"Official" 2014-2015 Somerville Thread

[rem788]

Really? I must have missed that part in the old thread. I remember seeing where you said something about wanting them to let us take does throughout the season since it's archery only. I don't see a problem with that and I wish they would.

[Limbwalker]

Who knew that most folks were there for the excellent hot dogs, huh?

[rem788]

Haha. No thanks.

Only 11 days left to go. Who's ready?

From what I could find on an extended forecast it looks like it'll be lows around 60 in the morning and a high of 82 or 83 with a north to NE wind.

[Jäger]

haha i don't think ill ever get that warm and fuzzy feeling. well maybe after iv'e spent as much time on the ground as Limb . cant help but fret over my topo maps and satellite images and think that i should have scouted this spot or that spot. but iv'e got 99% of my gear in order. all i need is a pull rope. a NE wind doesn't agree with my first choice of stand sites but that's hunting right. guess well just see how it goes!

Good Luck and Happy Hunting to all!

[jomw10]

I'm ready, got good scouting options, but with my luck someone is going to be in them come opening day!... Good hunting...

[Limbwalker]

Yea, I almost never select stand locations there for a NE wind because it's so rare. Well, we'll see what happens anyway. A lot of times, the air current descending into, or rising up out of the bottoms will trump the wind direction if it's a light wind. It's real tricky. The air is still moving downhill at sunrise, then only about 1/2 hour after sunrise does it switch and start moving uphill. A lot of mornings, that can be your wind direction, regardless of what the winds aloft are doing.

This works to the deer's advantage since they usually spend the evenings in the bottoms (where the air is moving to them) and then work up into the bedding or staging areas while the air is still moving downhill. Most mornings, they will want to be in their beds before the air currents change. Once they change and the air starts rising uphill, it's bringing the scent up to them and will until the deer head down into the bottoms again for the evening. Once the sun goes down, the whole process repeats itself.

This is why deer usually bed up on slopes overlooking low areas and then feed in those low areas. They have a constant source of information coming to them from their nose.

It's a tough one to plan for if the winds aloft are too light to influence the surface air movement.

I'd say it takes a good 7-8 mph breeze to overcome these slope-driven surface air movements.

The toughest days are when you have a 5-10 mph breeze, and the air keeps mixing and switching at sunrise and sunset. A lot of times, the deer will just stay put until things get sorted out.

John

[rem788]

Jäger, I know! I climbed a few trees to set my stand last Saturday all for different winds. The one I liked the best is for any south wind direction which is what the extended forecast projected previously. I'm really hoping it changed again before the opener. If not I'll use a tree that's 30 yards away for that wind direction.

[Limbwalker]

North or NE winds never last long around here. Whatever the forecast, you can just about cut that in half. Those South winds will always win out sooner than expected.

[rem788]

Let's hope so. So far it shows ESE before and after opening day. Shouldn't be a huge deal either way for the area I want to hunt because there's trails coming in and out every direction. It'll be up to the deer to cooperate. Lol

[Limbwalker]

Yea, same here. That's what makes it so much fun. At a place like S'ville, you really have no idea where they will be coming from, they have so many choices in that thick stuff.

I remember the 6 years I hunted treelines inbetween corn and soybean fields in Illinois. There was never any question from which direction they would be coming, or when they would come. It was ridiculously easy to pattern the deer there. Absudly easy. And that is why so many bowhunting shows are filmed in corn and soybean country.

John

[Jäger]

Well whatever the wind does I've still got one ace up my sleeve and that's pure dumb luck. and rather be lucky than good any day

[rem788]

Ha! That's what I'll be hoping for as well.

Limb I'm thinking your'e on to something here. That is pretty exciting not knowing where anything will be coming from. Another thing is I won't even know what's out there since I still don't have my camera back. I'm thinking about making the trip Sunday evening and taking my waders just in case.

[Jäger]

bad as i hate to this close to season im going to make a trip saturday to try and get my camera back

[rem788]

Good luck. It should be plenty wet out there by then. I'm gonna see just how sloppy it is Sunday.

[Limbwalker]

Yup, gonna need to go see where the water is standing now as that will affect my choice of locations. I doubt anyone will be crossing either creek anytime soon. Pretty well seals off some major areas out there to foot traffic.

Good thing about the rain and scouting is that it does wash your scent away pretty quickly after you leave. I try to scout right before, or during a rain if I can.