getting quantitative with rain: how much is "heavy"?

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raisins
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getting quantitative with rain: how much is "heavy"?

Unread postby raisins » Fri Oct 25, 2019 2:35 am

Trying to plan some sits in West Virginia, for context.

In general or in the mid-Atlantic specifically, how much rain is sufficient to begin stifling deer movement significantly? I guess I haven't previously paid close enough attention to correlate my experience to the accumulation.

For instance, google tells me that "light rain" is roughly less than 0.098 inches per hour, but I know this isn't correlated to what deer consider "light rain".

Can anyone throw out some per hour accumulation numbers that they think roughly describe conditions when deer will and will not move?

I have a day defined as rain and the forecasted accumulation never exceeds 0.03 inches per hour (from weather underground). I'm having trouble visualizing what that is going to be like in the field.

I'm running HH Impertech rain gear and a tree umbrella, so I'm not worried about comfort but want to avoid sitting in one of my better spots if deer are likely to be bedded all day. If that is the case, then I'll go to some spots that are either lower odds or that I want to scout and save my better spots.

Thanks - R


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Grizzlyadam
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Re: getting quantitative with rain: how much is "heavy"?

Unread postby Grizzlyadam » Fri Oct 25, 2019 5:44 am

As far as rain alone goes I personally don't think there is a certain threshold in which deer will not move. I frequently see daytime pics of mature bucks on trail cams on days where it's absolutely pouring out. Days where in the past I wouldn't even consider being in the woods much less deer being on their feet during it. I started to notice this again and again to the point where I wrote it off as a coincidence. I'm convinced that heavy rain is very much a good time to go hunting with hopes of catching a mature buck on his feet during shooting hours. The biggest thing that keeps me from doing so is if I'm bow hunting. You make anything less than a perfect shot and chances of recovery are greatly reduced.

I see the same thing during heavy winds. I'm surprised how much movement I see on very windy days. I started hunting on days like that and I have seen great mature buck movement on those days, and have had success on those days. However if you add the two together and have a very windy day with heavy winds I believe that will indeed keep them bedded until one or the other subsides a bit. That makes more for a good day to go check trail cams.


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