Stalking=Where is your arrow??

[tikka]

When your stalking elk and getting close and plan on moving closer, where is your arrow? On the string, in your hand or still in your quiver?? When watching hunting shows often they have their arrows on the string ready to go. To me that seems dangerous but not sure where the arrow should be when I am getting close to a potential shot but still moving. What do you do??

[Navesgane]

In the quiver if I'm moving. Call or ambush/stand set up I'll nock one but quiver it when I go to move. I guess it would depend on the situation if stalking. Crawling I would probably still have it secured. Not just for the safety of it but the fact that it would probably be catching on everything.

[twinkieman]

I've only stalked one elk, and a shot opportunity did not present itself, and he was on his feet in open country. I have stalked many mule deer, and even more blacktailed deer in high alpine country in Northern California. All the deer I've stalked, I spend all morning watching feeding deer through my optics, and observing them bed down. I then take off my boots and do the final part of my stalk in Vibram 5 finger shoes, they are as quiet as sock feet, and a lot less wear and tear on my feet. On those final yards, I may crawl, sit on my butt and inch forward. I don't want a foreign sound like an arrow bouncing on my bow limbs, or riser.I only knock my arrow when I'm in tight, at my final destination, I then wait for the animal to get up on their own, and not be on high alert, and focused in my direction. All this is in fairly open country, I locate all the spoilers(does and lesser bucks) prior to my stalk. My way of stalking deer,in timbered elk country, glassing for hours, and knowing exactly where they bed, would be highly ineffective, I wouldn't be able to locate all the spoilers( even in open country I still mess up and fail to locate some), exact bedding locations would be harder to see into dark timber. I know stalking elk is done, it just isn't feasible where I hunt elk for the most part.

The short version to your question is I stalk with my arrows in the quiver.

[TurkeyBowMaster]

All stalks are different. I have went so far as to still hunt with arrow on the string and ready to shoot and in other cases stalked into shooting range before nocking and arrow. Sometimes it is too thick to nock up and other times it is best to knock up well before you get in range.