Traveling quietly through brush

[headshot5]

I generally cut trails after season (February so I can look for sheds) with a machete, and then hit them with pruners again in August if I'm planning to hunt there.  I also carry a pair of hand pruners in my pocket while hunting.  As also noted, wearing fleece and wool helps.  The two biggest blacktail bucks, that I have killed were 200 yards apart on consecutive years.  Both were shot from a trail I had cut that paralleled a clearcut.

Also, if you can cut a trail to see into portions of a clearcut that can't be seen from the road, you will find the deer entering in exiting the clearcut in that area a large % of the time.  I've had great luck watching the hidden corners of clearcuts in mid-morning and evening.

Edit to add...  If you need a recommendation for a good machete get a Bear Grylls machete made by Gerber.  It's the best machete I've every used.  I'm not generally a gerber fan, but they did a great job on this one.   



 
 



       

[Jonathan_S]

I don't usually try and be quiet unless creeping into a stand.  Otherwise, just focus on making the "right" sounds.  Deer, elk, bear aren't silent but they have very different patterns of sound than do we.  Still hunting (slow movement) should sound like an animal moving.  Even if it alerts your prey, they're more likely to hang around out of curiousity or even discount it entirely.

[7mmfan]

With blacktail in particular, I've found them to be quite curious. I worry about my smell WAY more than I worry about noise. If they haven't seen/smelled you, just heard you, they will hang out to see what you are most of the time. They are also notorious for holding tight and letting you walk by. I have walked into a spot and got setup, only to have animals come check me out a few minutes later when I sat still long enough. Their curiosity gets the best of them sometimes.

Like others have said, noise isn't all bad, it just needs to be the right noise. Doe bleats, grunts, tree rubbing, false browsing (plucking browse so it sounds like a deer eating), all are sounds that can put a close by animal at ease, and even encourage them to come check you out.

My biggest ah ha moment was when still hunting a big ferny flat in big timber. It was actually pretty good going so I found myself moving to fast. I got to a point where I needed to pick my way through some downfall and brush and it slowed me down to a snails pace as I tried to negotiate it quietly and had to take time to pick my next steps. I was about 5 minutes in and had moved probably 25' when I saw a white spot in the ferns about 100' away looking at me. It was a buck bedded down watching me and all I could see was his face between some ferns. He could tell I was pre-occupied with what I was doing, and hadn't noticed him. He also knew if he bailed that he would be very visible in that open fern ground so he just layed there and watched me. It was the fact that I was forced to slow to a snails pace that allowed me to pay more attention to what was immediately around me that allowed me to notice him.

[Fl0und3rz]

With blacktail in particular, I've found them to be quite curious. I worry about my smell WAY more than I worry about noise. If they haven't seen/smelled you, just heard you, they will hang out to see what you are most of the time. They are also notorious for holding tight and letting you walk by.

Blacktail, mulies, and elk, I have walked right up on busting through thick brush, as close as about three yards to about ten yards, depending on their willingness to hold tight and sight distance.  Sometimes you can smell them before you see them. 

[smithkl42]

I generally cut trails after season (February so I can look for sheds) with a machete, and then hit them with pruners again in August if I'm planning to hunt there.

I like that idea of cutting some trails on the backside of clearcuts. Gives me something to do in the off-season.

[Special T]

Here are some tips for investing time on a blacktail hunting spot.

Dont clear the entry to a trail too well. you dont want to let everyone else know its there.

Get to know an area really well before you invest tooo much time Ive overinvested in places that didnt produce cutting trails finding trees for the stand and cutting shooting lanes. While learning an area really well just use hand pruners until you get a good layout. IMO make a rough sketch map. Its pretty to do this over a Google map.

When you do find a spot that your pretty sure will be productive cut a wide swath while the leaves are gone. Its a lot less work, but when the brush comes back it will do so with a vengeance because you cleared it. if you dont clear wide enough spring time will have it closed back up again.

Look for Mushrooms and where the berry plants are. it may turn into a productive bear area.