Whats the coldest weather you have hunted in or encountered?

[jmr40]

I've duck hunted here in North Georgia several times when temps were in single digits. Coldest temps I can recall here was -9 during Jan. 1984. My wife and I had just married and the heater in the old house we lived in simply could not keep it above 40-50 inside.

Hottest was last Aug/Sept. I hunted in +100 several days. I coach high school football and it was 114 several days after school. We had to delay practice until the temps dropped below 104.

 

[xring44]

I spent a few winters north of Fairbanks Alaska, -60 was not unsual.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

Went hunting in n.e. fl. about 20 years ago. They said it was about 11 degrees f. All the swamps and ponds were frozen over. I wasn't dressed properly so it was a miserable experience. I should have stayed home and built a nice warm fire. In 1968 I took a bus to Pa. (never again) to go deer hunting. My uncle's family own's a mountain and it was below zero. I had so many layers of clothing on I could hardly move. I saw 1 deer which was a huge doe. She made 2 of our fl. deer. The worst part of it was in D.C. as I had my rifle and tried to check it in while I went to the head, but no one wanted it.

 

[mossberg]

I Am Canadian

All right folks, let me tell you something about cold weather. I've been deer hunting at about -30 degrees celsius and have encountered -55, with the wind chill mind you, but that is still pretty darn cold

 

[koja48]

-35 or more in Montana when i was a kid . . . shot a 6-point bull (after we warmed the ammo in a fire for a half-hour; fortunately, my rifle was lubed with anti-freeze), but the elk didn't fall over 'til a chinook came along in February. Busted into pieces when it did fall, so we packed those out in manageable quantities. Putting it back together entertained the family for weeks . . . best puzzle we ever did. As it warmed, the pieces fused back together. Butchered it with a chain saw in May & didn't have to put the meat in a freezer until the following August. Thank God we didn't hunt when it was REALLY cold (but only because we never could figure out how to thaw-out the cooking fire) . . .

 

[johnmerry]

I do not know how cold it was any of these times but here is the four I remember.
Ten years ago I was out hunting in the winter I my rifle froze up. Could not work the action.
Six years ago I was laying on my side on a cement free stall floor pulling a calf out of a downed Cow, I spend 1 1/2 hours on the cold cement in February trying to get the calves front feet where they where suppose to be. My body was so numb from the cold that I need help in to the house.
Six years ago me and friend were up in the mountains ice fishing in March on a small pond when the temperature dropped so quickly that we thought it was getting warm. Thats when I noticed that my friends face was turning blue. One mad race to the pickup truck. which fortunately we started every hour for 5 minutes so the oil would not stiffen up.
One of the mills I worked in in the winter I set a thermos cup full of hot coffee on the cement floor and when I picked it up five minutes later it was frozen solid, and the thing that really sucked was we had to wear steel toed boot, you want to talk about doing the teamster stomp.
Oh yeah on other think when I worked in the woods me and my cutting pardner worked up some tree length hardwood that a man had given us, the wood was a little south of Shirley Flats it was over cast and snowing a gale the wind was wiping like crazy and it was some bleeping cold out well at noon we shut our saws off fro lunch half a hour later when we went back to work and the saws were frozen up. so we put them in the cab of the truck to thaw out and grabbed two other saws. Such is life in Maine

 

[H&Hhunter]

-35 or more in Montana when i was a kid . . . shot a 6-point bull (after we warmed the ammo in a fire for a half-hour; fortunately, my rifle was lubed with anti-freeze), but the elk didn't fall over 'til a chinook came along in February. Busted into pieces when it did fall, so we packed those out in manageable quantities. Putting it back together entertained the family for weeks . . . best puzzle we ever did. As it warmed, the pieces fused back together. Butchered it with a chain saw in May & didn't have to put the meat in a freezer until the following August. Thank God we didn't hunt when it was REALLY cold (but only because we never could figure out how to thaw-out the cooking fire) . . .

Koja, that reminds of the line in the movie Jerhamia Jhonson when the mountina man tells the young Robert Redford. Something to the effect that the wolves are going to have to breath on you for a week just to thaw you out so they can eat you.

 

[Savage Shooter]

deer hunting last winter at about -10 more with the wind factored in shot a MONSTER DOE it was fielddressed over 200lbs my dad said it was the biggest doe he'd ever seen in his life. We had to drag it about half a mile mostly uphill cause the snow was about 3 feet deep and the fourwheeler was to cold to start. It was a pain but soooo worth it to get the deer.

 

[T.R.]

I've hunted mule deer in -17 weather and have the frostbite scars to prove it. Oh how I hate Dakota Winters!

TR

 

[JShirley]

I've been out in below 0 F weather, but I won't hunt in weather much below freezing. 'Bout the time it hits 20 degrees F or so, it's time to stay inside by the heater!

J

 

[hockeybum]

40 degrees in florida. duck hunting with a leak in my waders so i had water up to my crotch area. oh and it was really, really WINDY!!

EDIT: after reading all the other posts i have realized i am a sissy and need to go hunt somewhere up north in weather at least below 0.

 

[CB900F]

Fella's;

Encountered? In Aberdeen SoDakia in the 50's sixty degrees below zero, but I was very young. Lowest I know for a fact? Negative 56 at the bottom of the Petrotomics pit in the Shirley Basin in Wyoming. Worst with wind chill? One hundred and thirty eight degrees below zero at Hogadon Ski Area, top of Casper Mtn, Casper Wyoming, the absolute temp was -38 and the wind was kickin' up a mite.

900F

 

[coloradokevin]

Whats the coldest weather you have hunted in or encountered?

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Ive hunted in around 4degrees but im in the SE and even that is rare. Usually mid 20s. Ive read where up North places cant get WAY below zero. Just wondering whats the coldest temp you have been out in and is there actual clothing to keep a person warm at like 50below?

I spend a lot of time hiking and climbing, in addition to my other outdoor sports.

While I haven't hunted these temperatures, my wife and I did some winter (January) climbing in the Presedentials a few years ago (Mt Washington).

This mountain is known for being notoriously brutal in winter, and we tent camped on the mountain for two nights. The temperatures fell to below -20F for a significant amount of the time we were up there, and winds were over 50mph during the day (by the standards on Washington, that was just a "light breeze").

As far as staying warm is concerned, you are well served to get down-filled insulation layers. We had down parkas for camp, and expedition down sleeping bags for the nights we spent there (not the cheapie Walmart type -20F bags... ours are made by Western Mountaineering, and there are many other quality manufacturers). If you are staying out overnight in these conditions, I highly recommend a Nalgene bottle full of hot water be placed in your sleeping bag with you before bed. First, it keeps your water from freezing at night, but it also keeps you nice and toasty!

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

You guys are are crazy. If the forecast low is below +15 or 20 deg F, I'm gonna find something else to do that day or weekend. Brrrrrr.

 

[1776 Rebel]

It was 10 above absolute zero on the planet Zedulon. Was hunting for giant quadra legged Quintax. As luck would have it my Nebalod heat suit quit on me and I had to seek shelter in a hurry. That was when the dammed Quintax showed up. One shot of my Vorainian slug gun to the central neuplax put him down but as you know a Quintax has two neuplax. Have you ever tried reloading a slug gun at 10 above? Well it ain't fun. Once I had turned his lights out for good I carved my way inside the carcaus to wait out the storm. Four solar cycles later I crawled out to a balmy 90 above. By that time the wife was looking for me and picked me up for a ride home. Wives...can't live without them...literally !!!

 

[472x1A/B]

The coldest weather i've encountered was at King Salmon Ak. in 1983. The temp was -41 with a wind chill of -78 d. . The coldest I've hunted in was -17 d. at King Salmon Ak. for rabbits and grouse, the second time I was stationed there.

 

[strutnrut1984]

-25 with the wind chill in 2002 2nd day of rifle season in nw pennsylvania. sat from 6 30 am til 2pm when i shot a large doe from my adder stand. my son had killed a nice buck there the opening morning. dressing in layer is the key ans a thermos of hot coffee and 2 snickers bars lol.

 

[IllHunter]

Funny You asked...

I just posted this photo in "Hunting" and it serves here. Upper Penninsula Mi. 1992 (?) -20 but I scored a doe. She was frozen just as I finished gutting. Having the snow makes hauling a lot! easier but sitting even out of the wind makes me shiver just thinking about it.http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=357243

 

[brigadier]

On the original question, I lived in south Alaska (about 2 hours from Anchorage) for 8 years. The worst winter I saw there was a little over 40 below zero. With the right winter gear, the weather wasn't that bad at all.
After those 8 years, we moved to South Lake Tahoe, California and my mother was going on and on about how we are finally away from the freezing weather. In our first year in Tahoe, we had a 50 below zero winter, noticeably colder then anything we every saw in Alaska. LOL.
I am not sure what the actual temperatures were in Alaska when I hunted, but i did hunt and set snares in the Alaskan winter. Again, 50 below zero weather isn't that bad if you have sufficient winter clothing and heating and insulation in your home.
Now, if you ever end up in the water at that temperature, you better get out quickly. I myself jumped in shortly before Christmas and got escorted back to shore by a small iceberg. I was only in the water for 20-30 seconds and by the time I got back to land, I was in pretty bad shape and basically every part of my body that was in the water had gone numb. Fishermen were dieing all the time out there from falling over board and freezing to death in that water.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

IllHunter,

See my earlier post. I bet that's the same year we had 20 below for the opener in Northern WI. It was right around then, '92 or '93. I too, killed a small buck later that day. We hung it up and it froze solid in a matter of a few hours.

 

[aguyindallas]

Coldest weather was about 10 degrees in Junction Texas....damn its cold in a deer stand at 0530 in the winter....

 

[DWARREN123]

Not hunting, in Korea in 1978 we had an artic front come thru and it hit minus 80 for 1 hour. So cold vehilces would not start with 10 weight engine oil and retreads pulled off if the vehiles moved. I was in the field and put on all the clothes I had with me.

 

[Karl Hungus]

Coldest for hunting - +5 degrees during gun deer in WI back when I was a teenager.

Coldest ever - -25 degrees while backcountry skiing in Yellowstone.

 

[cracked butt]

Coldest hunting: around zero. I'd take zero over 40 and raining any day.
Coldest excursion outside: Went to college in central Wisconsin. Over January break we had a week where the daytime highs were in the -40s and all of our vehicles were frozen up. I got a little too jittery after being confined in a house for 3 days so I bundled up and walked 1/2 mile to a gas station to by some smokes- it was around -45 that day with a lot of wind, didn't bother me that much though. I've cross country and downhill ski'd at -20 many times- no big deal, just don't leave any skin exposed for any long period of time.
Coldest spent outside overnight: -10. We spent a wekend clear cutting our lot in the UP early one year so we could get a headstart on construction. I sweat alot, even at 0 degrees I was stripped down to my pants and a t-shirt cutting trees. We cleared away some snow and pitched a tent to sleep in. Unfortunately noone brough air matresses to get us off the ground, most miserable night ever- I'll never do that again.

 

[BackCountry]

-30 with the wind blowing hard was my last hunt at the end of December before the DOW shut down hunting in my county due to the extreme winter. -40's with over 430" of snow this year. Hard on the big game. Called in a bobcat, but couldn't get the shot off before he realized what was up. Gets into the -30's to -40s around here. I usually stay at home when it gets colder than -30. Layer up and hope the sun is out and it is not to bad. I work outside year round, so I guess I get used to the cold.