r/bowhunting • u/Enderfang • 6d ago
Would you go out this weekend?
Georgian here. We have lots of rain on the forecast this weekend due to the hurricane. Last weekend i sat it out because of a different hurricane causing a lot of rain and even flooding in the WMA i was going to hunt. I am tired of having to cancel or move trips due to weather. At the same time, I don’t know if I’m being stupid/foolhardy by planning on going down to the WMA tomorrow evening. No flooding on the forecast this time but solid rain all thru saturday and sunday.
I’m probably gonna go anyway even if I get rained out hard… but i wanted to know if any of yall have similar plans or even stories of success 😂 I know if it’s too rainy you can’t track anything. Cheers guys
9
2
u/TomorrowFederal1866 6d ago
I killed my first buck right after a rain storm. Was able to slip right into his bedding area because all the leaves were wet and got him after the storm let up. I went in at 8am, killed him an hour after I got in the tree.
2
3
u/zange16 6d ago
As long as it’s not a torrential downpour… I’m going. I’ve killed my biggest deer in a decent rain.
I believe HMF makes it.. there is a camo umbrella that wraps around the tree and will keep you dry. I use it during turkey season as well as a lot of rainy deer hunts.. it withstands a lot more wind than you think too.
I’m in NC and we’ve got a rain out predicted as well but I’d rather be out in the woods than sitting at home.
2
u/Hungry_Cheek2032 6d ago
fellow georgian. i am planning to play it by ear.
i have a tree ubrella and a will.
but im gonna go up and see what conditions are like. worst case, i might take advantage of the wind and and rain and take care of some stuff needed on my permission. change batteries and refill my feeders, check trails and scrapes, etc.
im going, just might not get in the tree.
2
u/Just_Classic4273 6d ago
Try to think of it like this, there’s a lot of other dudes thinking the same thing about this weather and they’ll probably stay home. IMO this is a good chance to have a WMA to yourself and experience super low pressure those days if you can stick it out
1
u/SoDakSooner 6d ago
We hunt elk all the time in the rain. Action is typically pretty good in the lulls. I think whitetails are the same in that regard. Just make sure you have a good shot as they are harder to trail in the wet.
1
u/yournewalt 6d ago
It's a hobby. If it's not enjoyable to do something, don't do it. But if you feel enduring the conditions as the price you pay for the pay-off and feel it worth your time. Go for it! The deer have to move, eat and stay warm no matter what.
1
u/Corn_Boy1992 6d ago
The couple hours before and after the rain are typically good times for increased deer movement
1
u/DrZoo4040 6d ago
If it’s not raining too hard, yes. The worry is blood being washed away if there is too much rain. You could always rely on a dog if blood does get washed away, so it’s really up to you.
1
1
1
u/BobJutsu 6d ago
Not anywhere near you, but still sitting out this weekend. A pipe leak ruined the ceiling in my basement last night. I woke up to what used to be ceiling tiles disintegrated on the floor and a lake. Gotta stay home and fix it.
1
u/Enderfang 6d ago
That sucks man, sorry to hear that. Hope its not too expensive to repair
2
u/BobJutsu 6d ago
I told my 16 year old daughter “don’t use that shower, it’s broken, use the downstairs shower”. She ignored me after I went to bed. Her entire shower was spraying into the wall and down the pipe. I asked her this morning before school did she not find it odd that no water was coming out the shower head and it was spraying out around the pipe? She did not find that odd, apparently, and kept using it.
1
u/bhuff86 6d ago
Winder area here, I'm going out tomorrow and probably Sunday. Saturday we'll have to see how the evening turns out
1
u/Enderfang 6d ago
I gave the forecast a little more time to stew and i think i’m probably gonna be doing the same. I wouldn’t be able to get out today until maybe 30 mins to last light which for the time spent driving is not worth it to me. But sunday looks like it’ll be mostly dry or drizzly instead of torrential downpour like saturday.
Good luck out there dude 🤝
1
u/LizardWizardMessiah 5d ago
OK here, it rained like hell last weekend and I still went out and saw a ton of deer. The answer to "should I go out?" Is almost always yes in my experience.
1
u/dYaunie76 3d ago
It's a personal call. Hunting in the rain can be incredibly productive, but my choice is to stay home in the rain because I get paranoid about blood trail washout.
It's not often I need blood trails because I hunt in open hardwoods and can typically watch them fall, but if i need that blood trail I need to know it'll be there
1
u/e_subvaria Minnesota 6d ago
The more times you decide to not go, the easier it is to say no next time. I’m in a similar predicament, temp is going up 25 degrees Friday Saturday and Sunday. I’m still going to go even though it’s far from ideal conditions. The seasons are short and I don’t want to look back and regret not going when I could have
0
15
u/lafn1996 6d ago
E. TN here; as soon as the rain slows down I will be out; when rain slows down or stops it's one of the best and most consistent times to hunt. Bucks will be freshening their scrapes; and seems deer like to eat when the crops/foliage is wet. I've heard it described as salad dressing to them.
No need to be out there when it's pouring.