Muzzleloader weather forecast

[philsanchez76]

More experienced hunters; question for you. What's your strategy for hitting the woods for MZ season with the given above average temps forecasted for what seems like basically the whole 2 week MZ season? I know a lot of yall don't even bow hunt your good spots and are waiting til MZ to go in there. Will yall hit those good spots like normal? Or hang back a little to see if movement is happening? as a newer hunter im trying to learn patience. last few seasons ive bow hunted my good spots so much that I kind of burn them out for MZ season and lose my opportunities at nicer bucks. What say you?

 

[Hduke86]

I'll hunt them in the morning if the temp is good and I'm not working up a sweat. Also it depends on the pressure on the property or surrounding properties. You may only have a limited amount of days to hunt between work, family events, getting sick. So I say if you feel good about the spot then go hunt it cause your time in the woods could be cut short by other life events that you have to deal with during muzzleloader.

 

[double browtine]

Usually it is prime time rut during muzzleloader so you better be in the woods as much as possible during the month of November!

 

[Jcalder]

Sit from dark to dark as many days as I can

 

[timberjack86]

Yep, best two weeks of the season imo, hunt your best spots!

 

[RockMcL]

There are several places on my land I don't hunt except on very specific conditions. Very hard to access undetected. Pick off what I can on the outskirts.

Most of my regular sits or stands don't have exceptional bucks frequently in October. Long as I don't kill or scare off all the does before their name change to Miss Readydoe, then all my places can pay once the resident does put on that special perfume...

Have a saddle set up arriving next couple days and will practice then carefully encroach little deeper in the bedrooms, again respectful of wind, weather etc.

I have another property about 40 minutes away but usually leave to my son's since they are closer to it than where I live but if I squirrel up my backyard I can shift to there.

My thoughts are based on my understanding but unless you blew it on a specific buck in a specific place, that buck could careless that you got busted dead to rights by another buck whether greater or lessor. We have killed deer at the same stand that one of us killed at earlier within a week. In fact I would go so far as to say I have killed at least one buck while he was smelling exactly where his competition was drug out. Saved me grunting to stop him. Cameras guys have had to see that too.

Now if a hundred yard circle around your stand smells like your gym locker then yes, you have overhunted that spot.

 

[megalomaniac]

Temps in the 70-80's, I hunt down in the creek bottoms
Less than 70, I hunt anywhere/ everywhere depending on wind direction.... unless it's a downpour- then I'm in one of my shooting houses.
As a generalization, I usually hunt mornings on travel routes/ terrain funnels, etc, while evenings are usually close to food/ plots/ hot acorn trees.

 

[DoubleRidge]

There are absolutely areas I will not hunt until muzzleloader...but above average temps, while disappointing, will not stop me from hunting....I believe the last two bucks I killed in muzzleloader the daytime high was in the 80s....last couple years has been warm during muzzleloader....but the rut is going to happen period...no matter what the temperature....the concern with high daytime temps is how much daytime activity will the hunter see verses allot of the chasing taking place at night when its cooler....the last two bucks I killed in warm temps were during the last 30 minutes of legal shooting light....the does we're feeding in the plot and the buck showed up checking them.....but it's November....I'll pack a lunch and sit all day.

 

[backyardtndeer]

Get to start with rifle here in cwd zone on Monday. Will hunt as much as I can over the next couple weeks. My wife usually hunts the warmer days, she has done pretty well on some of those warm hunts. She killed her best buck about 3:30 in the afternoon on a day in the low 70's. Tennessee weather....

 

[DMD]

Usually it is prime time rut during muzzleloader so you better be in the woods as much as possible during the month of November!

This is exactly the right answer. You never know in November. Cold weather spurs movement, but - anything can happen in any weather. Quick story - a few years ago, a friend of mine came from South Carolina to hunt a week with me. First day was opening day of Muzzleloader. It was hot and windy. We planned to hunt till 1pm. As the morning moved on, it was so hot and no deer movement, so I decided we'd go do a little scouting about 11am for better weather. After scouting, we came back to our hunting spots to get our stands and a huge buck ran across the logging road about 30 yards from where I had hunted that morning. I looked at the time - 12:58. You never know in November. Get in the woods all you can, whenever you can. Even if it's just for a few minutes. And stay put!

 

[knightrider]

Dark to dark in the hollers when its hot

 

[Deer 1]

I'll be in the woods every chance I get. Feeling like I might be just sick enough to miss work and spend a few full days in the stand.

Pick of the rut in my area. Awesome crazy things can happen any time

 

[deerhunter10]

I hunt the wind. Some spots I'll wait on a cold front. I have more time to spend in the woods so I can. We will hunt careful. Mornings are you friend in my experience with that weather. But I watch direct weather on YouTube and he is predicting a good cold front. Could miss us but he is pretty spot on. Don't over think it and use your gut. Even when the weather is good you have to hunt smart to kill mature deer consistently. I personally like 2nd week of ml season and opening week or rifle the best for our farms. But you gotta hunt one doe can change everything in one 2nd. One other thing we will do is key in to food extremely close to bedding and evenings can turn good then.

 

[TNTreeman]

It's my favorite time to hunt my area.

 

[BSK]

I'll be out there no matter the weather. We spend 80+% of our annual hunting hours in November.

But I'm not completely convinced the weather will be that warm. Models are still all over the place.

 

[cecil30-30]

Weather isn't looking terrible here. Highs in the 60's and lows in the mid 40's. Could be alot worse. With that said I would like to see it a tad cooler.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

I'll be out there no matter what

 

[dogmatik]

Either way, gonna be cooler than here in Florida. I cannot wait!

 

[BSK]

One major model has rain and a cold front coming through Sunday. Another model has the rain and front Friday night into early Saturday. The last major model doesn't have the front at all and keeps the weather warm all opening week.

 

[agelessssone]

Sit from dark to dark as many days as I can

Absolutely! Bucks roam all day during the rut.
Once I missed a deer at 7 yds when my arrow hit a twig I didn't notice in my excitement.
Made me so mad and heartsick that I got down, picked up my arrow and trudged back to my truck.
Sitting there eating a sammich and mentally kicking my ass for making such a rookie mistake, it hit me hard....THIS IS THE RUT, GET BACK IN THE TREE!!
I clambered back up the hill, got up in the treestand, nocked an arrow and sat down.
Ten minutes later in walks a nice 8 point buck. I neatly arrowed him at thirty yards, and watched him fall forty yards away.
Stay in the woods, dark to dark during the rut!

 

[Dumbluck]

When it's hot during the rut, I hunt the thickets and CPR. A doe is not going to run herself to death like a buck will in the heat, she is gonna try to hide and lay down. You may see the same deer over and over throughout the day but if there's a hot doe there is no telling what will show up.

When it's cold I prefer travel corridors, saddles, transition areas between thickets, ect...the deer seem to move longer distances and you'll see more varieties of animals in the locations.

If there is nothing moving I always go back to thickets and CRP and prefer to still hunt if it's wet.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

When it's hot during the rut, I hunt the thickets and CPR.

I've never hunted a CPR. Can you expand on that Dumbluck?

 

[Dumbluck]

I've never hunted a CPR. Can you expand on that Dumbluck?

CPR is basically just over grown native growth (fields)

Like what this buck was in last season.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

CPR is basically just over grown native growth (fields)

Like what this buck was in last season.

that's CRP. Man, am I gonna have to come a couple exits down and whoop some sense back into you?

 

[Dumbluck]

that's CRP. Man, am I gonna have to come a couple exits down and whoop some sense back into you?

well school was important but deer hunting was importanter.....

Come on down I'm sure a medic will have to perform CPR on you if you wanna start. I'm older meaner and don't care no more.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

well school was important but deer hunting was importanter.....

Come on down I'm sure a medic will have to perform CPR on you if you wanna start. I'm older meaner and don't care no more.

 

[BSK]

Weather models are starting to congeal on a forecast for early part of MZ. Most of the primary models now have a wet front coming through early Sunday, but that front doesn't have a lot of cold air with it. A second front that drops the temperatures comes through Wednesday of opening week.

 

[CliffordN]

Warm weekend ahead...

 

[Wiley]

Too warm for me to hunt opening weekend and I have the newest camp quarters to put siding and roof on so I'll be there but not hunting.

 

[RockMcL]

I have quota ML hunt in Williamsport WMA so will be there till I get buck or last day. Weather will be whatever it is...