Winning the waiting game

Perseverance and patience are essential when stalking sika says Chris Dalton, as he recalls a hard-fought battle with one stag

A few months ago, I wrote about which of the six UK deer species I consider the most challenging to stalk. Sika came out on top. It got me thinking, however, about how a stalker can quantify challenging stalking. A six-hour drag off the hill is an extreme test, especially if you have to haul an 18-stone red stag on your own. But aside from the physical challenges of an outing, difficulty must also depend on the time spent achieving the right result.

Based purely on the time invested in a deer, my winner would undoubtedly be the first deer I shot, a roe doe that took me the best part of a year. Since that first successful outing, I have experienced many tricky stalks, most of which I remember as if they were yesterday. However, one in particular stands out, and it concerns a sika stag.

Sika have always fascinated me — the stags in particular — and there is a presence about them, something almost mythical. This, coupled with a steely, aggressive attitude and uncanny ability to disappear makes them a real joy to stalk — if not always the most straightforward. This outing was some years ago, but by that time I was well versed in all UK deer species and even had a few sika to my name.

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Every sika I had taken at this point had come from ground that I was invited to and accompanied by the owner or the estate stalkers. However, I finally managed to acquire my own sika ground, which comprised three separate conifer forests surrounded by open hill. The woodland was overgrown with limited access and very few rides; it always presented problematic stalking.