For most areas the first week or so of bow hunting deer season can be fairly warm, depending upon the exact area it could be in the mid to upper 80’s during daylight and only slightly cooler in the evenings.
Bow hunting in the heat just may be something that hunters will need to get used in order not to have to give up on a great part of the early deer season. One of the main things to remember when hunting in hot conditions is that while the whitetail deer definitely does not like overly warm weather either; once they have shed the summer coats they start to become physically prepared fro the colder weather even when the weather stays warm. The more they have to move around the more uncomfortable they are which means whitetail deer will arrange their patterns so they have to move as little as possible; this usually means that the warmer it is the closer to food sources they will bed.
When bow hunting you can take advantage of the fact that the deer will normally bed near a field when the weather is hot and when the mast may be scarce. Just be sure that they have a place to bed that is secure but still far enough away from the stand so that they will not see you coming into the area or when you climb up into the stand.
One other important thing to remember in order to have a successful whitetail deer season is scent control which is even more important in hot weather. While most hunters know enough to wash clothes in an unscented detergent or soda that still may not be enough during warm weather. Most experts in bow hunting suggest spraying yourself with some kind of natural smelling scent and if you are like many people and have an oak stand you can also apply some of the oak cover scent that is available commercially; the two scents together increases your chances of being undetectable to the deer.
One aspect that appears to be difficult for many hunters who get out during the beginning, hot part of deer season is to keep their attitude positive. It is difficult to stay positive when you feel like your drenched and the mosquitoes won’t leave you alone, but keep the positive attitude and it may just be worth your while.
