Hunting in the Snow
 

Well, guys, I haven't limited out yet, and I haven't shot a decent buck yet.

So I am going to hunt the last three days of the season this year, this coming Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

It's going to be very cold, and, for a change (at least for me), it's going to be in the snow.

I've never deer hunted in the snow (rabbits and other small game, yes, deer, no).

Any tips?

Will there be fresh snow on the ground and do you know how to still hunt?

7.62: Best I can tell it will be snowing on Friday, so the snow will be fresh then, and relatively fresh on Saturday.

I've done some still hunting; from your question, it would appear that it's time to brush up on those still hunting skills.

Love hunting in fresh snow. You can see the deer real good. And see where they been. Really good to blood trail deer in snow too.

I am looking forward to it. I think I will be able to see where they have been very recently; the way it's been the last few hunts, it's been real hard to tell how old the sign has been.

Won't have that problem Friday, and probably not Saturday.

I had given some thought to seeing where the tracks and all indicate they've been, then go back early the next day....

We don't hunt from a stand. We stalk them like the Benoit Bros. Snow makes tracking much easier and it's even quieter to crawl up to where the deer is. I use a 30 lb. bow so we have to get to within at least 10-12 yards.

We got one with my muzzleloader last year so we didn't have to get as close. ;)

Hunting in the snow is great.

snow is white, deer are brown, you can see them a long ways, have taken several beyond 1000 yards in the snow.
RR

So... I can see where your from, and you can see where I'm from... I hope you can understand it if I'm ROFLMAO!!!

I just did a check of the Weather channels web site,(TWC) and they're estimating that my home has received 10.5 inches of snow in the last 24hrs, and may get 3 more inches by morning... I've had to plow the driveway for the last 2 nights, and will do so again tomorrow.

Let me say that not all snow is created equal... We've been getting typical Fall wet and heavy snow... Here's whats going to happen here... The snow that has already fallen is full of moisture... Behind it cold temps are coming... The surface of the snow is going to freeze hard creating a bit of a crust... In no time at all it'll be virtually impossible to move threw the woods quietly around here... It will take a good wind, above freezing temps, or a well packed trail to be able to still hunt around here.

At times we get dry fluffy snow... That is the best still hunting snow, it's hard to beat.

What I'm trying to say is that yer going to have to evaluate yer conditions... If yer getting a wet snow, the temps drop below freezing, and you have no wind, I'm thinking that still hunting is out of the question.

Whatever snow you get, if the temps rise above freezing, still hunting may be on the table because the snow will get soft, tho if it's deep enough it may get crunchy underfoot.

Fluffy snow, and above mild winds... Still hunting all the way.

Yeah... I know... I'm not helping much... The bottom line is that yer going to have to be "Johnny on the spot" according to the conditions that yer under.

Also, if you have active scrape lines going on, or not, scrape lines are a great place to be after a weather system passes threw. It's a phenomena I've observed for many years, at this time of year around here, when a weather system passes threw, bucks will run their rut lines. For us the scrapes are for the most part inactive, but the bucks run them nonetheless.

Hunt near food sources.....snow & cold weather = Hunger,Deer will need food to keep up their energy and look for thick cover, trees and cedars for them to be bedded down in to stay out of the cold!

In the place I been hunting in west Virginia all the deer has been in the fields. Snow should bring them in the fields more to find some thing to eat. Look for a good food source when snow on the ground.