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Hunting Whitetails In Bad Weather

Even the worst conditions offer opportunities for deer hunters if they adapt, improvise and overcome.

Hunting Whitetails In Bad Weather
You’re bound to encounter a wide range of weather over the course of deer season. Those who adapt to changing conditions are more likely to find success. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

The forecast looked dismal to many: low 40s with a chance of light to moderate precipitation throughout the day. While some in camp were begrudgingly hauling out their foul-weather gear and complaining about the prospect of sitting in the chilly rain, I was absolutely giddy. I even packed a full lunch and planned to stay all day. If I could have scripted the ideal scenario for a bow hunt, I couldn’t have done a much better job. Admittedly, the prospect of a fully enclosed ground blind helped, but if I had to spend the day in an exposed stand I would have.

As I expected, the deer moved all day. The morning was characteristically busy, but even the typically slow hours of midday had enough activity to keep me awake and alert. Mid-afternoon brought a few marginally tempting bucks to the food plot, but I held out.

The high point of the hunt came when it was still early enough in the evening that on a sunny day I might have just been getting on stand. Two younger bucks that had been casually feeding threw their heads up and stared nervously into the woods before slowly easing away from the forest edge. The buck we had nicknamed “Stickers” sauntered into the plot with a confident air and might have crossed it in stride had I not uttered a loud blaat. He paused, I shot and the arrow hit home.

During my days as a sales rep for L.L. Bean, I had a manager who would advise us to, “View issues not as problems, but an opportunities.” To this day, I’m not sure how prescient he was, but I take that advice to heart when it comes to hunting and weather. Even the worst conditions can sometimes be the best if you know how to take advantage of them.

WORK THE WIND

I hate wind! There, I got that out of the way. I don’t care what the research says, deer don’t behave normally during high-wind events. They’re skittish and they move less.

Rather than waiting for them to come to you, go to them. The noise and commotion that dampens deer movement also dulls their senses, and this might be a great opportunity for some still-hunting. You’ll have to move slowly and be on constant alert because if a shot opportunity comes, it will be quick and fleeting.

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Unlike wind, rain doesn’t bother deer much, and they can often be caught on their feet during and immediately following a drenching. (Photo courtesy of Bear Archery)

Another tactic I’ve used successfully in high winds is to seek shelter because that’s what the deer do. Topographical features like hills and draws, and even dense stands of timber, can create calmer pockets where deer might be more inclined to hide and move about.

Atypical winds can be a bummer if you’re not prepared for them. Prevailing winds generally come from a westerly direction, so most hunters set their stands accordingly. But it’s always a good idea to plan a few locations for easterly winds.

If you’re not using a hunting app, or not using it to its full potential, you’re missing out. Most have weather maps and info, and some offer a “scent cone” feature that shows the downwind range at your location. This feature is important because generic weather apps give you the general wind direction, but conditions can vary in specific locations.

You also have to take into account how landscape features like vegetation and topography can alter winds. I have a favorite stand just a few feet away from a riverbank where I can slip in by canoe to minimize disturbance. Prevailing winds are generally perpendicular to the river course, but when they hit the trees on either side they turn parallel, flowing up or down the river depending on which direction they come from.

Wind isn’t the only thing that influences air movement. Changes in temperature cause thermals. If you understand them, you gain an edge. Warm air rises and cool air falls. In areas with a lot of topography, deer often follow the thermals up in the morning and down in the evening. This way they can see danger ahead and smell it from behind. If you’re hunting hill country, you might be better off starting your day on top and ending it in the bottoms.

IT'S RAINING DEER

We humans are strange animals. The first thing we do after soaking in the rain all day is head for the shower. When it rains you’re going to get wet, but so what? Embrace it and exploit it. Rain means overcast skies, which produce the same low-light conditions that typically occur at dawn and dusk. While the whitetail’s circadian rhythms are dialed in to moving mostly at twilight, low light at any time might fool deer into being more active.

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Rain doesn’t seem to bother deer as much as wind. They’re out there and you should be, too, but the more comfortable you are, the longer you’ll stay. Even the best foul-weather armor has a few chinks, but dressing properly will improve your comfort and allow you to withstand the worst weather longer. Dress in layers with a moisture-wicking base layer, an insulating fleece mid-layer and a waterproof, breathable outer layer.

There are other ways to beat the rain, too. If I’m hunting from a ladder stand, I’ll put up a tree umbrella (something is better than nothing). If it’s really pouring or you just don’t feel up for gritting it out, this might be a good time to sit in a ground blind or a shooting house. It may not be where you want to be, but at least you’re out there.

Like wind, rain creates more noise and motion, which could give the still-hunter an edge. The tough part is keeping your optics clear. Spring-loaded scope caps are one solution. Flipping them up may cost you a couple seconds, but at least you’ll have a clear view—provided you don’t breath on the ocular lens. A simpler solution is to have a “rain” gun with open sights. Here again you have to compromise, but it’s better than not going at all.

LET IT SNOW

Snow changes everything. Deer suddenly become more visible and every track is a fresh track, but don’t be too hasty. Heavy snowfall often coincides with a low-pressure weather system, and deer will often delay moving until conditions improve. When they do, you’d best be in the woods. The longer you can wait, the better—every day, every hour brings more tracks that reveal where deer are hanging out. It can be a balancing act, though. Slushy snow and fluffy powder make tracking and moving easier, but if the temperature drops, you get noisy crust. If it warms enough to melt the snow you could miss your opportunity.

big-buck-in-timber-snow-shutterstock_1687753450
Fresh snow provides tracks for still-hunters to follow. When the wind blows after a snowfall, look for tracks in places where deer might bed down to get out of the gusts. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Accumulation is another factor. As the snow piles up later in the season, deer begin moving toward traditional wintering areas where dense evergreens intercept snowfall. There, the open understory allows for easier mobility and predator avoidance, but it provides an opportunity for the still-hunter. While they spend most of their time in the evergreens, deer will move into adjacent hardwood stands to feed, and these edges could be a good ambush location for the stationary hunter.

UNDER PRESSURE

One of the most important weather variables for a deer hunter is barometric pressure. Deer can sense a falling barometer much better and sooner than we do (unless we pay attention to our weather apps). They’ll be on their feet feeding ahead of incoming weather, and the stronger the approaching front, the more it influences that activity.

As with most weather variables, it’s not an on-off switch but more of a continuum. You might want to sit later in the morning and get out earlier in the afternoon ahead of an approaching low.

Activity might slow down considerably when the barometer bottoms out, providing an opportunity to catch up on sleep—or to get out and try to roust the deer out of bed. Depending on the speed, intensity and duration of the event, there may also be a lag in deer activity as the pressure starts to rise. However, the longer they lie low, the more active they’ll be once high pressure returns.

TEMP MATTERS

When it comes to temperature, a lot depends on where you hunt. They say “the colder the better” in Saskatchewan, but I’ve seen temps in the 20s shut down deer movement in Alabama. Whitetails might move at any time, but the farther north you go, the thicker their coat and the less comfortable they’ll be moving around in unseasonably warm temperatures.

There’s even research that shows that activity tends to taper off when temperatures rise above the high 40s, at least for Northern deer. It’s less of an issue in the South, but warm spells often accompany dry spells, and deer might be more inclined to seek water. That might be a good time to stake out a water hole, pond, stream or other water source.

gaf-whitetail-quartering-shutterstock_487424737
Unseasonably warm weather, especially when accompanied by high pressure, will often decrease deer movement in northern reaches. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

SIGNS OF SYNERGY

Individual weather variables influence deer activity and hunting opportunity in different ways, and it’s important to remember they seldom work independently. Low pressure usually brings bad weather in the way of wind, rain and snow. A rising barometer after a fast-moving low often brings high winds, which can depress movement for a day or so, followed by increased movement when the winds finally settle. Rain brings overcast skies, which simulate dawn and dusk—times that deer move more. High pressure and warm temperatures might make for a comfortable sit, but deer activity will likely be more contracted toward typical times.

The best day to be in the woods is any day the season is open, but every day brings different weather. If you learn how to exploit it, you could turn the worst day into the best. Study the forecasts and adjust accordingly, but also pay attention to what you witness in the woods. The more time you spend out there, the more in tune you become with nature and the more you can rely on that internal app we call woodsmanship.

WHAT’S THE FORECAST

The common factor among weather apps.

gaf-weather-app-shutterstock_2415110671
(Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

There are plenty of good weather apps available. Some, like The Weather Channel app, are fairly generic. Hunting apps that provide forecast data, like HuntStand and onX (left), might be more useful and easier to manage. They all have one thing in common, though: They get their info from the National Weather Service (NWS). While it might be more difficult to navigate, NWS’s weather.gov site provides the information you’ll need to plan your hunt if you’re not an app user.


  • This article was featured in the October 2024 issue of Game & Fish magazine. Click to subscribe.



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