What weather brings you the best results?

[CHW2021]

I am wondering what weather conditions bring the "best" results for pigs and deer.

I have gone hunting on beautiful cold/still days and dreary/wet days and all in between with a mixed bunch of results; windy days are usually the least productive (for me) but I am curious what others have had for results.

 

[sandman7925]

I've had mixed results but week days always seems better as there are less hunters in the woods. The colder the better. A cold day with a very slight drizzle while uncomfortable makes them move. East wind, don't even get outa bed.

 

[Emperor]

Deer will move in any conditions. Very hard to say which is best. I would tend to agree that (very) windy "days" seem to be the times they like the least to look for food. But I have observed them in all the conditions you listed. Their primary motivation is food! Except leading up to and around the rut. Your geographics matter too. If you are on a deer farm, you will likely see some deer moving, because of the odds.

Cold weather is a prime motivator because they require more food to maintain warmth. And they have evolved into a nocturnal species because of the threat of man. So, since you are looking for what others see out there, it's always, and it depends. I hunt a lot more than the average hunter, so by averages I probably see more varieties of deer movement. I have used the solunar tables to amazement of their accuracy and the disappointment of their ineffectiveness. Last night I saw one small doe, and my hunting buddy killed a large doe out of 4 he saw. It was windy right up until sunset!

I like any still days over any other. I don't necessarily believe it makes them any better, but it is peaceful and serene; and my awareness is higher. But after it's all said and done, it is the search for food that motivates them.

As for the rut; where I hunt it is in stages. In another 2 weeks (pre-rut), we'll see the does go "underground" (hiding), and the bucks start "patrolling" (looking for the places they are hiding), that's when I see the most buck activity outside of actual rut (which for my area starts in early January). Then all hell breaks loose and bucks are chasing all times of the day.

Remember, if you saw them EVERY time you went hunting, there wouldn't be any left.

 

[madwabbit]

Remember, if you saw them EVERY time you went hunting, there wouldn't be any left.

I say bs and cite as evidence the wild hog. rofl

I'm not a science major but I'm pretty sure theres some link between hogs and cockroaches.

 

[onebigbagostupi]

Echoing what Emperor said, when food is their primary motivator, it can result in pretty diverse behavior. While there may not be a ton of deer out on windy days, if it stays windy for 2 or 3 days, there will be deer. My own input would be, what weather do you perform best in? Imo, that is far more important than trying to decide what weather is best for deer.

 

[CHW2021]

It seems I perform best in air conditioned weather.....lol .
+1 for Emperor, my lease is "raw" land that has good cover for bedding, I believe my best chances are to spot an animal on it's way to bed. I quite agree with the food motivation, and have done the solunar tables, hunted before/after fronts, weekday and weekend, early and late. I have been looking for movement patterns, but it seems deer are less predictable than the pigs.

I do prefer still days, I enjoy the quiet and can hear movement around me, some days the birds and squirrels can truly sound like 100+ lbs of animal moving around; sure wakes you up.

 

[Emperor]

It seems I perform best in air conditioned weather.....lol .
+1 for Emperor, my lease is "raw" land that has good cover for bedding, I believe my best chances are to spot an animal on it's way to bed. I quite agree with the food motivation, and have done the solunar tables, hunted before/after fronts, weekday and weekend, early and late. I have been looking for movement patterns, but it seems deer are less predictable than the pigs.

I do prefer still days, I enjoy the quiet and can hear movement around me, some days the birds and squirrels can truly sound like 100+ lbs of animal moving around; sure wakes you up.

Do you see a lot of evidence that you have a good deer population on the land you hunt? Sounds like typical Florida Parish hunting; heavy on pines, light on deer!

 

[CHW2021]

In the livingston parish area, it is between pasture and dmap properties, there are pine woods and drainage slews with open plots and established trails; there are areas of brush and briar and just plain overgrowth.

It seems there are more pig tracks than deer, but there are deer tracks enough to show decent population. We have planted and are going to put up mineral blocks to encourage interest, as usual there is more work to be done.

 

[Emperor]

In the livingston parish area, it is between pasture and dmap properties, there are pine woods and drainage slews with open plots and established trails; there are areas of brush and briar and just plain overgrowth.

It seems there are more pig tracks than deer, but there are deer tracks enough to show decent population. We have planted and are going to put up mineral blocks to encourage interest, as usual there is more work to be done.

Don't encourage those f'n pigs! Planting is your best option. If it will grow, plant some nutritious foods. Rye grass will bring them in and it's cheap, but it is not a great source of nutrition for them. You guys should consider planting year round. That will establish your area as a desired range and not just a pass through.

How many acres?

 

[CHW2021]

+- 150-175, or so I have been told. No, we are not encouraging the hogs, they just seem to like it there. We have lettuce, chicory, rye, clover and some stuff I haven't figured out yet growing. For the spring I am thinking about iron clay peas, peanuts and possibly gourds, also thinking we may want to try planting some pumpkins in the summer; deer seem fond of them. Really going to try to get the deer interested and used to feeding there, likely to put mineral blocks +- 2 ft off the ground on trees so the friggin pigs won't destroy or run off with them.

Now the property is a pass thru or at best a bedding area.

 

[Emperor]

+- 150-175, or so I have been told. No, we are not encouraging the hogs, they just seem to like it there. We have lettuce, chicory, rye, clover and some stuff I haven't figured out yet growing. For the spring I am thinking about iron clay peas, peanuts and possibly gourds, also thinking we may want to try planting some pumpkins in the summer; deer seem fond of them. Really going to try to get the deer interested and used to feeding there, likely to put mineral blocks +- 2 ft off the ground on trees so the friggin pigs won't destroy or run off with them.

Now the property is a pass thru or at best a bedding area.

No peanuts! Those damn pigs will never leave! Deer don't dig up food! Those four legged garbage cans do!

Nothing wrong with it being a pass through or a bedding area. I am assuming you know this, but you guys need to restrict travel in there. And you may try to establish stands further down wind from any trails you are going to monitor. Don't forget to locate ANY stands based on the prevailing winds in your area. A lot of clubs make that mistake, then someone hunts a nice trail with a nice buck on the wrong wind, and he never shows back up.

They are only semi-stupid when they are actively chasing booty!

Personally I might re-consider the mineral blocks. You don't have enough land to grow deer! And unless you know what your neighbors are killing, you could just be supplementing their hunts with your money.

Do whatever you can to dissuade the hogs from sticking around. They are like "Free Shitters", they will go where the easy free **** is!

 

[mike84z28]

There like humans. They dont like wind or rain ! Blue sky days with cool or cold temps have been the best producing days in my 35 years of hunting. However its aways been my opinion that you cant kill unless your in the woods so any time is a good time.

And if you dont take out as many pigs as possible they will eat the deer out of house and home !

 

[onebigbagostupi]

Hogs are like weeds.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[CHW2021]

Any pig seen will be shot. I do not intend to grow hogs on this property, only harvest them.

As far as the peanuts, I was intending to use them to get some nitrogen in the soil and keep the plots active for the summer.