How will this weekend's weather affect how you hunt / how they move?

[Cobber]

Hey there guys,

Just trying to figure out how I should go about things this weekend and I thought that I should probably check in to see what the plans are for you guys out there before making my decision blindly..

I hunt in western MN and am going out there this weekend and have yet to harvest one so I was hoping to hit it hard this weekend.

Now we are hearing 6-12 inches early Saturday (tomorrow), with winds picking up for the remainder of the day into the night but the snow tapering off. Sunday doesn't look to be prime either with the only thing different than Saturday being colder temps.

How are you guys going about your weekend hunts? Looking for an idea of how I should approach this weekend.

Thanks, and happy holidays!

[bigbucks]

Hunting where there's fresh sign by food. Standing corn's idea in my opinion. Going to be hard to find fresh sign before Sunday though. To be in the right spot Saturday you'll have to be watching them make the fresh tracks...

[sticknstring]

Tonight's going be the night. Just got a fishing report from my FIL and the crappies are going ballistic already. I'd venture a guess the deer will be out feeding early this evening. I wish I could be out there. Good luck gentlemen!

[baitshopboy]

going to be tough this weekend better leave work now and hunt the evening away!!!

[Cobber]

Well that's the real problem- won't be able to sneak out of work early enough tonight to get back for this evening's hunt which is really frustrating me

Can't do anything about that one though..

Is it worth sitting out there tomorrow during the 1st half of the day when the snow is falling heavy and the winds are blowing fierce? I hunt on the edge of the woods (property line) on the edge of an alfalfa field.. no standing corn near. Am I best off sitting up there waiting for the chance that something decides to come out of cover for alfalfa during the crappy weather, or am I better off to go into a (generally) lower traffic area within the trees on a different part of the property?

Thanks!

[Wensel]

Going to give it a run tonight too, as for Saturday I guess if its going to blow the harder the better, and I'll be on foot...... in head to toe sno-camo

Good luck

[Jameson]

...Saturday I guess if its going to blow the harder the better, and I'll be on foot...... in head to toe sno-camo

Good luck

Hope your hunting where black powder hunting isn't allowed.

[Bear55]

I have to agree with others, tonight might be the big night to be out and you should probably be on stand fairly soon.

Now if that isn't an option you might have to get a little creative/crazy and hunt during the storm. Use the high winds to stalk super thick bedding areas or standing corn. Go slow, keep your eyes peeled and try not to step on any deer.

[JigginGopher]

This may be wishful thinking on my part since Sunday is the only day this weekend i can hunt but I think Sunday could be a good day. With the snow storm coming Saturday and keeping the movement down and then temps dropping hard on Sunday, i expect the deer to move to their food sources early.

[mrklean]

tonight any field with some type of food in it is going to be a buffet for the deer, im going home tonight and gonna do some spot and stalk on a small grove that has a nice buck in it 30 mph winds tomorrow should help get rid of my noise i think

[sticknstring]

Your'e braver than most! Great stalking conditions if you've got the cover/food scoure. I think I'll spend the day nestled inside a toasty fish house.

[rcook72]

Deer were moving tonight around 3:40 for me and had an med/sm 8pt at 40 yds to much brush in my way for a shot though. Driving out a mile down the road there were over 20 deer feeding in a cut alfalfa field. I usually see 3-5 in that field.

[mrklean]

haha my trip to south dakota firmed my skin up nicely so im ready to take the cold, i actually was excited to see how windy and cold it was gonna be, now i just hope the deer are in there

[deerminator]

Two hours in the stand last night with no sign in the woods behind our cabin. They moved through the yard last night though by the tracks so they were out and about though not until after dark. It's blowin' like the dickens out there right now and visibility is not good. We have a couple of sloughs where they bed next to the woods, though, so I've thought about trying a stalk today possibly as I know were they bed and it will be hard for them to see or hear me until I'm right on top of them. If it were that easy!

BTW, this is my first real season hunting late season. Let me tell you, a hand warmer or muff or whatever they call it that straps around your waist like football players wear rocks. You can wear the early season gloves and just keep your hands inside til the shot presents itself. I also found it hard to pull back a few times last night when I tried to keep myself limber for a shot. May have to decrease the draw weight next year.

[Wensel]

Saw a bunch up North last nite too. Just start to snow this AM and I'm in jail

(work)

I see a previous post on muffs, I have a few of these and seldom use...as I sat last night I was thinkin how nice a heated bow handle would be.

When I use a muff and grab the bow with a thin glove its not to long where I'm in trouble when the temp is in the single digits

[Cobber]

Well here's where it gets tough now...

Now that the snow is falling and the wind is blowing- is it worth going out if I don't have anything really to stalk through.. I have a few small groves with ponds but mainly alfalfa along the river and field edges to hunt over on the edge of the river and those small groves.

Would it be worth my while to stalk, or should I just wait to go out?

1) If I wait, at what point will it be worthwhile to get out again? Will it make any difference if the snow stops but the wind is still blowing like it is?

2) I've never stalked before... If it would be worth my while to stalk the areas that I have, how would I go about doing it? It gets a little thick in some places so I'm not real sure how I'd go about that?

--Anyone go out this morning? Howd it go for you??

Thanks!

[mrklean]

ha after i woke up today i dont think i will be going anywhere today its white out conditions, wouldnt even make it to my area i want to hunt

[deerminator]

Yeah. I wouldn't travel anywhere and the national weather service is advising you not to. I headed out behind our house to the sloughs for about half an hour at lunch and nada, no tracks or anything. Drifts a foot or two high across the driveway in spots.

For the muff topic, I would agree your hands can get cold real quick in this weather. I wear my heavy gloves too and from my stand or blind and then switch to the light gloves and muff when on stand or in the blind. During a stalk like today, I wear a heavy glove on my hand holding the bow and a light glove on my release hand which is tucked inside my coat pocket.

[JimmyJames]

I went out this morning, nothing movin. I'm thinkin I was the only one out.

[Wanderer]

Deerminator,

The muff is a must have in my opinion when the temps get colder. Wouldn't be without one.

One thing I learned from another forum member this year while hunting is simply a new way to hold my bow with an arrow nocked while walking/stalking that is much easier than holding it by the handle.

As a right handed shooter, you would simply have your bow in the vertical position and lean it into your right shoulder while cradling the bow by the bottom cam with your right hand. Your arrow stays on the rest simply from being sandwiched between your shoulder and the bow. It works wonders in open country but also in a wooded setting you keep your arrow up and out of more twigs that way, and it actually takes less energy to carry it this way also.

I'll add the disclaimer that one should always proceed with additional caution while carrying a bow with a nocked arrow.

BTW, I chose snowmobiling over hunting today.

[bigbucks]

Deerminator,

BTW, I chose snowmobiling over hunting today.

Cannot compute!

[JimmyJames]

Deerminator,

BTW, I chose snowmobiling over hunting today.

That should get you kicked of this site.Snowmobiling over hunting, it's a sad world we live in.