The woods were rain-soaked. Soil gurgled under the press of my footsteps.
I walked a familiar trail, wide-eyed for a glimpse of wildlife. Ahead, something
moved on the soggy leaves. It was a little snake! I tried to get a closer look,
but it scooted behind a fallen tree branch. I approached again, very slowly,
and knelt a few feet from the broken branch. The snake didn't move. It was an
olive-colored garter snake with bright yellow stripes down its back. Each of its
scales was "keeled" in the center by a raised line. The snake's eyes looked like polished stones. They made me wonder what they were seeing. Its delicate
head was jade green and its mouth was white. A tiny forked tongue flicked
out. It was dark red.

   The little snake had sensed my approach and was seeking cover when I
spotted it. Once behind the branch, it felt hidden, so it stayed, even when I
came near. One secret to getting close to small, shy animals is to let them
find cover before trying to approach them.

   Wild animals are sensitive to everything around them. Stalking them takes
practice and patience. In reptiles, fish, and mammals, the sense of smell is
acute. A snake depends on its sense of smell to locate food and detect danger.
A salmon can smell a bear in the water a mile upstream. A fox can sniff a
rabbit's scent in tracks that are days old.

   Wherever you go you leave some of your scent in microscopic molecules that are released from your body and clothing. These molecules fall to the ground as you move. They cling to vegetation. They float in the air and drift to surrounding areas. Often your scent reaches an animal long before you do, which scares it away. When you see a wild animal, stay downwind. This will keep your scent in back of you and away from the animal you are watching.

   Most animals can hear as well as they can smell. Even snakes, fish, and
others deaf to airborne sounds can feel noises vibrating through the ground.
When stalking wildlife, be as quiet as possible. Step softly. Try not to scrape
against trees or brush. If you must make a sound, do so when the animal
you are watching is busy chewing food, shifting position, or moving to a new
spot. It will be making noises of its own and may not notice yours. If you are
heard and the animal becomes alert—freeze in your tracks!

   Keep still and most animals will not see you, even if you are out in the open.
In general, animals look out for movements. Many animals, including most
mammals, see only in shades of gray. A motionless figure is difficult for them
to single out of a scene. Sometimes the shape of a standing human, still or
moving, will frighten them. You can disguise your human shape simply by
crouching down.

   I was once crouched downwind from a beaver who was working away on its
dam. At times the busy engineer was less than ten feet from me. It rolled some