The Accurate Reloading Forums
A Lousy tracker could use advise...........
06 December 2004, 15:35
djpaintlesA Lousy tracker could use advise...........
OK, I'll admit to being a lousy tracker. Without a good blood trail it always seems to take me longer to track up a dead one than it should.
What are some good ways to mark where an animal ran out of sight? I thought about maybe bringing a compass and take a bearing on a landmark they've run by or something. Once I'm down out of a stand the cedar trees or other markers always seem to look a little different or there's more of them.
Any of you experts have any more good advise?..........DJ
06 December 2004, 15:56
GeneI plan on using-up some marking tape. I mark the point of the shot then where I think the hit occured. Then mark any evidence I find. Take your time! The trail is there, you just gotta find it.
Gene
06 December 2004, 16:39
Matt NormanYes, mark the spot from where you shot,pay close attention to the place where the critter was at when you shot, and mark the spot where you last saw it. "To the left of the dead tree behind the rock" can be tricky due to depth perception. Take your time! When all else fails, start casting about in a planned grid.
06 December 2004, 19:57
derfAlso a trick that was related to me was to carry a spray bottle containing Hydrogen Peroxide. One tiny unnoticeable drop of blood even will bubble and froth when hit with the peroxide. derf
07 December 2004, 01:44
DigitalDanHere's a low tech approach that helped find a deer that kept running after the blood supply ran out from a lung shot through and through. I carry a supply of TP like most, and on this particular day the blood trial was good for about 70 yards. I backtracked about 30 yards and began marking blood spoor with small bits of paper. The area was rife with tracks in the first place, but being able to have a clear perspective of the deer's path helped distinguish those I was interested in from the rest. Found it about 150-175 yards from where I'd shot it, laying tits up behind a log. The deer had changed course at least a half dozen times, and I certainly would not have picked that up without being able to see the backtrail clearly. Took about 45 minutes to do the job. The terrain was hilly, cover quite dense in a creek bottom. Ground alternated between bare sand and dead leaves/pine needles, there had been no rain a long time to wash away accumulated tracks.
07 December 2004, 04:57
beemanbemeThe TP works very well. Especially as most hunters keep a supply with them.
Think of it this way, if, as you say, you're a poor tracker, it because the animals you shoot rarely go out of sight.
07 December 2004, 06:29
LAWCOPIF YOU hunt in areas where there is no snow or in the fall colored leaves, a couple of things.
First I carry that orange streamer marking tape. It is hardier then TP and won't get blown away or shred if it gets a little damp. You can tie a piece 2 feet long from a tree limb and look back and really see it well to reorient your bearings
Second, Get a bottle of Hydrigine Peroxide. Get an atomizer bottle. In the colored leaves, the blood might NOT be very visible.
BUT
When the misted hydrigine Peroxide hits the blood speck, it foams up white becoming more noticeable and obvious.
If you shoot something pretty much guarateed to shoot through the animal then you have better chances of obvious blood trail.
07 December 2004, 08:20
djpaintlesI really like the TP and Peroxide idea's. I thought about using more orange flagging tape but since TP is biodegradable it might be nice to use it and not worry about having to pick it back up.......DJ
07 December 2004, 08:23
tasunkawitkodj -
JAck O'Connor's book, THE ART OF HUNTING BIG GAME IN NORTH AMERICA, has an excellent chapter on tracking game. everything from looking at the blood and evaluating your hit to tracking under difficult conditions.
i see it on amazon.com for a good price, used, or, if you want, i cdould probably scan and email the relavent pages.
08 December 2004, 05:27
DRGtest
08 December 2004, 11:06
tasunkawitkodon -
not a very classy signature. as a citizen of a "red state" which provides your food, i am disappointed.
if someone were to insert "Jews" in place of "red States," perhaps your feelings would be different.
08 December 2004, 12:29
DigitalDan"Dear Red States: To be honest, we do look down on you"
We already knew that Don, and so by your own admission you are guilty of
pride < !--color-->, and wonder who you
envy < !--color-->. Methinks you suffer
sadness < !--color-->, if only because you are
blue < !--color-->. I know not if you are guilty of
avarice < !--color--> but probably you are. It is the human condition.
Gluttony? Lust? < !--color--> I think not, but
ANGER < !--color--> is a big one.
Hmmm, 5 out of seven ain't that good Donny boy, now take a deep breath and
COOL < !--color--> off.
08 December 2004, 13:18
Freebird_ALGee fellows, not over here!
08 December 2004, 13:54
tasunkawitkoQuote:
"Dear Red States: To be honest, we do look down on you"
We already knew that Don, and so by your own admission you are guilty of pride < !--color-->, and wonder who you envy < !--color-->. Methinks you suffer sadness < !--color-->, if only because you are blue < !--color-->. I know not if you are guilty of avarice < !--color--> but probably you are. It is the human condition. Gluttony? Lust? < !--color--> I think not, but ANGER < !--color--> is a big one.
Hmmm, 5 out of seven ain't that good Donny boy, now take a deep breath and COOL < !--color--> off.
damn, dan...i wish i had your wit!
chapeau!
09 December 2004, 04:18
Hot CoreQuote:
At the spot were I hit the deer there were a dozen or so tufts of white hair. It made me think that I'd gut shot him. But when I found him the entrance and exit wounds were a little less than 1/2 way up the animal. Why was this hair white? My friend that I was hunting with told me that any hair blown off the animal like this was looks white, is this true? What have you guys seen in this regard?...
Hey DJ, Perhaps what you found is some belly hair that was "kicked off" by one of the Deer's rear feet striking the stomach area when it reacted to your shot. They tend to kick like they were stung by a Yellow Jacket on some shots.
---
By the way, I was reminded of another thing about tracking that may or may not help you. This does not always occur, but we estimate it happens about 90% of the time when the Deer has not become aware of your presence. We find they tend to run straight ahead in whatever direction they are facing when the bullet impacts for some varying distance.
But, they can turn directly around or go to the side, it just isn't as often. Perhaps this has to do with the typically "flat land" I hunt as much as anything else. Toss in some hills or mountains and this might be totally wrong.
09 December 2004, 05:23
PerforatorYep. Most of the deer I've shot that run do bolt straight out a little ways before turning.