52 Nebraskaland • November 2022
it's time to track. However, too many
people get ahead of themselves in the
anticipation of fi nding the animal and
destroy sign along the way. Take your
time. Find blood one spot at a time and
go from there. Sometimes, even good
shots will leave sparse blood trails.
Don't just look on the ground. Look for
blood on branches, leaves, grass and
brush. Think about what side you shot
the animal and use that to guide your
search.
Every time you fi nd blood, mark it
with fl agging tape, toilet paper or by
dropping a pin on your GPS. There
may be times you will get off the trail
and need to fi nd your way back and
start over.
No matter where you hit the animal,
there will be some sort of sign: tracks,
blood, disturbed vegetation, etc. The
key is to be patient and persistent.
Pay close attention to the tracks of the
animal. Look at the size of them and
the distance apart from each other. I
once tracked a buck that ran off with
several does after the shot. With a
meager amount of blood to follow and
the tracks eventually going diff erent
directions, I fi gured out which way
the buck went by comparing the stride
distance.
Another way to track a wounded
animal is to read the landscape. An
After the shot, give the deer ample time before tracking. RYAN SPARKS
Marking blood trails with tape or fl agging allows the hunter to return to the last
spot they saw blood. JEFF KURRUS, NEBRASKALAND
