Hunting in the snow

Snowy cold weather certainly has its challenges....low temps, crunchy surfaces, and windy conditions. Overall the beautiful contrasts and ability to pick out minute movements makes it special.

Gotta bundle up when you head out in the Jeep for snow hunting.
we had a Bobcat run across an old logging road in front of us a few weeks ago

22250Rem said:

Just discovered this thread tonight. After sitting in the snowy woods for 5 hours this afternoon way up on a big hill in the Finger Lakes region. What a coincidence. Didn't see any deer but it's normally a great area, and my buddy shot a small buck up there last Saturday, ( He too, saw nothing today). Still enjoyed myself up there with the peace & quiet & solitude. Was also the first time I've had the Mosin Nagant out hunting. Over the summer it got a no gunsmithing mount for a scout scope I wasn't using and I worked up a nice handload that propels a .311" 150 gr. Privi SP to an average 2738 FPS. Was looking for a deer to test it out on as its already proven accurate and that 2.5x scout scope sure helps accuracy vs. irons. Wanted a picture of it with a freshly harvested deer in the snow but settled for this one of it leaning against the tree I was sitting at all afternoon. It was also my first time hunting in the snow since last season.....View attachment 960080.Last Saturday, pre-snow, the woods looked like this with the .30-30..View attachment 960082.. ( Sorry; no deer pix yet ).

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Very cool for you to hunt with the 91/30. It's great to take classic rifles out, and use them. I never have with mine, but have with my 7.65 Mausers, my SMLE's (got more than a few deer with a SMLE) the Arisaka, (a boatload with the old 7.7) and my 03A3 Springfield. Have hunted cougar with my M95 Styer, but never shot one with it. I've had very good luck with the Hornady bullets in my .310-312" bore rifles. I'm especially fond of the 180 grain Round Noses, but back in the day used the 150's, and they worked great as long as I kept the muzzle velocity under 2800fps. 2738 is probably ideal, and I believe that most .310-312" bullets are designed for a 2700fps MV.

South Prairie Jim said:

View attachment 960096 Gotta bundle up when you head out in the Jeep for snow hunting.
we had a Bobcat run across an old logging road in front of us a few weeks ago

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Here's how I bundle up for snow. Sometimes I take a carbine and my snow shoes, in hopes of cutting some fresh cougar tracks. So far, hope is all it's been.

Lofts I just gotback from PA hunt. I am 5 miles from Dottie Lous.Been hunting in Lawton for 20 years.

Today was of of those treasured days that rarely come.....beautiful overnight snow.

We just got some snow like that, but all our hunting seasons closed last Tuesday. Cougar is still open until March, but driving up North on the icy roads kind of dampens my enthusiasm. Sure is purty though, might go for some hikes close to home on the State Land. Without people hunting, I have thousands of acres all to myself. Never see another soul.

Indubitably.....

-29 F we rode before dawn and caught 5 decently fat Cow Caribou today, hunting with the daughters boyfriend Sky and 2 hours of day light.
We needed the trap bait, meats and a few skins, so were stoked.

Have not hunted deer in the snow, but some of my fondest memories as aa kid are of hunting rabbits, squirrels, and quail in the snow with a .22 or 410. Sometimes getting so many rabbits that carrying them was not easy for a skinny 10-12 yr old. In those days (around 1958) NE Kansas was heavily populated with rabbits and quail. The squirrels are still abundant but the rabbits and quail are all but gone. But, my memories are still vivid.

Last night we finally got snow like in Rembrandt's photos. Just a few days left of muzzleloader, but I've mentally concluded my hunting season. Between my daughter and I we got 4 deer this year which is enough for us, so I can't muster much enthusiasm to gather all the gear and go for a hunt in the snow.

We left Upstate New York Tuesday morning, look what they got today.










This what we have been getting there before we left to come back to Washington State.

Ks5shooter said:

Lofts I just gotback from PA hunt. I am 5 miles from Dottie Lous.Been hunting in Lawton for 20 years.

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I like the woods down around Lawton, Stevensville, Laraysville.
I use to buy cheese at the Laraysville Cheese Factory. To bad they went out of business.
My ex-brother inlaws use to live close by Dottie lou's Meats. I use to hunt New York and Pa. We killed a bunch of deer in both states.

Interesting pictures from that snow storm. We missed the worst of it by being too far north, as the major snow was all south & east of here. I'm west of Rochester up along lake Ontario and we only got a few inches. Gun season's over for me but open for muzzle loaders until 12/22, except I don't own one, (yet). The deer around here all seem to still be mostly in nocturnal mode according to the trail cam pix I'm getting. Was out on my friends property this afternoon swapping SD cards on a couple trail cams. Pop-up blind and one of the "silent sentinels" Pretty easy winter so far.

Highland Lofts said:

I like the woods down around Lawton, Stevensville, Laraysville.
I use to buy cheese at the Laraysville Cheese Factory. To bad they went out of business.
My ex-brother inlaws use to live close by Dottie lou's Meats. I use to hunt New York and Pa. We killed a bunch of deer in both states.

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Cheese factory will be missed. Honey store is still open and Dotti-lous has the best hamhocks and kielbasa.

Back in the day I use to hunt with my three brothers, my two sons and my brother Jim's son.
We hunted the Souther Tier of New York and Susquahana & Bradford counties of Pennsylvania.
Back then you could only get one doe tag a piece.
Generally we all had doe tags so between al of us we cleaned up on the deer.
We would take fifty to seventy'five pounds of venison down to Dottie Louxs to get stuff made.
Venison Sticks, Salami, Summer Sausage, Kilbasa and alwas had a hind quarter smoked.
We would split the returned meet up between us and gave some away down to the old people at the retirement appartments where our mother lived.
Great memories.

22250Rem said:

Interesting pictures from that snow storm. We missed the worst of it by being too far north, as the major snow was all south & east of here. I'm west of Rochester up along lake Ontario and we only got a few inches. Gun season's over for me but open for muzzle loaders until 12/22, except I don't own one, (yet). The deer around here all seem to still be mostly in nocturnal mode according to the trail cam pix I'm getting. Was out on my friends property this afternoon swapping SD cards on a couple trail cams. Pop-up blind View attachment 963456 and one of the "silent sentinels" View attachment 963457 Pretty easy winter so far.

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I'm in binghamton and news said we got 42" from this storm. I was stuck, in fact my murano is still in a parking lot with the entrance buried in snow. I did manage to use my snow blower to clean half of my street as well as the neighbors driveway and the other parking lot that my wife's Santa Fe is parked in. I would have preferred to be hunting with my muzzle loader.

H&Hhunter said:

Big cow in late season taken in Western Colorado.
View attachment 963487

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That is a hefty cow. At first glance, thought you had shot a horse. !!!

22250Rem said:

Interesting pictures from that snow storm. We missed the worst of it by being too far north, as the major snow was all south & east of here. I'm west of Rochester up along lake Ontario and we only got a few inches. Gun season's over for me but open for muzzle loaders until 12/22, except I don't own one, (yet). The deer around here all seem to still be mostly in nocturnal mode according to the trail cam pix I'm getting. Was out on my friends property this afternoon swapping SD cards on a couple trail cams. Pop-up blind View attachment 963456 and one of the "silent sentinels" View attachment 963457 Pretty easy winter so far.

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Do you have a crossbow? That’s legal during ML as well.

caribou said:

Indubitably.....

-29 F we rode before dawn and caught 5 decently fat Cow Caribou today, hunting with the daughters boyfriend Sky and 2 hours of day light.
We needed the trap bait, meats and a few skins, so were stoked.
View attachment 962166

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At -29 if you wait to long it makes taking the hide off a lot harder when it starts to get froze.
What is the average hanging weight on the caribou?
Back in New York the whitetails average 120 pounds hanging weght. I have shot a few close to 200 pounds hanging weight.

Ugly Sauce said:

That is a hefty cow. At first glance, thought you had shot a horse. !!!

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When I seen the pictue of that cow I also thought it was a horse.

caribou said:

Indubitably.....

-29 F we rode before dawn and caught 5 decently fat Cow Caribou today, hunting with the daughters boyfriend Sky and 2 hours of day light.
We needed the trap bait, meats and a few skins, so were stoked.
View attachment 962166

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Heck of a big walk-in-freezer. Or would it be a walk-out freezer? Must need a diesel to run the compressor, to keep it at -29. Just saying. What did you shoot them Caribou with?

My school buddy came out to Nebraska to hunt with me a few years ago,and got his buck opening day. We headed out a day later to find me one,and got hit by a big snow storm. We were walking in the Sandhills,and many times couldn’t see fifty yards. I wound up taking a nice seven year old buck,and we were really glad we had snow to help drag him out,as we were about three miles from the truck. In open county,like much of the West,the deer can’t hide as well when everything’s white.

Highland Lofts said:

At -29 if you wait to long it makes taking the hide off a lot harder when it starts to get froze.
What is the average hanging weight on the caribou?
Back in New York the whitetails average 120 pounds hanging weight. I have shot a few close to 200 pounds hanging weight

When I seen the picture of that cow I also thought it was a horse.

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We get about 130 average for Cows, ones with no calf can be 150 and VERY fat.....160-200 for Bulls in Winter, who tend to be pretty skinny after rut and sorta stay skinny all winter.
Pre rut Bulls are up to 250 lbs of fat and meat, and are most desirable.
We didnt catch alot of fall Bulls this year, only 5 and we were almost out of fresh meats, so this isnt our usual doings with so little light, trapping and visiting around is most of what would happen in a normal year.
We eat at least one a week.
Its nice the Caribou have come to us, as they do, and hopefully stick around all winter.

Ugly Sauce said:

Heck of a big walk-in-freezer. Or would it be a walk-out freezer? Must need a diesel to run the compressor, to keep it at -29. Just saying. What did you shoot them Caribou with?

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I use a Honda 2200 generator, and a gallon of gas lasts about 8-10 hours. We bring our chainsaw and generator into the shack for awhile to warm them, then start them.
The generator runs a drop light, small power tools, like a drill, jig saw, 1x30 belt sander, charges boat batteries, runs my sat dish internet and fits in a box on the sled the dish is bolted to.
The back of the sled has a box that holds 20 gallons of gas in 4 jerry jugs, enough for a month or more internet/outside lights or inside lights if we take the light inside.
In summer, I can tap my Honda 15 hrs outboard in idle to a converter and plug in at riverside.
Its way faster and cheaper internet than we have ever had in this village, Ill tell ya.

I used an M1A, while Sky carried an SKS.

Howland937 said:

I've walked up on deer that were bedded in snow a couple of times. They were covered with snow and allowed me to walk to within 5 feet of them. I

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At the first snow of the year, virtually nothing moves. Birds, deer, rabbits. Nothing on the first day.

I assume you were wearing snow camo. If you don’t have snow camo, you should. It’s amazing but with white camo in snow you can usually walk quite close to bedded deer. Need to have your face covered too

Snow is a huge advantage. Deer can’t see you and you can see them

Those Honda 2200's are good little generators. I hooked a Chrysler small block to a big powerhead to run our house on, we have periodic power outages. Not sure how long it will run on 20 gallons, but it does pretty good as it only has to loaf along at 1,000rpm to turn the power head at 3000rpm. That's just a fast idle for that engine. We can live quite comfortably on kerosene lamps and candles, and our wood stove, but the big generator will run the well pump so that we don't have to go find water and haul it home. For just lights and internet, I just plug the little guy (the 2200) into the house. Just run the big guy for short periods of time to fill the water tanks, flush the toilets, and do the dishes.

The M1A must work good in extreme cold. That's good. Not surprised that a SKS would. I have a M1, which as far as I know works well in extreme cold, as long as you keep it clean of grease and oil.