From Mild to Wild

We've hit 50 or better three times this December in central Iowa, and we'll likely do it at least one more time before the year is through. While this comfortable weather may be good for traveling around the holidays, it can actually make for a difficult late season hunt.

Warm weather really slows down the deer feeding patterns. In years past when there's a late season thaw, it tends to send the bucks into a nearly nocturnal feeding pattern. So if you've been seeing less mature deer movement lately, don't be alarmed. My theory is they are wary from the hunting pressure, worn down from the breeding season, and when it's warm they don't move as much. Physiologically, warm blooded animals don't have to burn as many calories to stay warm when the temps are above average. Also, their thick winter coat probably works a little too well when it's sunny and temps are in the 40s/50s. So it seems, if they don't have to move, they wont. A quick glance at the long-range predictions below and you can see this pattern should be here to round out the 2011 hunting season.

Warm Temperatures are Expected to End Hunting Season

So, I have slipped back into ambushing transition areas and travel corridors as my primary hunting strategy. Deer are still pretty spooky, so I try not to over hunt one particular area. In fact, I'm saving my more reliable hunting areas for those days when the mercury and the snow are both falling which will hopefully happen at least twice before the season closes.

In the meantime, enjoy hunting in these early season temperatures! We will see one strong surge of cold air rushing in for the start of 2012. Freezing temps and strong, cold wind will stir up some good quality movement Monday January 2nd and Tuesday the 3rd. The rest of season is looking very warm. Click here for more information on this wild pattern straight from the Climate Prediction Center.

Good luck and Happy New Year!

Winter and Late Season Muzzleloader Have Begun

Shotgun season ended quite warm, but the weather was very enjoyable to sit in. According to the DNR, 70,000 deer were taken during the recent hunting seasons -about 30% below 2006 harvest levels. More on that story here. Game activity for us was best in the morning and our group of hunters ended up filling 6 tags to close the weekend and the season.

While winter officially kicks off today (Dec. 22nd) deer have been settling into the wintertime feeding pattern for the last few weeks. Late Season Muzzleloader is in full swing. In my opinion this season is the second best time to tag a big buck. The first of course is the rut, and the pre-rut early season runs a close third place due to patternability. But during Late Season deer are even more patternable. They group together and feed in good numbers, crowding food sources to restore their weight before the dead of winter.

When the weather turns nearly intolerable, I'll turn to my muzzleloader. Taking advantage of the harsh conditions can really pay off for hunting Iowa game. One of the best strategies I use when planning a day to hunt is to focus on "high pressure" days. These are usually the days with the coldest lows on the 7-day forecast. These days see especially high activity levels when the winds have been strong and then relax. I usually try to hunt the evening before and the morning of the days with the coldest low temperatures.

See if that pays off in your neck of the woods and good luck!

Excellent End to Shotgun 2

We have had a real wild ride so far this fall and this week was no exception. Central Iowa started in the deep freezer last weekend with single digit lows to open up the second shotgun season. Wed. Dec. 14th Des Moines came close to record rainfall and record highs with 0.56" ( just .05" shy of tying the record) and a high of 56 (not quite the 60 they had in 1975). The only creatures who know just how crazy this weather has been better than outdoorsmen, are the game we pursue!

This is our season! Hunting season! My natural element.

Now the cold side of this storm system will swing on through and it will present Iowa with words hunters should welcome from forecasters; Canadian, Cold, High Pressure. Thursday the winds will be strong as this high roars into Iowa, but after it settles in we're looking at reasonably light winds and great temperatures. It will be the type of cold that is tolerable to the hunter, and great for game movement!

This time of year, the rut is winding down. Deer are switching to survival mode full time and the bucks can finally slow down for the buffet since they wont be distracted as much. Under light hunting pressure, deer will be hitting the food sources hard in the evenings, trying to pack on the pounds before the true chill of an Iowa winter settles in. If you're party hunting and doing drives, deer bedding areas aught to produce well for morning pushes. Plotting an ambush to take advantage of natural feeding activity sounds like a solid plan for the afternoon and evenings. I'll be focusing on areas with sanctuary from the orange army right next to row crop fields and other food sources.

Thursday will be a 3 of 5 star day of hunting with the best movement in the evening. Friday should be a 4 or 5 of 5 star day. High pressure will create a nice cold start, a few clouds will try and fill in giving the sky a look like it might storm and both feeding and travelling activity should be high. Another plus is the shotgun pressure will be relatively light. Saturday and Sunday both look like nearly perfect days to hunt with lows in the 20s, and highs in the 40s. Keep track of that 7 day right here on myabc5.com.
On another note, licenses for the 2012 hunting season and the special January Antlerless season go on sale Dec. 15th and more information can be found on my links to the right under Iowa DNR.

Good luck this weekend! We'll talk more about Late Season Muzzleloader after I fill my shotgun tags!

Rain Dampens the Middle of Shotgun Season 2

A strong area of low pressure is pulling out of the desert southwestern US, and moving towards Iowa. As a southwestern storm system, you can expect it to bring 2 things: warmth and moisture. We will see enough warmth, that this storm will be entirely rain. We could also see some new daily rainfall records as upwards of an inch will fall in central Iowa.

The daily rainfall record for December 14th in Des Moines, IA is 0.61" set back in 1992. There is about a 95% chance that record will fall with several rounds of rainfall starting Tuesday afternoon and lasting through Wednesday evening. The rain wont be the only thing falling. The barometric pressure has been high the last week or so thanks to an arctic high pressure close by. Now the pressure will steadily fall until Wednesday night, and that can be a very useful hunting asset.

I've hunted many rainy days in my life. When the temperature is cold (30s) and the rain is anything heavier than sprinkles (enough to get you soaked), I have found deer movement to be light and usually the animals are immature. But this doesn't mean rainy weather is a bad thing! I have sat several evenings where it rained steadily all afternoon, but right at sunset it let up to just heavy mist and drizzle with fog. Every one of those evenings featured great deer feeding activity and shot opportunities. My theory is low pressure spurrs strong feeding activity, but heavy rain dampens this movement significantly. Heavy snow on the otherhand, has never slowed the deer down at my end of the field. I relish the days where I'm covered in snow as the flakes are falling and the deer pile into the fields. So it will be important to watch the forecast the next few days as this storm moves in. Keep track of the radar here, and any breaks in the action moving your way should result in an excellent evening ambush.



My 2003 2nd Season Shotgun Buck. Thanks to Rod and Cory
Simon for inviting me along for the hunt!



Here's my hunting weather forecast, Tuesday evening will be 4 out of 5 stars for hunting. Wednesday morning will likely be a 2 out of 5 stars hunt. Wednesday evening will be 3 out of 5 for most of eastern Iowa (worse if the rain stays steady), but western Iowa (west of highway 169) should bump up to nearly 5 out of 5 stars to hunt. Over there, the rain will relax to just drizzle, mist and dense fog as the barometric pressure falls to the lowest point it's been in 10 days. Deer can probably sense the cold winter wind is just hours away and feeding activity should be very good! Thursday the deer will be in security cover most of the day with strong cold winds driving across the state. This is excellent for stalking deer in the bedding areas, but horrible for stand hunters. We'll talk about the weekend in my next blog. Good luck!