Back when I was getting started with ghillie suit stalking, I used to practice in a local field. I would look online and find the best techniques to determine how to properly stalk. In addition to that, I would also film myself in the field so that I could look back at the video and see my mistakes. In this particular case, I tried my luck on the local game in the field. In fact, around the time that I chose to practice, there were an abundance of deer roaming the fields. Whats a better way to practice a stalk than on an animal itself, right? Well, it didn’t go exactly how I planned it at all. Maybe by sharing some of my mistakes, you will be able to make much better judgement in the matter.
The first thing that I did, was set my self in a low stalk. I wasn’t in the prone position yet, but I was kneeling while I was moving. Once getting about 100 yards from the animal, I then switched to prone and began the true stalk. This is where I made my first large mistake. I didn’t take note of the wind, and because of this the animal was able to catch my sent. I don’t care who you are, if an animal smells something foreign to there environment, they will be spooked. This is exactly what happened to me, the animal started to run. So, in basic terms, you will want the winds to be blowing towards you. If the wind is blowing away from you, it will carry your sent to which ever direction you are traveling.
After a while of practice, I decided to try my luck at animal stalk again. I got the wind direction right this time, but was faced with another issue. The ghillie suit that I obtained didn’t have a weave friendly mesh. I wasn’t really able to weave in local vegetation, bringing me to the disadvantage. I ditched that ghillie suit, and got myself a more effective ghillie suit kit. This was I was able to control the mesh, and determine what kind of vegetation I would have been able to weave in. You don’t have to use a ghillie suit kit, however; make sure you really browse the best suit for you. Go to a local ghillie shop, or you can shop at a ghillie suit website. Get the wrong suit, and you wont be effective at all.
The last and final mistake that I had done, was easily committed. When stalking the animal, I moved in a complete left to right direction parallel with the animal. This create too much movement, and created an easy silhouette. What I should have done, was move in a straight or diagonal pattern. This reduces the movement that the eye can spot, maximizing your effectiveness. All of these techniques take time to learn, and as you can read, I learned the hard way. Keep everything in your mind when you go to ghillie stalk, it is very helpful, and can improve your effectiveness.
