Full Moon???

[cockyincarolina]

I HATE hunting the full moon,and everything I have ever read on it says it helps deer movement. I simply have had very little luck over the past 30 years when hunting the full moon here in SC.....How does everyone else feel about this?? Is this all in my head? I know deer are more active during night,but I can't seem to get up for hunting on the full moon.....

[Stinger-Hunter]

I've read a lot about the moon phases and tested the different theories for 2 years before I came to the following conclusion:

Anyone that talks about hunting during moon phases is selling something. Either a book or a chart or something similar.

I hunted and tested against every theory out there. Moon rising, Moon falling, full moon, the deer finish eating earlier because the can see at night better, so full moon is better to hunt in the early afternoon... new moon, is better to hunt in the morning cause the deer are still eating in the a.m.

I've read and studied all of it THEN tested it.

It is all bunk. If you don't get into hunting the full moon, then don't. Don't give it another thought. Do what you like and forget about the studies and the hype.

Good luck this year.

Lou

[Muleyman]

I have only been hunting for a couple years. But this year, I have noticed very little deer movement on a full moon

[mike13candace]

Funny you mentioned the Full Moon. I have not had any luck during the full moon. Texas two years ago (where deer are everywhere) I didnt many dear for three days. The hype does get me excited only to be let down. Here in the Northeast the charts say late rut. Full moon on November 21st. I would bet anything November 5-11 will be smoking (like always) Not hunting off charts this year.. LOL

[Tominator]

I live by one creed when it comes to my age and level of kid activity: if you have time to hunt, hunt.

I don't let moon phase dictate my hunting. I do believe it affects deer though. Typically a full moon will get the deer moving earlier, earlier in the morning, and earlier in the evening. I shot my biggest deer on a full moon when it was 78 degrees, mid October during the "lull."

[hunter109]

i think it effects the deer but i still hunt and still see alot of deer well latter men

[ChrisSeb53]

let's put it this way... you can't kill anything if you aren't in the woods... maybe your luck will change

[TN Bucknasty]

I'm not sure where the idea that deer movement has something to do with the moon started, but I'm sure it is linked to the old ideas that you need to plant crops according to the moon, children are born and behave according to the moon, fish bite according to the moon, etc.

I have been doing a study for the past five consecutive years on deer movement patterns, and I can definitely say that there is no discernable pattern whatsoever that indicates to me that the moon has anything to do with deer movement, rutting activity, etc. Deer have a reflective tissue built into their eyes that enables them to see just fine in the dark so why would they care about the amount of light after the sun goes down?

The only really good indicators of deer movement that I've found are barometric pressure and hunting pressure. Deer move more at times when they feel the least threatened (after dark many times during season), or when there is an urgent need to feed such as right before severe weather arrives and there is a big swing in barometric pressure.

Surprisingly, I have also found in my study that wind speed is really not a good indicator of deer movement either except for extremely high winds. Wind direction, however, is a very good indication of hunter success. Varying winds have been by far the least productive in my studies, not because the deer don't move ( trail cameras indicate the same amount of movement), but probably because they are smelling the hunters.

I don't expect any of this to change any minds or anything, but I believed a whole lot of things before I started keeping up with the data that have gone out the window in the past few years. I think Kip from QDMA said it best when he said, "If you have confidence in the moon phase you will hunt harder during that time," and "If you believe it works for you, then by all means go with it."

[cockyincarolina]

I'm always in the woods every chance I get...even on a full moon....I just have never had any luck during a full moon. I hunt hard,and I love being in the woods regardless. It is studies like the one mentioned above that I am talking about. Just curious on everyons opinion. After 30 years in the woods mine is still that I see a ton more deer on the way to my stand and driving to my property at 4:00am than any other time of the whole month,and I am hard pressed to see a single deer during the day,when I see deer every other time I go in the woods during that month....I KNOW it affects them here in my little neck of the country. I was just curious about other places......

I think deer behave different depending on where you hunt in the country...I'm amazed at all the hunting programs we have on TV now,and the way deer behave.I'd love to see some of the big names of the industry come to deep south and try to do what they are able to do on the milk river,Kansas,Illinois,etc.. It's a whole new ballgame. I'm not knocking ANYONE or their ability. Just saying it's different.

[cockyincarolina]

I'm always in the woods every chance I get...even on a full moon....I just have never had any luck during a full moon. I hunt hard,and I love being in the woods regardless. It is studies like the one mentioned above that I am talking about. Just curious on everyons opinion. After 30 years in the woods mine is still that I see a ton more deer on the way to my stand and driving to my property at 4:00am than any other time of the whole month,and I am hard pressed to see a single deer during the day,when I see deer every other time I go in the woods during that month....I KNOW it affects them here in my little neck of the country. I was just curious about other places......

I think deer behave different depending on where you hunt in the country...I'm amazed at all the hunting programs we have on TV now,and the way deer behave.I'd love to see some of the big names of the industry come to deep south and try to do what they are able to do on the milk river,Kansas,Illinois,etc.. It's a whole new ballgame. I'm not knocking ANYONE or their ability. Just saying it's different.

[Stinger-Hunter]

I'll add one caveat to my post that I left earlier. I have noticed this ONE thing during full moons.

Bucks seem to roam around a bit during noon-time. I've witnessed this twice and likely could have been more but I don't usually stay out all day.

I shot my first deer with a bow (a buck) at exactly noon during a full moon and I've seen one other buck come out at noon on a full moon.

So, I'll have to say that maybe it was a coincidence or maybe not. I know a few experts have said that they swear by the noon hunt on a full moon.

Test it out and let us know.

[huntnfish]

let's put it this way... you can't kill anything if you aren't in the woods... maybe your luck will change

I second that.

[earnhardts12000]

ya i agree mid day is best see alot of deer during full moons here