money shot, you may see the animal go down, this is the easy one go grab your arrow and your meat. Here is where things get complicated. If you have any doubt about your shot, go in the opposite direction the animal ran, and attempt to stay as far away from where you believe it went as you can.
On an obvious bad hit, give at least six hours before attempting the track job. I understand how hard it is to wait that long, but it will be much harder on you if you jump the animal and lose it. A liver- or paunch-hit deer will usually expire within the six-hour allotment you have provided. It’s common for you to find several spots where the deer has bedded down before you make a recovery. The beds are typically no more than 50 to 100 yards apart without jumping it. These beds have been known to be spread apart as far as a mile with pressured game, which usually ends up in the loss of the animal. The old rule of thumb most follow is, “when in doubt back out.” You will recover more game and cost yourself less stress in the long run.
I tend to get nervous when I reach the 100-yard marker on a track job. Athough they can go up to 300 yards with a vital hit, they tend to go approximately 80 to 100 yards. If signs lessen or are lost, it’s best to call some friends for help. Signs are best described as the conglomerate of blood, broken vegetation, overturned leaves, kicked-up dirt or fresh mud tracked onto a dry area of leaves, sticks or rocks. Although blood is the most obvious and guaranteed tracking sign, other forms may be just as useful. I have recovered game as far as 1,000 yards from the last found drop of blood, so don’t give up if the blood trail dries up.
I tend to use the “Leap Frog” or concentric circle method. The concentric circle method is best used once signs are lost. Place a marker, surveyor tape, your buddy or toilet paper on last sign found. Begin at this last sign by walking tight circles approximately a yard apart until you pick up new sign. If, by yourself, you should mark sign every three to five yards this will enable you to back-track and possibly anticipate the path taken by the animal. Many times the markers lead you in the direction of an intersecting or bifurcating trail, which sign tends to be recovered on. If you are the least bit worried, it may be your best decision to simply back out and call for a dog. Only a licensed dog handler may track your game.
Not sure of cost or anyone licensed in our area. Anyone with info on a tracker and prices please contact me. I’ll attempt to make this information available in the soonest article possible. Good wishes and happy hunting.

Questions or comments may be directed to Sheldon at sheldonsoutdoorbusiness@hotmail.com