Can see where this ones going... I'll get my opine in early.
Have done a bit of both styles of hunting. Mostly here East but some out West with a few trips down South over the years.
If one wanted to choose either side and argue which style of hunting was more 'like real hunting', it wouldn't take much to trash the other side.
Due to different terrain and local hunting laws, see the logic/reasons for both styles and can say I enjoy both styles. Although, when I was younger, it was harder for me to sit still(and less hunters) so stalk hunting was preferred. Course, it was a bit more difficult here in Ohio. No rifle season, only 7 days shotgun(or pistol), 5 days BP with a long bow season. So when stalking your game during one of the gun seasons, my shot was limited to 100yds or less, and , due to the thickness of brush, usually a lot less. Bow season range would be 40yds. or less.
That was back some years ago when there was a lot less hunters. Today, here in most parts of Ohio, as a rule, after the first few hours of opening day of gun season, the deer are just running for their lives. No patterns to their travel. Hell, by the end of the week, your subject to walk out to your hunting blind and a deer will be inside hiding.
Knowing that the size of most privately owned tracts of land here in the East don't remotely compare the size of most farms out West, couple the make up of the smaller tracts of land with the amount of hunters, its not hard to understand why people living here East mostly stand hunt while many out West stalk hunt. Five guys hunting a 100 acre tract versus five guys hunting 1000 acre tract...Big difference!
Hasn't happened here yet, hopefully it won't... but it bothers me to hear people blasting others ethical style of hunting. Before it gets to that, if you must, can I ask that for those that do the bashing on the stalk hunting with a rifle out West or the stand hunting done here in the East...at least have experience in hunting in both places so you'll have a clue what you're talking about.
Sorry about the 'off topic' rant.
phil mcwilliams,
You would have had a field day here in Ohio opening two days of shotgun season. I think we got 2-3 inchs of rain in 48hrs.
I did get a chance to do some quiet stalking and the rain gear(although a bit noisy getting through the thickets) came in handy.