What a great description of how to ooze through the terrain jaguartx. Setting your feet is really important. I like the idea of the sheepskin sole. Better than taking off boots to sneak in ragg wool sock feet. Bowhunting does make a person a better sneak hunter doesn't it? It made me pretty fanatic about quiet gear, and that is because I get close enough that little noises do make a big difference.
Though, sometimes despite your best efforts you get odd surprises. I was once closing the distance on mountain mule deer, not quite within my instinctive shooting range. I was slowly sneaking up a little drainage below an old filled in beaver dam so I could not be seen by the deer in the beaver meadow. Then I got into the marsh marigolds with only about 5 yards to go. Because of the shiny, waxy finish on those leaves, my ragg socks suddenly produced tiny squeeeak, squeeak, sounds whenever I stepped on the plants When I peered over the rim of the old dam, several deer were peering fixedly back at me. Jig was up! Wet feet to no avail. Ha! Frustrating but pretty funny all the same.
On that buck above, I spotted his antler tips approaching me through heavy brush just after I stopped to inspect a log that might be a good place to pause. I had been oozing (yes someone else above used the term "ooze" too) slowly over the landscape for about 3 hours headed to this spot. He was maybe 65 yards out. I do use binocs a lot, but it is most often the flicker of movement that my predator eyes pick up that alerts me. As I shifted position, my knee brace ticked a tiny twig that I could not feel through the wool-covered metal. Snick, a tiny sound. That buck stopped on a dime and bored holes into my position while I played tree stump. But he decided it was really nothing, and finally came clear of the brush. This was on heavily hunted public land, but there was virtually no sign anyone else was still-hunting where I was.
Like others, I plow ahead where there is no chance there is a lingering deer (or bedded elk), but when I think there may be I skulk or ooze depending on the terrain or cover. There is much to see when you are melting into the forest. And much to learn.
