Refine Your Predatorship…Slow The Hell Down!

by Ted Nugent

With many years of guiding hunters around the world, I am compelled to share some very important observations with you in preparation for the ever-moving, soul-stirring, adrenalin-charging arrival of our sacred season of harvest. Being priveledged to learn from the masters like Fred Bear, Dick Mauch, George Nicholls, Claude Pollington, Bob Foulkrod, my dad, uncles and other greats, but also hunting with brand new, inexperienced Natty Bumpo nimrod wanna-be’s, if there is one bottomline truism to adher to, it’s rule numero uno, hunter job one, imperative directive primo, wake up call number one, yo quiero venison – SLOW DOWN AND SIT STILL!

 “LEARN THIS LESSON OR BUY CHICKEN!!!”

I was perched about a hundred yards distant from a dedicated outdoorsman. He sat 15 feet up in his solid, quiet treestand, in a primo gamezone. The mature, open timber that separated us gave ample cover, but good visibility through my 10X50 Leoupold binoculars. Though I was also deer hunting, my first priority was to guide my hunter to a quality experience, which included optimum conditions for maximum game encounters and shot opportunities. More than 30 years of connecting with this piece of ground had taught me well the historical travel patterns of critters in this timberzone. Making their way west from the eastern cropground, this high, glacial hogback saddle funneled deer down a corridor between us, and I had a ringsider to the hunt morning unfolding before us with a beautiful, golden pink sunrise coming on slowly. What I witnessed this morning, unfortunately, is more average than not. And herein lies the dilemma facing many hunters out there who become frustrated at gameless adventures. Learn this lesson or buy chicken!

The first light of morn produced a lone deer meandering crosswind into the woods. The south-southwest breeze was perfecto for bowhunters in our positions. Deer gain confidence when crosswinding. Air currents deliver sufficient warning as they return to thick, nasty bedgrounds for the day to peacefully chew their cud. The prevailing wind identifies a wide range of information for their survival instinct defense mechanism. A second deer popped up from beneath the ridgeline, and his tall antlers were the first thing visible. This ougtta be good. The pair was still 100 yards from my hunter, and the Leoupold’s showed me lick for lick what was unfolding.

“The ONLY way to bag game, especially whitetail deer, particularly mature bucks or ultra wary matriarch lead does, is to remain statue-still throughout our vigil”

The first deer nibbled at something along the trail when its head jerked erect, staring straight at my hunter’s distant treestand. This was the first time ever that this stand was occupied, and there was no reason whatsoever that, with such good camo and background, a deer could see it. But as I swung my optics onto the hunter, it was more than obvious why he had been detected. He may as well have been dancing naked on MTV with the Yo-parolee DanceDogs from CarJacker Hell. He would turn his head back and forth, twist his torso from side to side, apparently straining to look every which way for animals. And he was nailed! He never knew the deer were there, and all morning long, though he had bouts of stillness, his constant movements, whether overt or subtle, were way too much for prey to accept. I witnessed each and every one of the 29 deer, including 6 dandy bucks, circumvent his ambush perch. They never really spooked, but they moved along slowly, never taking their eyes off of him. Several deer provided perfect shots for me in my API stand, because even though I was raising my binoculars to observe, I moved cautiously and ultra slow-mo only when appropriate.

Every action that Nugent makes, including drawing the bow, is done deliberately, slowly and quietly.

The ONLY way to bag game, especially whitetail deer, particularly mature bucks or ultra wary matriarch lead does, is to remain statue-still throughout our vigil. And that means no swatting mosquitoes, no scratching nuthin’, no picking nose, no turning head, no repositioning bow or hands or legs. It means DEAD-ASS STILL!

When I put all that effort into scouting the magic set for the ever-elusive moment of truth, I know I could blow the whole set up by the minutest movement. And not only at that moment, but maybe forever, as some deer imprint even the slightest disruption in their living room, avoiding such spots forever, AND warning other deer by their evasive behavior.

If I move my head for a looksee, I do it ultra slow, examining every detail of every inch of increased visibility peripherally, prior to the next single incremental inch. I hope you truly grasp the meaning of statue still! I don’t care if I’m 30 feet up ensconced totally in a leafy canopy, completely covering me up. I DO NOT MOVE ONE SPIT!

I aspire to optimize my level of awareness radar to soar to eagle like heights, listening intently. I use my Walker’s Game-Ear to amplify the subtle woodland sounds to compensate for my tortured rock-n-roll eardrum damage. But more importantly, by shutting down the torso system, I accelerate the spiritual, code red early warning system. AND I DON’T MOVE!

“Same basic Approach for still-hunting…A HUNTER CAN’T MOVE TOO SLOWLY”

Same basic approach when still hunting. A hunter cannot move too slowly. My first mule deer bowhunt in the Uncompadre National forest, above Grand Junction, Colorado with Jerry Byrum back in 1973, taught me much. Guided by legendary bowhunter, Ron Chamberlain, of Leslie, Michigan, I learned immediately the intense importance of stealth and upgraded level of awareness. My first still-hunt down a mountainside of quaking aspen and shinoak may has well have been astride an unmufflered bulldozer, snorting hellfire and diesel belch. I thought I was sneaking along slowly but really I compared to my Nuge rockout Madison Square Gardens concert a few days before the hunt. But I had a long way to go from Gonzo mobility warp factor 3, returning to a harmonious predator touch, blending in adequately to penetrate the inner circle of the wildlife I wished to blend in with and connect. Ron had watched my process from a hillside above me, and that day during a Rocky Mountain High bag lunch, constructively critiqued my methodology from an accomplished and experienced perspective. Each subsequent camo gang maneuver by our 20 man bow camp taught me more and more, till a couple of days later my slow down lessons came to fruition as I killed a handsome 28.5-inch 4X4 cleanly with my old trusty 50# Bear takedown recurve. God, I’ll never forget it! Cause and effect is a beautiful thang!

Ever witness a sneaky, semi-domestic hunting cat freeze for extended periods of time before the pounce? DO IT! Do it for as long as you can. Consider it an investment in discipline for all things life upgrade. Especially if you want a kill and ultimately prefer fresh backstrap.

SLOW DOWN, SHUT UP and OBSERVE MORE. If a deliriously overdriven, highly mobile, all wheel drive, hi-performance, rocket-fuel injected, V-12, horsepower addicted, loud, aging, Gonzo rocker can do it, anybody can. “Not fade away” my ass!