SPOT & STALK

[greybuff]

How do you carry your crossbow when spot and stalk hunting? Arrow loaded or ? There is a thread on another site that has this discussion going on and I'm curious what the more knowledgeable EXCAL folks thought.
Here in Arizona, the bulk of my hunting is spot and stalk and the first time out we carried bows shouldered and loaded, safety on of course. I felt this was no different than carrying a loaded rifle. Any thoughts?

[vixenmaster]

If'en i be still hunting or spot n stalk my crossbow is loaded & safety on. I tote it in my hands usin the sling around my neck & shoulder fer support of the weight. You can't spot/stalk/still hunt with an unloaded weapon & be very successful

[greybuff]

I agree with you on that Vix, just want to verify I'm not being unsafe. Common sense is the key.

[agingcrossbower]

Boy, do I miss a good spot and stalk. Now that bring out the kid in anyone. I might have a hunt lined up for next fall and he advised me to be in a blind next to an alfalfa field but I am going to try at least to pull off one last great stalk. Oh, the memories.

[bubba]

X-2 on what Vixenmaster said..I love to spot and stalk, In fact soon upcoming i'll be closing out this season up in ms, This time almost all of my hunting will be spot and stalk, because those bucks are gonna be in the thicker stuff breeding and on there toes from being hunted for three months, They seldom make the mistake to go out in the open, spot and stalk is the best way to get a arrow on his way...

[Steve_Guelph]

I enjoy a good spot and stalk under the right conditions. I am always loaded when hunting.

Steve

[bdog]

cocked, locked n loaded

[IronNoggin]

Although a lot of our Blacktail hunting on the Island occurs from blinds, the same is not true for hunting whitetails & mule deer in the mainland's late archery season. There, the vest majority of our efforts are focused on still hunting, and resulting Spot & Stalk situations that develop from that.

My bow is ALWAYS Ready To Rock in both types of hunting. As VixenMaster noted above: "You can't spot/stalk/still hunt with an unloaded weapon & be very successful".

That right there is GOSPEL!

Cheers,
Nog

[Species8472]

Loaded and at the ready at all times with the safety on.

[greybuff]

Looks like most of you all agree with what I have been doing, but we seem to think differently than those on the other site. Must be because we carry only the best and most reliable to the field.

[Rufus]

I always carry my bow cocked and loaded even walking in to a stand , but beware if you carry it over your shoulder with a strap it is very easy and sooner or later will come off safe as the safety rubs against your arm or back . Some years back I started putting a bracket around my safety on all my Excalibur bows and it has never happened again , and yes it still easy to get to your safety .

[greybuff]

Hey Rufus,
Can you post a pic of that bracket?
Thx,
Paul

[Tim50]

My bow is locked & loaded on a stalk!

[Lake shooter]

I carry mine loaded. I always cock my bow and load it before ever leaving my parking spot. Ain't real comfy to carry a long time, but I moved my Quicky qiver to a scope mount bracket, and that helps by getting the quiver back and up high of the string, moving the center of mass back some and allowing me to carry it on either shoulder like a rifle when I need a different position.

Something that didn't take long to figure out: you gotta be careful that the string doesn't touch your cloths or anything else for extended periods while moving. This causes pretty rapid string wear and fuzzing, not good.

[Canuck Archer]

Yoy know I get some strange looks sometimes.
I can sit in a ground blind or tree stand from daylight to dark. People will ask me, Why don't you try still hunting?"
I tell them I don't have the patience for it.
Then I inevitably get a strange look and the comment ,but you sit in one place for 12 hours at a time?
Truth be known a true expert at stalking is one who will take a few steps, stop , glass around, take a few more steps etc and repeat for the day. Me? In about an hours time , I'm walking ten steps at a time and the deer always see me before I see them.
It's definitely different out west but in our Northern woods a stalker who kills mature whitetail off the ground consistently with a bow is a true woodsman and they are few and far between.