“The Mountains” On Seeing Deer
Posted by Tom Remington on February 11, 2008
“And I don’t see how you can ever bear to shoot them.”
“Don’t you?” said I. “Well; suppose you’ve been climbing a mountain late in the afternoon when the sun is on the other side of it. It is a mountain of big boulders, loose little stones, thorny bushes. The slightest misstep would send pebbles rattling, brush rustling; but you have gone all the way without making that misstep. This is quite a feat. It means that you’ve known all about every footstep you’ve taken. That would be business enough for most people, wouldn’t it? But in addition you’ve managed to see everything on that side of the mountain - especially patches of brown. You’ve seen lots of patches of brown, and you’ve examined each one of them. Besides that, you’ve heard lots of little rustlings, and you’ve identified each one of them. To do all these things well keys your nerves to a high tension, doesn’t it? And then near the top you look up from your last noiseless step to see in the brush a very dim patch of brown. If you hadn’t been looking so hard, you surely wouldn’t have made it out. Perhaps, if you’re not humble-minded, you may reflect that most people wouldn’t have seen it at all. You whistle once sharply. The patch of brown defines itself. Your heart gives one big jump. You know that you have but the briefest moment, the tiniest fraction of time, to hold the white bead of your rifle motionless and to press the trigger. It has to be done very steadily, at that distance, - and you’re out of breath, with your nerves keyed high in the tension of such caution.”
“The reason I can bear to kill deer is because, to kill deer, you must accomplish a skillful elimination of the obvious.”
Now of course she did not see. Nobody could see the force of that last remark without the grace of further explanation, and yet in the elimination of the obvious rests the whole secret of seeing deer in the woods.
In traveling the trail you will notice two things: that a tenderfoot will habitually contemplate the horn of his saddle or the trail a few yards ahead of the horse’s nose, with occasionally a look about at the landscape; and the old-timer will be constantly searching the prospect with keen understanding eyes. Now in the occasional glances the tenderfoot takes, his perceptions have room for just so many impressions. When the number is filled out he sees nothing more. Naturally the obvious features of the landscape supply the basis for these impressions. He sees the configuration of the mountains, the nature of their covering, the course of their ravines, first of all. Then if he looks more closely, there catches his eye an odd-shaped rock, a burned black stub, a flowering bush, or some such matter. Anything less striking in its appeal to the attention actually has not room for its recognition. In other words, supposing that a man has the natural ability to receive “x” visual impressions, the tenderfoot fills out his full capacity with the striking features of his surroundings. To be able to see anything more obscure in form or color, he must naturally put aside from his attention some one of another of these obvious features. He can, for example, look for a particular kind of flower on a side hill only by refusing to see other kinds.
If this is plain, then, go one step further in the logic of that reasoning. Put yourself in the mental attitude of a man looking for deer. His eye sweeps rapidly over a side hill; so rapidly that you cannot understand how he can have gathered the main features of that hill, let alone concentrate and refine his attention to the seeing of an animal under a bush. As a matter of fact he pays no attention to the main features. He has trained his eye, not so much to see things, as to leave things out. The odd-shaped rock, the charred stub, the bright flowering bush do not exist for him. His eye passes over them as unseeing as yours over the patch of brown or gray that represents his quarry. His attention stops on the unusual, just as does yours; only in his case the unusual is not the obvious. He has succeeded by long training in eliminating that. Therefore he sees deer where you do not. As soon as you can forget the naturally obvious and construct an artificially obvious, then you too will see deer.
You will see many deer thus from the trail, - in fact, we kept up our meat supply from the saddle, as one might say, - but to enjoy the finer savor of seeing deer, you should start out definitely with that object in view. Thus you have opportunity for the display of a certain finer woodcraft. You must know where the objects of your search are likely to be found, and that depends on the time of year, the time of day, their age, their sex, a hundred little things.
Perversely enough the times when you did not see deer are more apt to remain vivid in your memory than the times when you did. I can still see distinctly sundry wide jump-marks where the animal I was tracking had evidently caught sight of me and lit out before I came up to him. Equally, sundry little thin disappearing clouds of dust; cracklings of brush, growing ever more distant; the tops of bushes waving to the steady passage of something remaining persistently concealed, - these are the chief ingredients often repeated which make up deer-stalking memory. When I think of seeing deer, these things automatically rise.
One morning, happening to walk over a slashing of many years before in which had grown a strong thicket of white popples, I jumped a band of nine deer. I shall never forget the bewildering impression made by the glancing, dodging, bouncing white of those nine snowy tails and rumps.
But most wonderful of all was a great buck, of I should be afraid to say how many points, that stood silhouetted on the extreme end of a ridge high above our camp. The time was just after twilight, and as we watched, the sky lightened behind him in prophecy of the moon.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ramblings and thoughts of a modern-day hunter? Surely I think not but it could be although a rare find.
My good friend and chief photographer for Skinny Moose Media, Milt Inman, discovered a book in a pile of what looked more like trash than treasure while browsing a yard sale not that long ago and came upon a book looking old, faded and frail. The book had a friend and found a new home.
“The Mountains” by Stewart Edward White just might be a modern-day treasure looking for a reading deer hunter to inspire. White is the author of other books; “The Blazed Trail”, “Silent Places”, “The Forest” and others. “The Mountains” is illustrated by Fernand Lungren and was published by McClure, Phillips & Company of New York in 1904.
Over one hundred years have passed since White moved about the trail looking for deer. What has changed? That really depends upon who might be reading the book. For me, it could have very well be written today, with the exception of the use of certain words and terminology of its day. For others the tactics described would be ancient history, something that happened in an era long ago passed by.
I think not! You see, I’ve never been one to hide out in a ground blind or sit uneasily in a tree stand. For those who do, the accounts described above could just as easily been written in ancient Greek. It would have as much meaning.
All too often in the so-called modern era of deer hunting, nearly every article written or hunting tip given focuses on blinds, tree stands, scents, lures, calls and about every assorted gimmick and gadget ever invented and those yet to come. The art of tracking doesn’t seem to be practiced as readily as it did once but I can attest that it’s not dead.
I discussed this book some with Milt before I confiscated it and he brought to my attention that much of what White writes about in this book is similar to what a family of big buck deer hunters from Vermont talks about and spends time each year trying to teach to other hunters.
The Benoits all grew up in Vermont. There’s Larry the father and sons Lanny, Lane and Shane. They love to deer hunt and their passion is tracking down big bucks. As they say, the proof is in the pudding and if you look at the success these guys have had, you cannot deny that they must know more about the art of tracking than the average deer hunter.
A couple years ago, Milt and I traveled to the far reaches of Northern Maine to a small town called Allagash to attend a Benoit Brothers’ Big Buck Tracking School. I wanted to cover the event as a writer and I took Milt along to take pictures and to use his perspective on issues.
There were two things the Benoits emphasized all during their instruction - shooting and tracking. Shooting is obvious. As Lanny pointed out and as White points out in his book over a hundred years ago, you have a very brief moment to “hold the white bead on your target” and shoot. But, Lanny further points out that if you have been successful enough to “eliminate the obvious”, as White describes it, you’ll have perhaps as much as a split second to react and shoot. If you can’t shoot, the hard work leading up to the shot is all for not.
The second aspect is the one White writes about in knowing the obvious and removing it from what the mind takes in and sees. If you can accomplish such, you will see deer. The Benoits often talk about learning what a big buck will do. This begins with an understanding of where to find the big deer, taking into consideration all factors. You pick up a track and follow it. You have to learn and know your area, the terrain, escape routes, etc. and you have to recognize from the track what the deer is thinking, know his habits and use this to eliminate the obvious.
There will be mistakes. That’s how we learn, that is if we are willing to learn from our mistakes and apply them to the next outing. The more seasoned we become the more we will be able to remove from our visual all the obvious things - the rock, the tree, the flowering shrub, etc.. Then, once our minds are trained to know what to look for and how to apply all the information being processed, our success rate will go up. We will turn seeing no deer into seeing deer and in turn taking deer.
I agree with Milt, now that I’ve read that section of the book. Almost every aspect of what Stewart Edward White wrote about over one hundred years ago still applies today and accurately describes the Benoits methods they employ in tracking down monster bucks.
Tom Remington
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Sounds like a great read, Tom! And I’ve always heard a lot about the Benoits. Would have loved to attend that school.
February 11th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
Great article Tom.
February 11th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
My grandfather must have had access to this book or at least came from the mold of like minded individuals. His way of buck hunting mirrors many of the finer points of this rambling. I was lucky enough to tutored by my grandfather and father in these very same tactics. This past season was the first time I hunted from a tree stand, only because I was mentoring a youth and we were only allowed one gun under the rules. I had control of the gun until we made stand. Actually the way the mentored youth rules were written the only way to to hunt is from a tree stand. Once the first deer is harvested and the junior license is obtained then we will take time to put into practice what hunting is about in the real big woods.
February 11th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
Thanks, Mike!
George, Are you telling me that because of the rules of the mentoring program in your state, you can only hunt from a tree stand?
What state is this? I’m all for mentoring programs but I’m not sure I like this idea.
February 11th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
PA. Tom, the rules don’t specifically state Tree Stand Hunting. It’s just a better way for a youngster (in my opinion) to harvest their first deer.
February 11th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
The youngster cannot be out of my reach when in control of the gun. The gun we were using was not my usual choice but a .270 Remington I had re stocked and scoped to fit the boy.
February 11th, 2008 at 9:27 pm
OK, I understand. There are not that many states that have bona fide mentoring programs and I wasn’t aware of any that explicitly said you had to hunt from a tree stand.
February 11th, 2008 at 9:28 pm
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February 12th, 2008 at 12:45 am
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February 12th, 2008 at 11:01 am
Tom, great article. I live in Idaho and I grew up in the mountains with no neighbors. I walked out my front door and was in nature. How he describes “the mountain” is the process that I went through learning about hunting. It was like the kid being thrown into the water and learning to swim “on the fly”. Since the beginning of my hunting, I developed the skills of “stalk and spot” hunting. I’ve wondered what it would be like to hunt from a tree stand or a blind.
I know a guy here, who is from Illinois and goes back every year and hunts big bucks from a tree stand. He has a 188 Pope and Young white tail from a tree stand. He stays in that stand for up to 8 to 10 hours in November weather. That takes a lot of stamina to endure that. Last year he had a buck around the side of his tree stand about fourty yards. He couldn’t shoot, so he pulled out his video camera and shot a two to three minute movie of him. He said he would have broken the world record for Pope and Young. To say he was massive would be an understatement. He shot the video until he was out of sight and kept on hunting. I wondered to myself, why he hadn’t shimmied out of that tree stand and stalked that animal for a shot. Me being a stalk hunter, I couldn’t understand why. That is for the stalking hunter the perfect scenario and this is when the hunt really begins to unfold. You see the deer at a short distance and he doesn’t see you. Tom, could you explain why someone wouldn’t pursue that animal or is there a tree stand hunter who could explain.
Thanks Tom Paul
February 12th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
I’m not a tree stand hunter so I can only surmise. I agree there is no way I could remain in that tree stand. BUT, if you are pretty much just a tree stand hunter, and not having the experience or expertise to stalk, he’s probably just as well off to stay in the stand and see if he can figure out a way to lure him back.
February 12th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
A large part of my deer hunting in NC and SC was done from treestands for a couple of key reasons… and these may or may not apply in PA or other states…
One: Safety - A tree stand gets you up above ground level which increases the degree of safety for the gunshot since you’re always aiming down at the ground. In places where the land is mostly flat (coastal plain) and where population density is fairly high (most of the East Coast), this is a preferred practice. You don’t want a high-powered rifle bullet arcing across the landscape.
Two: Lack of mobility - much of the land in that part of the country is thick swamp or pocosin, and almost impossible to still hunt through. For western hunters, it’s comparable to trying to stalk through chaparral. Even if you can move through, it’s almost impossible to be quiet… and the thick foliage makes it extremely difficult to spot game. I’ve literally had animals explode out from under my feet without offering so much as a glimpse of hide…much less a shot. The alternative is to identify travel routes, feed areas, and bedding areas and set up ambush on them, either from a tree or a ground blind. The added benefit of the tree stand is that it puts you above the ground cover and extends your vision… sometimes. It’s a different kind of skill than the stalkers use, but it’s no less measurement of woodsmanship (a nod to those who think treestand hunting is mindless or lazy).
Three: Limited area to roam - Again because of population density, there are a lot of places where you simply can’t stalk deer. My old stomping grounds have become one of them. When you’re hunting a 10 or 20 acre woodlot, surrounded by other property owners, it’s just not smart to go stomping all around the place. First of all, you can hunt the whole thing in a couple of hours, and secondly if you bump the deer, they’re off the property. Keep that pressure up over a few days and they won’t come back.
Four: Other hunters - On most of the public lands I hunted in NC, it was difficult to go more than a half mile without running into other hunters. While a lot of guys do stillhunt in those places, it’s both dangerous and a little inconsiderate. I was always taught that when other folks are sharing the woods, the best and most courteous plan is to settle in and stay put rather than walking under someone else’s stand and ruining their hunt. Huntable public land is a fairly scarce commodity all over this country, but nowhere moreso than in the East. It’s best to share and be considerate, rather than take the belligerent stance and everyone else be damned (”This is public land and I have as much right to it as anybody else!”).
Now why this guy in Illinois didn’t climb down and go after that buck is a mystery known only to him. But I can surmise that it’s based on one of the reasons I just listed… either the woods are full of other hunters, the property was too small to do a successful stalk, or it just wasn’t a safe place to be walking around and shooting. Also, if he was in a climbing stand, it’s practically impossible to get down quickly and quietly enough to make a good stalk.
February 12th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
How far from your truck do you hump the tree stand? Your right, tree stand hunting does offer more chances at bigger bucks in the small woods with increased hunting pressure. Seems like every where you hunting anymore you can get there by vehicle. Back in the day, having to hike back in 3 or 4 miles was common, and you better have your harvest by noon or the drag back to camp would not end until well after dark!
February 12th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Good points made, Phillip! Thanks!
February 12th, 2008 at 1:56 pm
George, most of my hunting now is in my new home of CA. I seldom use treestands here, although there are a few exceptions.
Back home, in NC, it varied. As I mentioned, some of my hunting was on small plots, so the hike was no big deal. On private land we’d often set ladder stands and leave them until we either killed a deer or the deer changed patterns.
On public land my favorite spots were usually a mile or more back from the road. I had a great little Baker climbing stand that was kinda heavy, but it backpacked well enough. Some of the new stands are a lot easier to deal with.
Whenever I’m hunting on public land, east coast or west, I always look for areas designated Wilderness, or for places where the roads are closed off. Go in a half mile and you’ll leave behind half of the crowd. Go in a full mile, and you’ll have the place almost to yourself.
February 12th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Phillip, then if you are prepared to hike in a reasonable distance then the slow stalk method is used correct? Or do you just bust on in as fast as you can so you can climb a tree? (some do)
My bet is you are taking advantage of the walk in to practice silent walking as well as looking for the out of place. Which means you take advantage of both hunting practices. My buddies who use tree stands tell me they see more deer in a day than they did when still hunting. From their vantage point above ground have observed deer pick their way around a hunter set up on a ground stand. I’m tempted to go up the tree but I like to still hunt the Laurel along the Appalachian Trail.
February 12th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
Hiya George,
Most of the time when packing my treestand into the backwoods, I’d hike in predawn as quickly but quietly as I could. Hiking out usually took place after sundown, or when I had a deer on the ground. On the occasions when I did move in or out of the area during shooting light, I definitely employed stalking techniques… it’s a law of hunting, the moment you stop paying attention is the moment the trophy of a lifetime will appear. I try to keep my eyes, ears, and nose working from the moment I park the truck to the moment I close the door and drive away.
Treestands definitely can provide a huge advantage over ground hunters, both stationary and stillhunting, for obvious reasons. You’re off the ground so you can see better, your scent is better dispersed by the wind, and up in the tree you are not moving around, making noise, and spreading your scent.
That said, I’ve been hunting for the better part of 35 years now, and while I’m no Benoit, I’d say I’m about as skilled at stalking and tracking as I am at placing stands. When it comes down to “druthers”, I much prefer stillhunting/stalking to sitting in a tree… but you do what the locality requires.
By the way, I’ve spent a good bit of time hill-hopping up there in the Smokies too, and it’s hard to beat.
February 12th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Thank you Phillip for your input and insight. I have hunted the same ground for 20 years now and have always used the “stalk and spot” or the “spot and stalk” methods. This land is forest service and some private, but mostly public. I think regardless of what methods we use, we can all identify with “The Mountains” and the wonder, beauty, sereneness, intensity, and “Gods country” that hunting gives us.
I don’t know about you guys but these are some of the best times of my life. Tom thank you for this blog and all you do for hunting and fishing. Tom or anyone else reading, how can we make a real impact to keep our heritage intact and not destroyed by our federal and state governments via the animal rights groups? They are extremely powerful as we are all starting to realize.
February 13th, 2008 at 1:16 am
Paul, here’s my input on your last question…
If you want to keep your hunting priviledges and opportunities intact, then you need to get active in the local political scene. If, like me, you hate the whole idea of political activism, I can see where this would be a significant cross to bear. But if you are unwilling to get involved then picture yourself as the majority (and you are), and understand what this will mean in the end game. Somebody has to step up and be heard… and if you aren’t willing to be that somebody, then who will?
In my “adopted” home of California, we’re seeing the impact of too many “somebody’s” who are unwilling to step up to the plate now. And we’re getting screwed. Between the lead ammo ban, the pig tag price increase, and the mountain lion hunting ban… well, we see what inactivity has done for us.
People in a lot of states, like NC, don’t know how good they have it. But that’s all subject to change. Don’t sit back and let it happen. Step out in front now, so you don’t have to try to catch up later.
Sorry for preaching, but this is NOT a small thing. Get loud and get active now…
February 13th, 2008 at 1:33 am
Paul, join an organization: NRA, North American Hunting Club, Wildlife Forever etc. You can receive action alerts via e-mail, they make it easy to send grass roots messages to your elected officials in government concerning your right to hunt and own fire arms. Internet Providers such as Outdoors Unlimited take a portion of your monthly service charge and donate it to any hunting or fishing organization of your choice. This is also a great site to keep you informed of hunting and fishing activities country wide
February 13th, 2008 at 9:50 am
In my travels, I run into others who do what I do, as I’m sure Phillip does. They claim to face the same thing - how to get hunters to speak up and get active. Their biggest complaint is they can’t get involvement until it’s too late.
It has to start somewhere. When I decided to start blogging there were two reasons that drove me. 1). Nobody else was blogging and; 2) everything you could read about hunting and fishing etc. is really fluff. I mean absolutely no disrespect for any and all outdoor writers. They create incredible stuff but the vast majority of it is hunting/fishing stories, tips, product reviews, etc. etc. and nobody seemed to take up a voice that dealt with controversy, politics, etc.
It is easy to understand why they don’t. It’s not popular and I’m not going to have a lot of friends but someone has to begin standing up to the noisy money that drives groups and government that want to stop what we do.
I get tired and want to quit but I have to believe I am doing some good.
Since I began doing this, I have watched a small growing number of others take up the blogging cross and do what they can. Phillip is one of those and a darn good one and I appreciate what he does.
One drop at a time will fill the bucket. If we keep turning the spigot a little harder, we can turn those drops into a slow and steady stream. This will happen when special interests within our own niche drop their selfish campaigns and work together to achieve common goals.
That was my turn at preaching.
February 13th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Don’t we all get a bit tired of having to fight. But I believe we are fighting the good fight. I’m always trying to recruit new members, give what $$ I can afford and shoot my mouth off every chance I get. So Tom, please keep the faith, If things turn out the way I think they will we got a couple of bad years heading our way. You are needed and appreciated! Do you think there is one organization that can hold the others together. Isn’t the NRA-ILA the biggest grass roots lobby in Washington? I’ve heard of a few splinter groups (mostly thinly disguised anti infiltrators). Do you have any information on these NEW outdoor outfits? I’m not searching for any endorsements here just you considered opinion.
February 13th, 2008 at 10:30 am
George, among others take a look at the US Sportsmen’s Alliance (http://www.ussportsmen.org). Unlike the NRA, they have more of a focus on hunting and are working directly on hunting issues. The NRA has an important role, and while they do offer some support to hunting it’s just not their main focus.
I support both organizations, but I see the erosion of my hunting priviledges coming from a lot of angles, not just assaults on my 2nd Amendment rights.
February 13th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Thanks Phillip, I have just been reading up on the NRA-ILA, NO NET LOSS and OPEN FIELDS submissions. Like you said some attention but not all. I’ll log on to this site and check it out.
February 13th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Just to mention I have just finished E-Mailing my Reps. here in PA. Got the Governor too. Urging Support for PA Emergency Powers Act. I don’t trust our Big City Governor. Pennsylvania is more than Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. I’ll take his vote on this cause I’m sure it will pass. But his record on gun issues stand. I’ve been fighting his attempts since his election. One Voice is worth 100 votes! Everyone reading this blog should do something now, Register to vote, Join, or just log on. but do something.
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