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Barometer Theory
Author: Kevin A. Gardner
In the outdoors, survival is the main objective. Here is how you can gain an edge by using mother nature when she is being harshest.
It’s now late February to early March and we are nearing the end of winter, or are we? It has been sort of a tradition over the last several years that mother nature has thrown us a curve ball just as we thought we were in the clear. March snow storms with great ferocity have not been uncommon in most areas of the country. This is a great opportunity to seize the moment and head outdoors for a sneak preview of next years big game highlights.
The weather this time of year seems to follow no real pattern. This is actually a good thing. Every other day or so we are faced with ever-changing storm fronts and weather systems that force our big game animals to react, counter-instinct, and open great windows of opportunity to you, to locate them with relative consistency. The best indicator of these changes is the drop in barometric pressure. Animals are sensitive to barometric pressure and have learned that it is an indicator of an incoming storm. During these storms the animals are often forced to take cover for several days. This triggers them to feed and bulk up at un-natural times of day to prepare.
When this type of situation occurs the animals, such as deer, will move into feed plots and begin to eat and work their way toward cover. Elk will begin following the migration route from the higher country down into the lower lands where it will take less energy to paw for grasses. Animals become very energy efficient and conservative. They will spend allot more time in sunny areas and migrate shorter distances into cover to save on energy. They will eat whatever gives them the most nutrients with minimal effort.
This is a very good time to know your hunting area and be in position to check out the balance of the local herd and see if that big buck made it through the hunting season. This is also an excellent place to come back to in late April and look for cast antlers. During this time of year most antlered game will be shedding the previous years antlers and starting the new growth. It is important to remember to keep your distance and let them feed undisturbed. This is not the time of year to stress them out by keeping them from a food source and furthering the potential of winter kill.
Familiarizing yourself with the barometric pressure on normal days will better give you a starting point from which to gauge a significant drop in pressure. Watch the pressure level when a storm is predicted and recognize the degree of difference from normal. This has proven to be a valuable tool to me in locating big game consistently as well as keeping my behind out of trouble.
As in all situations safety should be paramount and never sacrificed. It needs to be understood that no scouting trip is worth being stranded far from help and using common sense will surely be the guide that will bring you in at night.
This is an excellent time of year for a hunter to be outdoors and scouting their hunting area. Or, for that matter, a new hunting area. I\’ve found that the best of the best hunters I know can tell me exactly where the animals are all year long because they are out there learning. And also remember that the heels of a storm usually bring a day or so of very cold temperatures which further forces the animals to absorb what thermal heat they can. It will often push them into open fields if the wind is calm. Windy cold days will almost always mean bedded animals and this is a good time to leave them alone.
If you have the opportunity and want to try a different approach to scouting, get your hands on a barometer and run this theory up a tree. I found it will chase and you will too. It could be that extra little edge you need next season.
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