Tracking Wounded Deer at Night

I’ve been fortunate at not having to do any major tracking for deer I’ve shot but that could change 1-day. I have been involved tracking wounded deer for others well into the night. If you are in unfamiliar woods it’s easy to get turned around or temporarily lost, chuckle.

The purpose of this post is first to ask some questions and hopefully others will share their experience to help anyone new at this to find/retrieve a wounded animal in as short a time as possible.
The main item we utilize is finding and following a blood trail that during daytime is usually easy but at night time is another story. So of course artificial lighting has to be employed.

Here are some questions I am asking for the aid of artificial lighting.
What type of flashlight and amount of lumens do you prefer?
Has anyone had experience with the Blood Hunter Light?
Attachment 29440

I have heard say the best lighting is with a Coleman lantern for finding a blood trail and wonder if anyone has used this method?

I’m going to keep this thread open for a bit before joining in with any comments I have. I look forward to what anyone has to share in this area.


Ed

Yes the blood lights work....really well actually. In fact these new LED flashlights work remarkably well.

to add; the bush we hunt thru as a camp is a Maple bush and it is actually easier to track deer, with a blood trail, at night with a blood light (uv spectrum) than it is during the day with all the red leafs on the ground ....

I am a big fan of the coleman lantern and I use toilette paper and wrap a wee piece on brush or branches as I mark blood. This helps to show direction as well gives u a trail to follow back out if you are dumb enough not to have a compass. Having said that if it is cold enough and no rain or snow is forecast I will just wait till morning.

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Originally Posted by Hunter John

I am a big fan of the coleman lantern and I use toilette paper and wrap a wee piece on brush or branches as I mark blood. This helps to show direction as well gives u a trail to follow back out if you are dumb enough not to have a compass. Having said that if it is cold enough and no rain or snow is forecast I will just wait till morning.

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X2 TP works great, and if the weather permits, why risk pushing the deer further, if you are unsure of the shot, and the meat will be safe over night, best to regroup in the morning and pick it back up.

Just make sure you don't carry a loaded gun with you, this is frowned on. We don't track at night, we will check, and if it is too far and hasn't been hit hard. We let it settle down and go in the morning. No sense chasing it out of the county in the dark.

the type of light is not of importance if you use a dog. most dogs can be easily trained on basic blood tracking (on leash). that doesn't mean they become reliable trackers, but they are certainly better than an entire hunt camp stumbling through the bush at night…
marking the trail with tissue paper, as earlier noted, is the best thing you can do to find your way back on track (and you don't need to bother taking it down either).
One thing to mention, don’t go right away after any deer. No matter how good you hit it. I always wait at least five minutes (even when I know it just lays there). If you hit it poorly, wait at least 30min (just enough time to get a dog…)
Leaving it over-night is good if temps are around or just above 0ºC and the chance for predation is low. Otherwise, I’d get it the same night. Anyway, instead of investing in a light, find someone with a dog.

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Originally Posted by TurkeyRookie

X2 TP works great, and if the weather permits, why risk pushing the deer further, if you are unsure of the shot, and the meat will be safe over night, best to regroup in the morning and pick it back up.

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Not necessarily, we have had coyotes on the deer at less than one hour after the shot, I guess it all depends on the area you hunt.
If possible , use a dog , we use a standard 1 million candlepower spot lamp and toilet paper .
Big reason for hunting mournings and early afternoons, you then don't have to track at night.

Exactly what woody says. Check and go after it a bit then wait for morning if not found.. Without a weapon if after dark. Animals will start bloating immediately when they die.

Leaving without looking is abandonment according to a CO.

Bring an axe. You dont want to find a still alive deer without something to put it out of its misery. Its not a pleasant experience but the animal deserves it.

In my area I have stay close by & never leave the area especially late season. The coyotes are on the trail within minutes of the shot & will eat a deer rapidly if left alone. Did I mention I am not a big fan of Coyotes but I understand they do serve a greater purpose... LOL

Some trophy hunters who just want the trophy rack leave the animal till the next day. They hope wolves or vermin have gotten to the deer and taint the meat before them.

Then they cut off the head and leave the rest of the animal. Happens more often in this area than one would think. Now CO's here charge the person if their meat goes bad, letting the hunter of the wasted animal explain himself infront of the judge.

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Originally Posted by jaycee

Not necessarily, we have had coyotes on the deer at less than one hour after the shot, I guess it all depends on the area you hunt.
If possible , use a dog , we use a standard 1 million candlepower spot lamp and toilet paper .
Big reason for hunting mournings and early afternoons, you then don't have to track at night.

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Which is why you'll see I used the term "if" in front of it. "If you are unsure of the shot, and the meat will be safe" (if depends on predators in your area, and the temperatures)

:)

My thanks to those that responded to this thread.
There’s also unexpected additional info exceeding my original request that fit this thread that I enjoyed seeing.

Killing time for deer can’t always be controlled and late evening hits will occur. My first priority is to determine how good the hit was as someone has already mentioned. I usually use a combination of a flashlight with 100+ lumens and the mini blood light.
The big thing is to remember to carry spare batteries because there have been a few times the tracking took us to almost midnight and in most cases the deer was retrieved that night.



Ed

My hardest tracking job was at night in pea-soup fog. It was completely disorienting and my headlamp only made things worse. The only way to overcome the "high-beam" effect was crawl on my hands and knees, illuminating the ground from 18 inches up. Toilet paper for marking blood sign and my compass were indispensable tools for finding my buck that night.

I’m going to go a little off topic here to share a special memory about night tracking for wounded deer.

When I started to hunt deer with a partner I would go out of town for the controlled hunt and spend the week at his home. My partner had two preteen kids that one night puzzled me with a question they asked their Dad. Some nights after an evening hunt we would arrive later than normal from the field. It was on such an occasion the kids would ask “Hey Dad need our help”. After this question was presented to their Dad a few times I had to ask what the kids were implying with that question.

Their Dad explained to me that for a few years now the kids were allowed to go along on some night tracking for a wounded deer. The kids really enjoyed being with their Dad and wanted to participate in his hunting activities. He also expressed not only the joy the kids experienced but their tenacity in hopes of being the first to find that deer.

What really surprised me was that such a priority event for a deer hunter was also a contributing factor towards family bonding. The only minor negative comment Dad ever made was about the cost of extra flashlights and batteries but was willing to pay the price for the returning reward it generated.


Ed

there is a difference between tracking and searching

best tip I can add is - - - get the brightest white light you can get. make sure you have extra batteries

and most important have a roll of trail tape.
At first blood peel off about 50 yds of tape into a loose pile. hold one end and drag it as you blood trail. You can always look back and see this continuous line of tape. it will follow you like a snake all through the woods. by looking back at it - it will indicate which direction out in front of you the animal was likely to go. You can drop the tape as you look further ahead then go back and pick it up and drag to your latest blood sign or tracks. When tracking with someone else then they can stay back while you look ahead. when you find sign they move up to you. also when you find your animal you just pull in all the tape and stick it in your pocket. if you lose the trail and have to return in the morning it's real easy to find that 50 yds of tape in the woods. just remember which end is which HAH!

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Originally Posted by SK33T3R

also when you find your animal you just pull in all the tape and stick it in your pocket.!

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But it is how to find your way back out ..LOL...

Try a 12 guage rifled slug, ive rarely seen any tracking required! Stops em dead. Just make sure you can hit what your aiming at! My deer this year went a total of 10 yards or less and flopped over dead!

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Originally Posted by duckmassacre

Try a 12 guage rifled slug, ive rarely seen any tracking required! Stops em dead. Just make sure you can hit what your aiming at! My deer this year went a total of 10 yards or less and flopped over dead!

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This applies to any gun.

Hit a deer in the thigh with a 12g slug and its not falling over dead any time soon.

It's just my opinion , but if you need a special light or multiple lights to track a blood trail , you are more likely to be pushing your deer or game farther . If its hit properly you'll be able to see blood with any light . If not , I wait till first light and go back in . Give him plenty of time to cease up . If he's still going in the morning , he's not likely to be found ..

A Ray

Sorry to sound like a d!k.
But, how about not pushing the legal shooting light limits.
The vast majority of deer I have shot were mid morning to noon. Evening is time be home/camp having a nice warm dinner and telling stories.

Done two night trackings: one successful, one not. Both shot in forested cover. Never again will I permit anyone to hunt my land at end of day. Losing even one animal is something I can not tolerate.

I suppose an evening hunt on a field might be different. If there is 50+ yards to run before getting into forest, a well placed shot should lead to a dropped animal before it makes it to "difficult retrieve territory".

Hunt with a guy who took out a does neck. Doe made it about 100-200 yards before any real blood. Once she stopped the blood sprayed and was everywhere. Point being, strange things can happen.

If you allow 30-60min after the shot. Your suggesting people come in more than hour before last legal (allowing time to walk).
I hunt the last week of archery, morning sits are typically 8:30am-11:30am, lunch…back in the stand for 2:00pm

last legal is close 4:45.

Don’t see myself getting out at 3:30pm ( allowing an hour to bed down and stiffen up).

Do understand your point and mostly agree with it, I rarely stay in my stand until last legal I come down at usually at 4:30. But for deer I no issues night tracking. We hunt 47 that week, and the dogs (both kinds) are numerous. As long as we are sure we aren’t bumping, we go because there is a very good chance it won’t be found in the morning. Has not happened, so I don’t know…but knowing the guys I hunt with, if we find where beds…then gets up (Maybe we’ve bumped it)…we’d likely give it another 30 minutes….then keep going…Wouldn’t want the dogs to find it first. But if I pull the trigger anywhere between say 3:30 and 4:30, its going to be pitch black by the time we start on the trail.

As always the devil is in the details. (each situation, decisions might be different).

Bear different topic. If its not found within 30 yards, wait for light.

There have been some real good comments made here.
One comment dealt with land owners setting a guide line/s for certain hunting activities.
A farm I once hunted the land owner made 3-requests that my partner and I followed to the letter.
1) No ATV usage.
2) No garbage left behind.
3) No visible gut pile as his wife often did walks around the property for exercise.
For us it was a given privilege to hunt the property and we protected that privilege.

Another comment made was associated to accuracy and proficiency. There is no denying the value of the 2-mentioned but often disregarded by many hunters. A well placed shot makes short work for any tracking requirements. Okay not always a guarantee but percentage of lost deer goes way down to low single digit percentage.

My percentage for deer taken in the morning to deer taken in the evening is 50-50. Usually bigger bucks were taken in the evening when some started to go to their nocturnal mode.
With the controlled hunt I use a high percentage time for a possible kill. My location is considered a travel and escape route area. When other hunters work the surrounding area and neighboring farms my percentage automatically doubles for success. So when other hunters get off from their day job they still have some daylight left to hunt then that is the prime time for me to be at my location.

When evening hunting you also IMO have to be prepared for additional effort to recover a hit deer should it not immediately go down. That may require night time activity for an extended period. For me a light or medium lunch followed with a few hours rest or snooze to be rejuvenated also helps to extend my day. Hey it’s an age thing.
With the addition of good artificial lighting and location markers you are ready for that task if needed.


Ed

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Originally Posted by ET1

My percentage for deer taken in the morning to deer taken in the evening is 50-50. Usually bigger bucks were taken in the evening when some started to go to their nocturnal mode.
With the controlled hunt I use a high percentage time for a possible kill. My location is considered a travel and escape route area. When other hunters work the surrounding area and neighboring farms my percentage automatically doubles for success. So when other hunters get off from their day job they still have some daylight left to hunt then that is the prime time for me to be at my location.



Ed

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This is the system I've used,now,for years with an excellent rate of success. I'll go into my favorite spot around 3:30PM and sit very quietly until all the evening hunters show up after work and stomp through the woods. Official sunset is around 5:30PM ,so,I have until 6:00PM to case up and work my way back to the truck. Having said that,if I can't get a rock-solid clear shot at that time,I always pass them up. I'd rather wait until tomorrow to hunt again than need to track alone at night.

A good shot doesnt always ensure an easy track. The last deer I shot was a fawn. I shot it with a .308WIN and a bonded bullet at a quartering towards angle, distance around 50m. A .308WIN and a bonded bullet is definitely not undergunned for deer, let alone a small deer.

The bullet FAILED to exit. There was not a speck of blood nor a cut hair. The area was literally trampled with hundreds of deer tracks as it was a well used trail. It was late in the day. By the time I allowed the deer to expire it was dark. That was not an easy track, it required several guys (experienced trackers included) combing the area, until we found it curled up under some low hanging conifer branches.

Another deer I shot ran well over 100m, with no heart intact. Figure that one out. Adrenaline I suppose. On the other hand there was a blood trail I blind man (or in my case, colour blind) could follow, so it wasnt exactly difficult to find.

Crap happens when hunting. It can never be perfect 100% of the time. Ive shot other deer which I hit nothing traditionally vital (missed the shoulder, heart , lungs) that fell over stone dead. Ive made one spine shot, which is anything but perfect, and the deer fell over but was still very alive. No tracking required, but not really a "kill shot".

I must be old school. I always like to ask the shooter what happened, theirs clues in how a deer reacts to the shot.you must visit the site and do some CSI work.what type of hair,fine or course and Color. Next is the blood,red,foamy or black. Their are specific wait times for different hits. If you can smell gut wait 8 hours. Vein hits produce lots of blood than dry up.
With a heavy yote population you may have to still hunt while following the blood trail. When the trail stops make about a thirty yard circle. Toilet paper for markers. Turns hard bring out my tracking dogs,always prepared.

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Originally Posted by Greenhorn

I must be old school. I always like to ask the shooter what happened, theirs clues in how a deer reacts to the shot.you must visit the site and do some CSI work.what type of hair,fine or course and Color. Next is the blood,red,foamy or black. Their are specific wait times for different hits. If you can smell gut wait 8 hours. Vein hits produce lots of blood than dry up.
With a heavy yote population you may have to still hunt while following the blood trail. When the trail stops make about a thirty yard circle. Toilet paper for markers. Turns hard bring out my tracking dogs,always prepared.

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exactely. observe carefully the reaction of the deer at the shoot (no flinching LOL). although not all deer behave the same with the same hit. even more important, make sure you will find the EXACT spot where you shot it. WAIT a few minutes before you go to the site (no matter how well you hit). the signs will tell you what to expect. if it looks difficult get a dog and NOT a bunch of people who will just make matters worse.

i only hunt till last light when snow is on the ground, so easy blood tracking... have only really had to track one deer any distance, gave him a half hour after the shot, he only went about 40 yards and laid down, but he hadnt expired yet... he jumped up when i was 5 yards from him, scared the bejesus out of me and ran for a ways... i gave him another hour and followed and found him dead this time... i had double lunged him with the bow at 20 yards... like you say though the bush is totally different in the dark, i ended up dragging him by hand back the way i came following the tracks back, went back the next day to retrieve the knife i forgot at the gut pile, and realized he died litterally 10 yards off the side of my atv trail... DOH gut pile was already gone to wolves, and a fresh snow had fallen overnight, so glad i didnt leave that one till morning...

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Originally Posted by blasted_saber

This applies to any gun.

Hit a deer in the thigh with a 12g slug and its not falling over dead any time soon.

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Or the back of the knee on the rear leg like my partner did last season. Tracked that deer for 600m+ before we caught up and made a kill shot.

Any hunters that hunt my property,I tell them to focus after the shot for 30 minutes and listen. Then come and get me.

You have an ethical obligation to track the deer as long as you have a trail. I would suggest unloading and encasing your firearm.

The law prevents you from using light to hunt, or hunting (to be on the trail of, or chase) an animal after dark.

I am sure an officer would be understanding of the situation.

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Originally Posted by Vulpes_vulpes

You have an ethical obligation to track the deer as long as you have a trail. I would suggest unloading and encasing your firearm.

The law prevents you from using light to hunt, or hunting (to be on the trail of, or chase) an animal after dark.

I am sure an officer would be understanding of the situation.

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I would hope that common sense in conjunction with laws which disagree with each other would mean that a CO wouldnt even THINK about charging someone for using a flashlight to track an animal after dark.

The fact ive never heard of anyone being charged in this instance seems to indicate as such.

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Originally Posted by Vulpes_vulpes

You have an ethical obligation to track the deer as long as you have a trail. I would suggest unloading and encasing your firearm.

The law prevents you from using light to hunt, or hunting (to be on the trail of, or chase) an animal after dark.

I am sure an officer would be understanding of the situation.

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Although the wording in the summary would indicate it is hunting (Includes lying in wait for, searching for, being on the trail of, pursuing, chasing or shooting at wildlife, whether or not the wildlife is killed, injured, captured or harassed.), the law's interpretation of "hunting" does not include tracking a wounded, potentially dead animal. That falls under recovery and is permitted at night, after the season closes and now by people without a hunting license (tracking dog owners).

The law does not prohibit the use of lights. It prohibits hunting before sunrise -30 and after sunset + 30.

Response to the original post, I've been told the pure white LED's work well, better than Coleman lanterns, haven't had the chance to try it out myself.