How to Be Stealthy in the Woods

Typical Autumn Camouflage Pattern on a Tee Shirt

Whether you are a seasoned hunter or woodsman or a novice forest enthusiast you might need to hone your stealth skills to remain undetected as you enter and move about the woods.

Stealth involves more than just wearing a good camouflage pattern. Being truly stealthy encompasses the capacity to be quiet and to mask scent as well as to be visually camouflaged.

What are some things that you can do to improve your stealth skills?

Difficulty: Moderate

Step 1

Entering the woods for whatever purpose, like a day of hunting or maybe an excursion to observe or photograph wildlife, often involves getting there before dawn.

This usually means arriving in a vehicle with headlights piercing the dark and motor revving. Approach as slowly as possible, to help reduce the growl of your engine. Park some distance away and walk the rest of the way.

Douse your headlights as soon as you safely can.

Disable the dome light in your vehicle, so that it does not come on when you open your door. You can do this in newer vehicles by simply changing the settings on your “lights” button. On older vehicles you can remove the bulb or the fuse.

Use your flashlight as little as possible, with a low wattage bulb, or with a covering to mute the glow.

Step 2

Walk in a measured and stealthy manner. Place each foot carefully and slowly.

Try to avoid cracking sticks underfoot, rustling bushes and dislodging rocks.

All manner of wildlife have finely tuned hearing and can easily discern sounds that are out of place.

Step 3

Camouflage your physical profile with appropriate clothing.

Many items of camouflage apparel are available, but not all camouflage is appropriate for every setting. Choose camouflage that is matched to your season and the physical characteristics of your environment. For example, shades of green, while in a camouflage design, may not blend into an autumnal forest of golds and browns, or the stark grays and white of winter. Some camouflage patterns are so finely detailed that at a distance they might still appear solid to the sharp eyes of an animal.

A hunting vest in bright blaze orange is still advisable for safety. And believe it or not, deer do not see orange. It falls into the sphere of grays for a deer.

What you want to do is “break up” your profile so that it does not appear unnatural as a solid visage against a multi-hued background.

Some people feel that brighteners in laundry detergents cause your clothing to “glow” in the eyes of an animal. While this is not documented, many feel strongly about eliminating their use. Others pay extra for UV negative clothing. These are a matter of choice and a measure of how much money you want to spend.

Above all try not to move! Motion draws the eye of a wary animal. Once you have positioned yourself, whether it is on the ground or in a tree stand, remain still to be virtually invisible.

Step 4

Mask your scent.

Many products are available commercially, but you can also take steps to make your human odor less apparent.

Do not use strongly scented detergents or fabric softeners for washing your clothing.

Limit the use of strong deodorants, body lotions and the like.

Some think that going dirty in the woods helps to cover human scent. Wrong! An unwashed human body is a dead giveaway, accent on the dead.

Do not snack on “human” foods while in the woods, and do not smoke.

Step 5

Remember always that anything that is not found naturally in the woods can be perceived by an animal as a threat.

Practice routinely stealthy habits in appearance, sound and scent, to limit the intrusive factors of each.

Photo Credit

Peggy Strickland