Night GPS Use and Learning to Use a Rangefinder

[Siskiyou]

A few weeks ago I made a trip to the high country and did a little pre-season scouting.  I scouted one area late in the evening.  I 4-wheeled up a logging road that had not been maintained in years.  The plan was to scout an old clearcut unit where I had taken a buck a few years back.  The scouting trip was productive because trees and brush had grown up since I was there last.  I stashed my pickup in a thicket and created a waypoint where I left it.  I made sure the gps was in track mode when I started hiking.  I stuck a Mini-Mag light in my pocket before leaving.  But I foolishly left my daypack at the pickup. 

I found that the trees that had been a few feet tall a few years ago now stood 10-12 feet tall.  My objective was to find one or more stand locations where I could watch a small ridge the deer traveled on.  In the past the deer moved up and down the ridge, and crossed the top of the old clearcut block to a water source.  I located a couple old stumps that are about three feet above ground level and about 40 inches across.  I created waypoints at these stumps because I can set on them and have a fair line of sight.  I rather doubt that I could find them in the early morning before dark without a gps.

While I was doing all this the sunset, and it quickly darken with the uncut timber outside the block cutting out the evening light.  This is the situation that I wanted.  I have used the gps a lot in daylight, but I wanted to use it in the woods when it is dark.  In the past I have stayed on a distant stand until daylight was used up and then hiked out using a headlamp or moonlight to show me the way.  In this case I took the following steps.

1.   I selected the Find button, and selected the waypoint I created for my parked vehicle.
2.   I touched the On/Off light button and increased the light on the screen.
3.   I then went to the Compass Page.  I made sure the compass needle was setup as a BEARING POINTER so it would be pointing to my pickup.
4.   As I returned to my pickup I flipped between the Map Page and the Compass Page.  When I checked the Map Page I could visualize my location in relationship to the pickup.  Once I crossed out of the clearcut I was in an old growth timber stand with a lot of dead material on the ground, and thickets of small tree, which I had to go around.  There was no such thing as going straight to the pickup.
5.   Every once and while I had to touch the light button to turn it on because it had timed out.
6.   One of the options I have selected on the Compass Page is the Dist To Dest (distance to destination) option.  I would check this option when I checked the Bearing Pointer. 
7.   The Track Option allowed me to see my track on the Map Page, and when I was closing in on the Track I had created after leaving my pickup.

I considered it a good practice run.  In some of the areas I hunt there are old mine shafts.  Now that I carry a gps I will create a waypoint and use the Skull and Cross Bones icon to mark the hazard so that it can be avoid.  I would establish this waypoint as a PROXIMITY WAYPOINT.  A warning alarm sounds when you enter the proximity of the waypoint at a distance determined by the user.  Years ago I kill a buck on one of my late evening adventures, gutted him and hung him in a tree.  I then took a round about route out of the area to be clear of an old mineshaft.  The route I took added another mile or so to my day.  I could have cut some distance off if I had the gps for navigation and the hazard marked. 

My Error for the Day!  Instead of putting a flashlight in my pocket I should have put on my daypack.  My daypack had my emergency gear in it, water, first aid kit, food, and a 5-watt CB radio.  A key item in the pack was a headlamp.  It is far easier to walk when wearing a headlamp then carrying a handheld flashlight.  Loggers in the area communicate by CB and normally there is one of them out late servicing equipment or guarding it.  For future knowledge I did try my cellphone a number of times in the area and could not get service. 

I suggest that gps users get out after dark and work on their nighttime navigation skills.

Rangefinder practice:  I have spent the last few months taking advantage of having a Rangefinder.  The practice is always better when I am looking at game through the Rangefinder.  A few of my thoughts on the subject after watching game and their reaction to me.

1.   Use the Rangefinder to get the range on distance slopes before game is spotted.
2.   When using a Rangefinder you are burning time, so use it wisely.
3.   Learn techniques that will assist in steadying the Rangefinder.
4.   When rifle hunting do not use the Rangefinder if you know that game is with your point blank range.  This morning I was watching a large 4x4 Mule deer around 75 yards.  It would have been foolish when hunting to use the Rangefinder, because while moving slowly he moved out of sight when I played with the Rangefinder. 







 

[daddywpb]

I got my night training by accident. It was the last day of turkey season two years ago. I wasn't really planning to go, or hunt until dark, but I did. I had a small pack with a few things, mostly calls, but I went light. Sunset snuck up on me, so I got out my Surefire light and started walking the two miles back to the truck. Then I saw my light dim. Uh oh, time for new batteries. Search the pack. Uh oh, I didn't bring any spare batteries for the flashlight. I found myself on a moonless night with dead batteries and a two mile walk thru the woods. I walked using the light from the GPS screen and literally bumped into the back of the truck about three hours later.

So, what did I learn?
1. ALWAYS have spare batteries, even if you plan to be home early.
2. I'm lucky I had the GPS or I would have spent an uncomfortable night in the woods.
3. My wife gets pissed when I'm three hours late and don't call her (I had no cell signal).
4. Now I carry a rechargeable Surefire with two spare batteries.

[d_hiker]

I always have 2 lights with me, my led headlight and another light.  Usually one of them is a mini-mag.  One time I had to use the batteries out of it for my gps when I found my extra batteries were dead.  Practice runs also help you with your comfort level in the dark. 

I remember when I was a scout leader and we would have new scouts at summer camp.  They generally always had the biggest flashlights which were on constantly, even if there were 3 of them walking together all 3 would have their lights on.  My sons learned early to save their batteries and walk with someone else who wanted to use their light.  While their friends were buying batteries at the trading post, they would be buying ice cream and candy.  :-)

[longwinters]

Good advice guys.   But I gotta ask Siskiyou, " This morning I was watching a large 4x4 Mule deer around 75 yards.  It would have been foolish when hunting to use the Rangefinder, because while moving slowly he moved out of sight when I played with the Rangefinder".  Whats with this "watching stuff" where is the shooting?   

Long

[Siskiyou]

If I had spotted that big buck during the season I surely would have bent the trigger.  He had a tall, heavy, 4x4 rack.  What I did not mention was that on the right side he had a large drop point that bent out the same direction has his nose.  So on a tag I would have called him a 4x5.  He also had nice eye guards, which are counted as points in some areas.  So for 30 to 60 second period I got to see a very nice buck.

It was a month before the season opened. But the buck re-enforced earlier thoughts, if a legal deer is in range, and I want it, shoot it.  The rifle I carried on my successful hunt was sighted in at 225 yards, with a point blank range of 287 yards.  Fortunately the rifle and load takes into consideration 99% of my deer encounters.  When I first spotted the buck he was on the move.  I grabbed the rangefinder out of my pocket, located the deer, and determined the range.  But I already knew the buck was in range.  During the pre-season when I scouted the area in which I collected my buck I used the rangefinder to predetermined ranges.  I did not carry the rangefinder on my successful day.  I pre-scouted the area early in the morning so that I had the typical wind direction down, realizing that under normal conditions there would be a wind shift later in the day when it warmed up. 

On opening morning it was 15 degrees, clear, and the wind was 90° to me hitting me in the side of the face.  I first heard the buck, and then spotted an outline in the brush and trees.  I put my glasses on the object and I could see a large rack tearing at the vegetation.  I watched for about twenty minutes but there was not a clear shot.  Suddenly he took off up slope behind a line of trees and disappeared.  As fast as a fat man can run I ran to a location I where I could observe a major deer trail that I had found on a scouting trip.  I could hear him busting brush and he came out on the run.  I swung the crosshairs ahead of him, and fired one shot.  That’s all it took.

I had created a number of waypoints in my pre-season scouting, including turn off State highway to the logging road, and turns I different dirt roads.  I also created waypoints for locations that offered good views.  One of those waypoints was for a ground stand that had a view of the escape route the buck used.  The waypoint for the turn off the State highway was important because if there was a heavy snow it would been difficult to find.  Before I left home I printed out a map using MapSource, which showed the location I would be hunting.  That way if I croaked the rifle could be recovered and passed on the grandkids.  I also printed out images of hunting areas from Google Earth, which I carried in my daypack.

[longwinters]

Ahh, the rest of the story.  Very nice buck!  My deer season opens tomorrow, in Michigan,  so it is nice to hear of a successfull  hunt and all the things you are doing with your GPS etc...

Long

[d_hiker]

Very nice report and congratulations.  Nice looking buck.  Our season starts on Friday in IL.

[Siskiyou]

Longwinters, d_hiker, and other:

I am sure you guys are pre-pared for the up coming weather hitting this upper Mid-West.  I think a gps might help out during a white-out.  Gear-up and have a good and safe hunt. 

over the Southern Area. This low is forecast to strengthen and affect the eastern half to two thirds of the Eastern Area from west to east over the weekend. Areas of snow are expected to affect this area as well as very strong northwest winds on the backside of the low. Brisk southeast to east winds will affect New England on Saturday ahead of this low.
Areas that are commonly affected by lake effect snow will see the highest snowfall amounts, especially along the eastern Great Lakes and western Northeast states. Colder air will also spread further to the east and south from the Great Lakes behind the low. Brisk and chilly west to northwest winds will linger over the eastern Great Lakes, northern Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states early next week. Then high pressure is expected to push eastward across the Eastern Area providing quieter conditions. Temperatures will begin to moderate somewhat towards the middle part of the week.
Eastern Area

[longwinters]

Siskiyou,

Why would you use the compass function instead of just following your track (from coming in)?

Long

[Siskiyou]

I normally have my compass needle set as a Bearing Pointer.  My goal is to make it to my deer stand #5, which is one of my stored waypoints.  When selected the Bearing Pointer will point to the Waypoint.  The outside compass dial will show the compass direction you are going.  It will be based on either magnetic North or True North.

I will also be carrying a USGS TOPO map and I can orientate the paper map with my route of traffic.  The paper map will give me a larger visual picture.  Now days with the use of Google Earth Plus I have put my stand #5 as a waypoint of a Google Earth Image and printed it out.

While I may follow my track back to a location, I may be distracted by game or something else and get off the track.  Or I may decide to parallel my track to the stand.  The more ground I cover, the better I increase my knowledge of an area.  Or the plan maybe to just use one path into the stand, then just follow the track back to the stand to reduce your signature in the woods.  If you do not want others to find your stand it is better to use different routes so that you do not compress surface materials and create a path.

When traveling to and from a stand in the dark it is best to have a route that takes you over safe terrain, and the least amount of vegetation.  This will reduce the chance of creating loud disturbance to alert game, and injury to your self.  When hunting I like to slip in the back door.  This may put my departure point at more distant jump off location.  In my pre-planning-scouting activity I may create a waypoint a few hundred yards from my stand #5 on the Track.    When I reach the waypoint, I then go to my Find, Waypoints option and select #5.  I then follow the Track to #5.

As an example a gulch works as a chimney in drainage.  Like a chimney as the day heats up the wind currents flow up the chimney carrying your scent up slope.  The hunter has to deal with pre-veiling winds, and local winds.  I try and take advantage of the wind when approaching a stand.

I try and take advantage of what I have in my toolbox.  If the predicted winds today are 15 MPH out of the Northeast, I want to know where the NE is.

I just went back and looked at your question.  It is rare that I come out on the same path as I entered the woods.  I normally walk a loop.  That might change if I hunted from a fix tree tree stand. 

[Siskiyou]

Night Gps drill

At 2000hrs I went out for a starlight walk with my gps.  Longwinters has inspired me to expand on my nighttime gps skills.

If your are a Garmin Mapping gps users you can go to Main Menu, Setup, and the select the Display Icon.  I have my Display Mode set at Auto.  That unit will switch automatically from the Daylight Mode, to the Night Mode.  My Daylight mode is set at Diamond, and the nighttime at Sapphire.  I do not recall but I suspect these are the default settings.  They work for me.

But if you are colorblind you may want to choose some other color option.  A fair segment of the population suffers from some level of color blindness and a different color scheme may better serve them.

The back light timeout is a personal choice.  I have vacillated but tonight I settled on 15 seconds.  If I need the light longer I can always press a button and relight the unit.  I set the backlight level at 75%.  I did this for two reasons, one to maintain a certain level of night vision, and to prolong battery life.

I had my Track mode on and it was showing a green track on the Sapphire (blue) background.  I had the Compass Page set in the Bearing Mode, and selected my Home Waypoint as my destination. 

I like the arrangement of the Garmin 76 Series screen and buttons.  I can easily hold the unit in my open palm and selected the needed button with my thumb.  With a little practice memory is acquired and the correct button is automatically selected.  I switched back and fourth from the map page to the compass page.  On the map page I could see the position arrow (me) and the track I was leaving or returning on.  On the Compass page I could see the pointer, point to the Waypoint, and I could read the compass dial indicating the direction I was traveling.

Tonight I got in a gps drill, some exercise, and settled those tacos I had for dinner.[/center]