Preparing for Hot Weather Deer Hunts

I hear it all the time from Southern hunters.

“I’d bowhunt, but it’s so hot!”

And they are correct. Toss in the occasional thunderstorm and Amazonian herds of mosquitoes, and yes, comfort in September and early October woods can be right scarce – to speak nothing of the August deer seasons now established in Florida and long recognized in the souls of South Carolina rifle hunters. Plus, most southern states have seasons that last nearly six months – why waste time sweating and swatting when the weather will be more accommodating come November?

Still, deer hunting these months is not a lost cause. In many regions of the South, with its varied and often irregular rut dates and durations, this time of the year is excellent for hanging trophy antlers on the wall.

A lot of press goes into how to scout deer and how to shoot deer, but let’s explore the things we must consider in order to simmer silently and comfortably on a stand ready to whack a big buck as it slinks from the swamps to feed in the heat and humidity of late summer and early autumn.

Dress Smarter

Ditch the cotton. Lose the $12 Wal-Mart camo T-Shirt. Purge the Hanes socks and tighty-whities. If you’ve ever read about mountain climbing or alpine hunting, you may have noticed the mantra, “cotton kills.” Cotton absorbs moisture. In cooler climates this can lead to hypothermia. In warmer temps, overheating.

Perspiration is the body’s means for self-cooling. As that cotton T-shirt soaks in sweat, it traps against the body keeping you hot. Also, it gets heavier. I’m not saying you’ll pass out like a July football player, but you’ll be far more uncomfortable than if you’d switched up fabrics.

The best outfit I’ve tried is Under Armor Hot Weather gear. While not exactly flattering for this beer-bellied physique, these tight-fitting garments excel at keeping the natural self-cooling system humming by rapidly pulling sweat from your skin outwards. As a result, the slightest tickle of wind feels like a cold compress on your chest. Though they can be pricy, these outfits unquestionably work.

So, what else do I don to complete this ensemble? How does a pair of board shorts grab you? Bathing suits are lightweight, and most have plenty of pockets to store flashlights, wallets, keys, tracking tape and whatever else, allowing you to ditch that heavy backpack or fanny pack. Some board shorts even come in pretty floral patterns that’d be excellent if your stand was in the middle of a hibiscus hedge. So, I top these layers with a lightweight, Mossy Oak screen ghillie suit of some sort. Bug Tamers are fine, too. Rubber boots with polypropylene socks complete the hoofwear.

Scent Control

Really, in these conditions there’s not much you can do to eliminate odor. Your best strategy, as always, is playing the wind. We could get into all kinds of different theories about hunting high from stands or low from blinds, but the fact is, it is hot this time of the year; you are going to sweat, smell and leave smell. But, you can reduce some of this impact.

One, only wear your hunting clothes when you are hunting. Not when opening gates or jacking around camp waiting for the gates to open. Not when you take your midday siesta or visit the local Greasy Spoon for lunch. Don’t let it collect all that foreign smell. Keep your clothes fresh and clean for the walk into the woods. Some people go a step further and won’t dress until arriving at their stand, but I prefer to keep deer hunting a passion or pastime, not a neurotic breakdown.

Two, buy and use scent control products. Again, they aren’t perfect but they help - undoubtedly so, in my mind. When you return to camp from the field, hang everything you hunt in from a branch or someplace in the wind and give it a good rinse with scent killer, especially around the collars, armpits and crotch areas of your outfits. If you ever pass a Dodge on a WMA with hunting gear strewn through the brush like you’d see after a Topeka tornado, odds are I’m close by.

Also, look for my solar shower, speaking of neurotic breakdowns. Yes, I’ve been known to bring a shower, towels, scentless soap and shampoo for a rinse before I return for the evening sit. Finish this off with a dash of scentless deodorant.

Scent suits are an obvious, easier solution, and I do believe they work for at least a period of time, but mine is unmercifully heavy in temps over 70 degrees. Since I acquired mine, new designs have become available that supposedly are more comfortable in warmer climates. And they are expensive.

Controlling your scent during warm spells is not just important for sitting in the stand, it's also crucial for keeping your hunting area fresh. Deer will identify when a smelly hunter has been crusing their turf. Bet on it.

Bug Control

Possibly the most aggravating aspect of deer hunting in warm weather is the mosquitoes - solving their pestilence is often subject of debate and anecdote. Not sure if I’ve told this story before, but once when I was younger and Bug Tamers and Therma-Cells were yet undeveloped technology, I was so frustrated by a swarm of Manatee County bloodsuckers that I took a can of aerosol OFF!, a lighter and blow-torched the flock (getting all this kids?). Obviously this did nothing to help me kill a deer, but it was gratifying.

These days I’m using a Therma-Cell. Others gripe, believing the “scentless” repellant will alert deer. My answer is to hunt a stand where wind direction is not going to be a problem. Slapping and cursing at skeeters is going to do as much to wake up the woods as anything. In the eight years since I’ve employed this device, I’ve arrowed several deer and been approached archery close by hogs, coyotes, and a black bear - some of the best noses in the woods. I’ve just not seen any evidence that it spooks deer, provided you are hunting the wind properly.

OFF! and other DEET-based products work, but stink to high heaven, and do nothing to deter the incessant buzzing around your eyes and ears. Bug Tamers will also prevent welts and encephalitis, but you’ll have this same problem, not to mention rows of mosquitoes sitting along your arms like dove on a powerline. Inevitably, a few will creep up your facemask which is just shy of waterboarding, in my opinion.

Hot and buggy may not be your ideal image of deer hunting, but early Fall is a fantastic time to kill a deer. Until you hoist that new stand complete with A/C and fridge for cold drinks, this is about the best you can do.

Father's Day Gifts for the Hunting Dad

I loathe wearing ties. You know that scene in Casino Royale when the villain straps a naked James Bond to a seat-less chair and proceeds to whack him in the undercarriage with a rope that would normally be used to secure an ocean liner to a dock?

I’d endure a session of that a year if it meant I didn’t have to Windsor another knot around my neck.

I only bring this up because Father’s Day is a few days away, and ties have become the unofficial mascot of this holiday. For some reason, well-intending wives and offspring continue to think it would be a grand gesture to gift Good Ol’ Dad another reminder that he has a spiffy Power Point presentation on the effects of halogen lighting on employee productivity on Monday.

It’s a noose that isn’t fit for me. Before marriage I had two ties. Only one of them was a clip-on. Since then I’ve accumulated quite the collection - two more and I’ll have enough rayon and polyester strips to lash together to fashion a tether to haul my bow up and down from the treestand.

In the world of hunting, there are too many cool gadgets out there to be trifled with bogus gifts like neckwear. For the purpose of this post, I’ve created a list of awesome gear that will thoroughly excite the modern hunting dad. Men, print it out and post it on your fridge.

Covert Scouting Camera – I have used the DLC Covert Cam since last September and been very, very pleased. The kit is lightweight and compact. Unlike your standard issue trail camera, the unit saves space by housing all it’s adjustments in a remote control. So instead of dials and buttons to adjust the settings, you plug the control into the camera, make your selections and let it ride.

The battery life is outstanding, especially when using the infrared feature for night-time pictures. My first set of batteries lasted three months – it would have lasted longer had I realized that the camera ceased snapping pictures after 15 shots because of a bad digital card and not spent juice. So I can’t say how much longer they’d lasted, though the second set is rolling strong.

I don’t care for the flimsy plastic lid over the battery case - broke that in a hurry. Also, the digital card ejector was ruined pretty easily. Have to take the needlenose with me to extract it – but you can plug a USB cable into the camera and into any number of picture viewers. (There are newer models that have a viewer built-in.)

Therma-Cell – Kids, if your dad doesn’t own a Therma-Cell yet, I’d go ahead and purchase a couple sessions with a shrink just to examine his faculties.

Therma-Cell changed my hunting life, and I assume it has done the same for countless other hunters. One, it is invaluable turkey hunting. Two, it has its place in the early season teal and wood duck phases when awaiting shooting light in those nasty marshes these birds typically inhabit. Three, I love it bowhunting for deer in September and October. Yes, it releases scent but not nearly as much as OFF! or other such DEET-based products. And while bug suits will keep the skeeters from getting breakfast, the swatting of swarms away from your ear and out from under a facemask does nothing to attract deer.

There are mornings I’d rather not hunt than enter the woods without my Therma-Cell.

Under Armour – Whatever the purpose, Under Armour gear works. Their warm-weather shirts and pants wick sweat away effectively. When a breeze blows, it feels like a cool compress is placed on your chest. Likewise, their cold weather gear is far less cumbersome than most thermal gear and will keep you toasty in waders or in the stand.

Sure, Pops may not be in the shape he once was and Mom may chuckle seeing him in it, but Under Armour gear will prove its worth in the woods when fewer people are around to mock him.

NIKON D3100 – For my 30th birthday, my mother bought me one of the beefier models of the Nikon Coolpix line. It was portable and had all kinds of neat settings. Just one problem – it took horrible, horrible pictures. I wanted to smash it after my trip to Montana where a decent camera is required. Actually, the thought of smashing it still warms my heart.

Well, Mamma tried. To their credit, Nikon was excellent about refunding the money. And I’ve long been a fan of Nikon products. So I put the cash into a D3100. And for my photojournalistic needs it has paid dividends.

It’s a little bulkier than I’d prefer for a daypack, but the picture quality is admirable. I like the 18mm objective lens for taking wide-angle, close-up shots that captures the details of harvested game and grip-and-grin hero photos. The 55mm end of the spectrum is a little lame for far-off shots; however, I take far more close-ups than anything. It’s your preference, and Nikon has a selection of other lenses. The price is a tad prohibitive – especially if you’re raiding a piggy bank – but it’s worth it for that buck-of-a-lifetime.

165 Quart Maxcold Igloo Cooler – I’ve long been a fan of so-called coffin coolers for hunting. One, it can carry to camp all your food and perishables and items that won’t be making the return trip. On the way back, it can carry up to 3 whole, dressed deer.

This cooler is the cat’s meow. I dropped two dressed hogs into it last March, and hauled them both whole to the processor, wasting no meat. The hinges are reinforced. And the top arches if you need that extra room for antlers and caped game.

In all fairness, I’ve not yet loaded mine down with drinks and ice to see how long it will keep. And like most coolers I’ve run across that have hatches in the lid, it leaks rain, but it is versatile and I'm rather pleased.

Coolers may not be that exciting to the kids, but they are of great value when you find a durable one.

This is but a rudimentary list of items that I’ve tried and would recommend. We could add many more, but let’s face it – it’s Father’s Day, not Christmas.

As a father-to-be of twins this fall, I’m naturally scared of the future – of my children following in their mother’s formal, socially-responsible sensibilities and the forth-coming collections of ties and homemade crafts.

It may be too late for me. Hopefully, though, this list may inspire the loved ones in your life think a little harder and reach a little deeper in their wallets and piggy banks to show you they like you.

(And if you buy any camo-clad items, make it Mossy Oak!)