Reading some of the threads lately about wounded deer that go a good distance I thought I would mention something I do that has helped me a great deal when I find myself with those conditions. I carry a roll of engineer tape in my pack and when I get down after the shot I tie a piece at the impact point. If there is not branch handy I will put it on the arrow and stick it in the ground. If the arrow isn't available you could use sticks. Then, as I follow the blood trail, I tie a piece of tape on a branch by the blood every 10 feet or so. That may seem close together but, as the trail developes, it gives an excellent visual as to which direction the deer was going. When there are big gaps in the trail it helps in giving you an idea of where to look for the next blood and then the tape is visual in how it ties the big gaps together. The visual cues work best in daytime, of course, because you can see much farther but they are also a big help at night in they help you stay on track by being able to check your back trail. If you have to abandon the track that night for whatever reason it also makes it easy to come back the next morning and pick up where you left off plus gain the daytime perspective to the trail. It has helped me once when I had to mark as much of the trail as I could but then needed to back out due to the nature of the shot and rain came that night and washed away the blood. I had at least as much of the trail as I did and it help with the searching the next day in which I ultimately found the deer. If you do use engineer tape in this fashion please remember to remove it after the tracking is done. There is nothing more ugly in the woods than a "parade route" of engineer tape hanging on trees and bushes.
I keep a Zip-Loc bag with a bunch of ribbons that I cut from an old white tee shirt for this purpose. The white shows up very well, even in low light conditions. Great tip!
Bruce, When you say engineer tape are you talking about orange surveying tape? I think we are talking about the same stuff just our terminology is different.
Toilet paper works well also and it's biodegradable. It best to use your friend's TP...convince him you're saving yours for the really tough tracking.
Oh come on it's surveyor's tape/ribbon/flagging! Coming from a professional land surveyor.....engineers sit at a desk! haha. Good tip. You know after all of the posts the last couple days I was thinking this morning also that I wonder if some of these folks weren't looking in the wrong spot for blood as well....Like some of the high hit stories...some people don't realize to look higher on the grass/limbs also and are focused on the ground walking right past blood. Just a thought.
Yep, I use TP too. It dissolves in the woods so nothing is left behind, it's always a handy thing to have in the pack, and when you really lose the trail you can roll up a handful and dab the ground with it and blood will show up on the white.
