TECHNIQUE
Typical Northern Idaho terrain : a mixture of timber and clear-cuts interspersed with some natural openings on south-facing slopes .
we would do four or five of these calling sequences spaced about five minutes apart . He ’ d also told me that each sequence was going to get little less intense , which is exactly what he did . We would rattle each spot for 15 to 20 minutes , and then planned on moving a quarter mile or so , and set up again . After the fourth calling sequence , I watched as a small 8-point buck stepped out into the lane closest to me . He stood still for a moment looking around , and then stepped into the timber on the other side of the lane . I ’ d had plenty of time to shoot , but it wasn ’ t a buck I was really interested in taking . Regardless , it was exciting to know we rattled in a buck on our very first calling sequence of the morning .
When Kaboth and I met back up after this first round of calling , he told me he ’ d seen the buck step out on his side just after he finished his second set of rattling . The buck had come out about 40 yards from him , and then had kind of lollygagged his way through a couple of openings , and eventually made his way over to where I was standing at the end of the fourth rattling set .
Four Techniques There are four basic techniques for hunting these deer , each very effective . Still-hunting
cover , spot and stalk , rattling , and stand hunting are the primary ways these animals are hunted . My favorite way to hunt them is to combine all four into an amalgamation of one technique . I ’ m going to break down the techniques in how they are generally employed .
Still-hunting Still-hunting cover is one of the most widely used techniques out West , and is certainly one of my favorites . The first thing to understand about hunting whitetails in the mountains of Northern Idaho , Washington and Montana is they don ’ t have the densities of animals that live along the river bottoms of the west , or eastern part of our country . While I ’ ve had days hunting up in these mountains where I ’ ve seen over 20 animals a day , this is the exception , not john childs photo
the rule . I ’ ve seen as few as three to five deer a day , so densities are fairly low . Add to these lower densities the cover they live in , and you have a recipe for some elusive deer .
This is one of the reasons that still-hunting can be so effective . By moving slowly through the woods you are covering ground , which has the potential of running into more animals than if you take a stand .
The biggest thing to remember is to really slow down when still-hunting . It ’ s important to move very slowly while breaking apart the cover you ’ re moving through with your eyes . Quick movements do not work ! Because the cover is fairly dense these deer have a much john childs photo john childs photo better chance at seeing you before you see them . This often means you won ’ t see them at all , because they are pretty good at making themselves scarce when someone is noisy or moves quickly through their home ground . When still-hunting with people who haven ’ t done this much , I spend as much time as possible in trying to teach them to slow down . My advice is to make each of your movements slowly fluid , and look more with your eyes than your head .
I remember when I actually learned the exact how of this technique many years ago . I ’ d been hunting after a fresh snowstorm and when the weather had cleared four inches of new snow lay on the ground . As I still-hunted through the country I was seeing almost no deer , but as I worked my way back towards my truck I was constantly finding deer tracks crossing my own tracks from earlier in the day . The deer were obviously moving , but I certainly wasn ’ t seeing them . I decided to slow way down and see if that didn ’ t make a difference .
Not long after that , moving through a tight stand of cover , taking one or two steps and then standing still for a minute or two , searching the cover with my eyes , I spotted a doe feeding not 20 yards away . The most amazing part is she hadn ’ t even seen me yet . Holy cow , I about fell over . I waited a bit and she moved deeper into the dense cover . I began slowly moving as before , and not long after spooked a decent buck out of a stand of small conifers . It was at that moment I realized I was on to something . During that morning I hadn ’ t seen a deer , but through the afternoon I saw about 10 deer , and my confidence in moving slow was increasing at an exponential rate .
Late that afternoon I was moving through the same type of cover , but had come to an area that had a couple of lanes where I could see slightly far-
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WESTERN HUNTING JOURNAL