Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Favorable Rifle Season Buck Weather

What do you guys think about rifle season and the weather, when is it likely to be one of those days for seeing more bucks?

It seems in Texas, colder is better, it doesn't take much for the mature bucks to go nocturnal. I feel good about an overcast cloudy sky, unless it is the first sunny day after a long spell of rain. Also, I feel more likely to see bucks moving if the wind is quieter than average.

When I've hunted out of state in cooler climes, I remember seeing more bucks in the day prior to a snow.

What weather gives you the urge to be hunting?

Cold/snow. I think that's the RX across the board for me besides the September elk rut

30 degrees and snowing. Hardly ever happens

High 20's at daylight, no wind, crisp and clear

The hunting warms up when I'm getting uncomfortably cold.

I like 25-35 degrees during the day. Snow/sleet/mist. A steady 5-10 mph breeze. I find I get those days in October more than I get them in November.

I'll tell you the weather that's never failed me... an overcast sky w/a light breeze in the 40's, just enough moisture to get your eyebrows wet(a drizzle) and a falling barometer. powdr

I dislike strong wind and heat, otherwise I'm good.

I like about 2" of fresh snow, and mid thirties during the day. I also like a light drizzle for still hunting. Makes it easy to sneak through the woods.
-Jake

As patriarch of camp, I keep the log. It's in .XLS format, so it is easy to ask these sort of questions. What I'll give you is bucks only. The doe results are far more variable.

Temp: 32F to 62F with the average being 40F

Conditions: Clear or Partly Cloudy. None taken in Rain or Snow (we've had less than 5 days with snow on the ground during deer season since 2001)

Wind: 0 to 17 MPH. 75% taken under 6 MPH. 33% Calm. 50% with wind S to NW.

Barometer: 29.54 to 30.61 with the largest number between 30.04 and 30.08. There is a 2-1 preference for rising barometers.

Time: 3/4 taken in the AM before 1000. The vast majority taken in the 8 O'Clock hour.

Moon: All phases. However, more seem to be taken while the moon is waxing.

This is the results for a 200 acre patch of heaven in SW Bracken County, Kentucky.


The peak of the rut was decreed years ago by Jake, the proprietor of the general store in Lenoxburg, KY. It was and is the largest deer processor in our part of the county. He set the official peak of the rut to be 10 AM of the Rifle Opener.

"You can't rut when you're hanging from a meat pole." he said.

On a good Opener, Jake had to shut down intake at Noon on Saturday. If you were going to get your buck to Jake, you needed to be quick about it.



To distill this down, here in our patch of the Trans-Bluegrass:

It is beginning the second hour of legal hunting on the Opener. Temperature is 40 degrees. It will dip one more degree before the sun starts to warm you. The wind is calm, but you can hear the leaves rustling in the oaks on the ridge to the west. The sun has just cast your shadow on the ground for the first time this season. For the past few minutes, the shooting has been a continuous fusillade. You hear a heavy thudding in the leaves off to the south and east. Something is coming.

I also believe this will be a good year, assuming it's not overly warm, as it has been the past 2 years.

The full moon is on the 4th of November, a nice early November moon. Assuming decent weather, November should be sporty.

Outside of the rut. Day before a big snow storm they should be moving around getting groceries. Day after it breaks the same. Given a choice I'd take the day before over the others.

cold little snow

I like cloudy weather with rain, drizzle, or snow. I also like days with some wind but not blowing 40. Those clear, windless, cold days oftentimes mean difficult still hunting conditions.

.

This is where I stand!

Wind around 10 mph, high of mid 40's, in the morning after a full night of rain. Rut or pre-rut, that gets them moving.

I think these can be strong regional trends. A few years ago, I was hunting in northern Missouri, everyone in camp reported seeing bucks moving for two days. Then it started snowing and it was like it turned off a switch, no one saw a buck during the snow, and it was slow the next with one buck being taken, but still slower than before the snow. In Saskatchewan, it seemed just the opposite, when it was snowing everybody was seeing bucks.

On a ranch I used to hunt in the hills near Ingram, TX when it was rain or drizzle, you would swear there was not a deer within miles, but when it stopped they would all be out.

If the does are in heat, I want whatever drives their appetite because the bucks will be around them, sooner or later. Hunting over feeding areas and the trails leading in and out will pay off eventually.

For pure hunting enjoyment, I like it around 30, with about 3 inches of powdery snow on the ground, and more falling straight down (no wind). This is just about perfect, and is rarely encountered these days around here. Even if you don't see deer, lots of other stuff is out and about for your entertainment.

The worst is clear, bitter cold, and windy, with crusty snow on the ground. Can't hear, can't spot movement in all the confusion, and deer are jumpy. This is more like a survival test than a recreation. If you have to take a day off from hunting, this is a good one. Only thing that might be worse is heavy rain combined with wind because you can't stay dry.

I like it best in the 30's.