NEW61375

I looked at it some more and what stands out more to me is not so much the phase of the moon (ie full, new, waxing, waning, etc) but the fact that during the time that you will be there the moon will be rising and setting during the day.

For example here are the times for the 27th of November, 2008 in Alberta:


RISES SETS LENGTH of DAY
SUN 0812 am 1619 pm 8 hrs 7 minutes
MOON0848 am1541 pm

This means the sun is only out for 8 hrs that day (plus about an extra hourof light before sunrise/sunset). So if you sit all day you are looking at about a 10 hr stretch. More importantly the moon is rising and setting similiar to the sun that week which will put it directly overhead around 1230(lunch) on this day and within an hour or two of that for most of the week.

Hopefully the rut/weather will help you and things will fall into place. If there is 8 hours of light in a day and 16 hours of dark you have to believe deer will be moving at some point during the day, I can't imagine them bedding for the entire 8 hours especially if it is coldor ifthe rut is a factor.

My random guess is it might be a little slower than normal at dawn and dusk but you could see a spike in mid day activity(0930am-1430 pm), again completly random guess not knowing what the weather or rutting activity will be like.

However it turns out, good luck to you, I'm jealous.

early in

Thanks againNate. Very intresting stuff. Encouraging to say the least. I still need to check out that link you told me about. I will do that!!

early in

Since we were on this subject, I thought I'd share this pic that I took in Alberta. I like it.

shed33

Early, thats the week I hunted up in the Bowzone.That weekwould be my pick year in and year out if I had a choice and could afford that trip. Like you said, all day everyday no matter the weather moon etc.. The greatestfactor you have going for youis thedoes will definately be in estrus, which trumpsall big buck daylight movementmotivators!I hunted it daylight till darkeverydayand I saw a lot of big buck movement. I saw a couple slammers 2 150 Plus bucks, just couldnt get them in range.. ended coming home with a decent buck.

RobinAim Low

Here you go, this is the site I use to get the info.

http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/RS_OneDay.php

The moon transit given is the major transit (overhead). The minor (underfoot) is approx. 12 hours difference. I would have thought that those dates would have been way towards the end of the estrus period for up there.

valor10

If your theory works for you, I'm happy for you. But, how is it some see more deer on moonless nights, while others see more deer on full moon nights? Both swear by their experience, and I believe BOTH! In the early bow season here in Virginia, when the temp can be close to 90, deer ain't moving in the afternoon voluntarily.Come dusk, out come the deer. All you need to know is where the deer water and feed, andwhere you can head them off before dark. Weather cools off, they're playing around their bedding area in the mornings, come out earlier in the evening for water and grub,cold rainy days they can be out anytime of the day. I think weather (including barometric pressure), next to the rut, is the biggest factor that trumps anything else when it comes to deer movement.It's not a matter of being open minded.Maybe deer like the light of the moon when they have to move through heavy woods or thicket. Maybe they like it dark when they have to move across open land. I don't know. No one else does either. That's why I stick to hunting proven methods like the rut, and weather.

NEW61375

Valor10

I hunt VA as well and would have to agree with the weather assessment. Early bow season the temps are ridiculous, hell even November tmps stay up in the 70's. I always try to set upnear bedding and water in the am and bedding and food near dusk(evening).

That being said I still watch the moon phases and rise/set times not necessarily as an exact science in regards to huntingI just find it interesting. I still track everything else like bar. pressure, fronts, rut activity, etc. The moon stuff is just one more bit of info I can add to my field journals. Ikeep track of sightings/kills frommy friends, family, other members, or people hunting the same propertiesor very close by also.The dates/times is the info I want mostbut the weather conditions and moon info I jot down as well.

It has only been like 2 seasons I have been doing it and this season I hope to be able to look back and compare stuff or use it to possibly help anticipate spikes in activity. For example if it was a new moon and a cold front was pushing through from the North and it was November I can look back over the past couple of seasons and see if I can find a day that had similiar conditions and see what kind of deer I activity I had. I sometimes can only hunt just the morning or just the evening so if one of those similiar days in the past yielded more sightings in the morning than in the evening I will take off the morning.

Trust me I know it's not guaranteed and I still use the more standard proven methods as well I'm just hoping maybe 10 years from now I will have a ton of info on the areas I hunt for when my memory starts
fading.


I kept a condensed version of my journal in the South Forum last year and I'm not sure how useful it was but it was fun.

My Field Journal (VA & NC)

BobCo19-65

Actually there is a bunch of info done by TR Michaels, but I'm sure I'd be safe to assume that it will be shot down by someone here:

Part of his findings are here:
CLICK_HERE

NEW61375

That is some good info Bobco and you can't shoot down his time and study results. I often wonder if the overhead underfoot thing has more effect on fish (as that effects the tides more) and someone somewhere just made it fish/game charts rather than just fish. I keep track of it but don't have any real results that are super convincing, yet anyway.

I really like this info from Alsheimer and how it simplifies the moons effects on deer(biologically) and how that can help your hunting.

Charles Alsheimer: Deer Hunting: Assessing the Moon's Impact on ...

Rather than focus on all of the different aspects and variables of the moon he gives you the nitty gritty from Oct.-Dec. when it can be most useful.

This article references the same material.

By The Light Of The Moon

RobinAim Low

In my experience, I find both the new moon and full moon to be about the same as far as sightings go. In your example of deer coming out in evenings during hot periods...yes, that happens. Those deer most likely will not come out at the same time day after day for weeks. Their arrival times will vary, and vary in a cycle. What you may be missing out on is activity related to the times I discussed that is happening back in cover. There is a reason that I have some oak flats back in cover that have produced wonderfully for me in the middle of the day in 90 deg plus temps.

Here is a good example...There is an alfalpha field I drive by every day. Not long ago, there were 5 deer feeding at the far end next to a thicket at 1:00 pm, and the temp was 86 degrees. I went home and checked the transit time, and it was for 1236.

I don't ignore other factors, andwill still beout there whenever I can hunt. I just happen to pay attention to the moon position and choose my stands accordingly.

Like I said in this thread,or maybe it was the other similar one...I don't really care if someone doesn't believe in it. I have nothing to gain bytrying to convince anyone. I am happy toshare the info for anyone that wants it, and that is about the extent of it.