Full moon this year is September 24t/25th depending on what calendar you look at. What is your opinion on the best week of September to hunt with your bow? I know weather will probably play a big role. But if you had to pick a week now, which would you pick?
Archery Elk and the Moon
- Thread starter LWC55
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805Bowhunter
Member
I agree. I don't have a ton of experience in this department other than just "going" and hunting hard. Ive seen bulls bugling their brains out when they weren't supposed to be and then dead silence when they were supposed to be going nuts. Lots of people freak out about the moon so much that I feel like the big picture is missed. Im sure it has an impact but I wouldn't focus too hard on it as there are so many other variables that have a much bigger impact on the month of September (heat, water, feed, weather etc)
I'm not going to focus too much on the moon. I'm just trying to pick the best week to go hunt. I will likely only get one week in September and the moon is one of the factors I am looking at. It will likely be southern WY if that would influence your decision. Thanks
805Bowhunter
Member
How much flexibility do you have in when you can take off? I only ask because if you can wait until the last minute, it can give you a better pulse on whats happening at gamete and make your decision at that point. If the bugling starts early, then you can jump ship and head out...same if the rut starts later? In my opinion, the 3rd and 4th weeks of September are usually fairly safe bets for getting some bugling.
Idahoarcheryhunter
Well-known member
I buy into the moon phase a little bit with a quick look at the calendar personally if I only had one week to hunt I would go the 9th to the 16th.
land7601
Member
I may not have as much experience as some of the people on here, but I have seen the moon adversely affect a hunt before, especially hunting high pressured units. The moon can provide enough light for the elk to do most of their moving around prior to the sun rising. By the time shooting light roles around they have already made it to their "sanctuary" areas and can be much harder to locate. If it was me and I had the flexibility to move my hunt around I probably would. Not necessarily tied to the moon phases, but the extra visibility provided by the moon can present a challenge.
I certainly am not an expert by any means but to think these animals need moonlight to see well enough to move around is ludicrous. It is only us humans that need light to see well.
It may or may not be a factor in elk behavior, but it is the last factor I would consider. We've killed some great bulls during the full moon and I've seen some of the hottest rutting action during the full moon.
There are a lot more than one way to skin a cat and if you want to be successful 100% of the time killing elk you gotta get good at many of those ways. If elk are going nuts at night (I sleep very near the elk) then that is a HUGE advantage to me in killing one.
BTW, how do you know the full moon will occur when the sky is clear? It is late Sept!
There are a lot more than one way to skin a cat and if you want to be successful 100% of the time killing elk you gotta get good at many of those ways. If elk are going nuts at night (I sleep very near the elk) then that is a HUGE advantage to me in killing one.
BTW, how do you know the full moon will occur when the sky is clear? It is late Sept!
Flatland Crusoe
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I definitely agree with what you are saying. Its the same way that activity can be extended later into the morning on rainy or overcast days compared to a clear sunny day. Add warm weather to a full moon and pressured elk might not be filtering into the open until well after dark.
El Jason
Well-known member
In the converse, you can have warm weather during a new moon and not have shit for elk activity during the daytime. I have found in my anecdotal experience, weather plays a much larger role in elk activity during daylight hours than moon phase does. It’s very easy to overthink this, and think the moon plays a much larger role in rutting activity than it really does.
Also, keep in mind the later in September you are, the less likelihood there is that fire activity will affect your hunt. I can tell you last year, fire activity and diminished visibility due to smoke drastically affected the early part of our hunt and it wasn’t until several days into it that we got a low-pressure cold front that moved smoke out to where we could effectively glass.
Also, keep in mind the later in September you are, the less likelihood there is that fire activity will affect your hunt. I can tell you last year, fire activity and diminished visibility due to smoke drastically affected the early part of our hunt and it wasn’t until several days into it that we got a low-pressure cold front that moved smoke out to where we could effectively glass.
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Brian in Montana
Well-known member
The rut trumps the moon phase in every sense. Hunt the beginning to peak of the rut and don't pay any attention to the moon. The moon may effect elk movement way later in the year, but only minimally. Moon phase is super overrated.
Ridge Ghost
Active member
I would agree with this to an extent-particularly when the full moon is earlier in the month, when it's warmer and/or the rut isn't in full swing yet. However, the dates this year fall right into peak-rut time. If there's a hot cow, expect good activity and bugling all day long, regardless of the moon.
It's also worth mentioning that when elk go to bed earlier during a full moon, they will often get antsy and get up to water, feed and mill around earlier than usual. Stick around until noon or 1:00 and the woods may come alive again.
midwesthunter
Well-known member
Well, with deer in the midwest the moon effects the deer pretty good. I see bigger bucks in the dark period of the moon phase, when its a full moon, i see more movement mid day then morning/afternoon.
Cerebral Stalker
Active member
I've never really noticed seeing bigger bucks during the dark period of the moon phase, but I have noticed that when it's a full moon, the deer tend to move at midday.
Tinner2216
Member
One of our worst hunts came with a full moon and hot weather. Not sure if one or the combination was the cause. 3rd and 4th week have been our best action.
