Know When To Hunt?

1/1/2010
HHG

Picking the right time to increase your odds…..

I learned a long time ago that fishing when I wanted to fish usually meant I wasn’t going to be catching the fish I wanted to catch. The same is true with hunting in my experience.

Everyone can tell you to watch the moon, and that’s true. My favorite time to hunt hogs is during NO MOON. Watch your lunar transit times and get a good calendar. Then you will know when each phase of the moon starts and stops.

Typically my hunts are the worst during a FULL MOON. Hogs and other animals stay in the shadows and under brush in order to stay away from predators. I don’t blame them. Walk around your lease one time at night during a full moon and I’m sure you’ll agree that it is like daylight. Imaging if you could see in the dark.

For my hunts I’ve adapted a slightly different approach that I learned while fishing the lower Laguna Madre for years. Find our when they will be there, and then you make sure you’re there too.

Pretty simple, yes I know. But can you do it? That is the challenge. I love to hunt when the weather is either perfect, or nasty. But that doesn’t mean I’ll see game. It’s better for duck hunting most of the time.

So, I pick the absolute most reliable times I can. I hate wasting time, and making a blank trip can be very frustrating.

So, my process is to watch every single change in the weather. Is it going to rain? Is there a cool front coming? What has changed this week and how does it relate to the moon phase. Even hunting a full moon with thick cloud cover can be productive some times.

I usually hunt the evening a front is due to come in (or the evening before if it comes in the following day). During a quarter moon it can be good. During no moon its better.

If the weather changes dramatically with rain I will also hunt right before or right after. Animals will move the most during this time and that will increase my odds of seeing a real trophy.

So, start tracking the weather, the wind, the moon, and the conditions on your lease or ranch. Slight changes in these things will move the game around and increase your odds of taking one with much more regularity.

If the only time I hunted was directly before a cool front moved through…. I’d be close to 100% success rate. Problem is, I’m human… That means there are days I “want” to hunt…. and as a result my ratio is much lower than 100%.

Keep your feeders full, watch the weather and track everything on your game cameras according to the moon. Use the moon as your constant (it happens every month of the year) and watch your cameras to see how the weather (which you are tracking) changes the animals movements.

Good Luck!

HHG