The beautiful Fall colors are changing and the rollercoaster of serious bowhunting weekly Midwest weather forecasts has begun! I personally love this time of year because the level of strategy that can be applied to the hunt becomes elevated with each passing day. I only hunt when the weather tells me to hunt and since the early 90s that focus and committment has paid off over and over again. This practice isn't a game, gimmick or hoax. The practice of hunting by the weather forecast has proven to be highly reliable and I have built my career and passion for hunting whitetails on it.
Like during the last several years, I am committed towards bringing to you the most ideal days to be in the woods (green). I will also highlight days to avoid (red). However, your hunting success will hinge on much more than just a highlighted weather map. Instead I urge you to search the 100s of whitetail strategy articles on my site, as well as our WHS videos. Also, the Midwest Weekly Whitetail forecasts are designed to help you determine your own level of success, by offering you the potential deer success details that each forecast is created for. Afterall, Although I can't create a forecast for every area of the country, I can create examples of which details to look for within your own weather forecast. Whether you are located in the Midwest or anywhere else a whitetail roams, the weather ingredients for bringing whitetails to their feet are the same.
Mid-October Important Whitetail Weather Details
The above weather forecast for the week of October 10th, is pulled from AccuWeather for the SW WI region. For locations closer to MI and OH the weather patterns will be roughly 12-24 hours later than indicated and for areas of MN and West, the patterns shown will 12-24 hours earlier than shown. However, there are several key whitetail weather forecast details that you can apply to your own hunting grounds, regardless of the timing of the front:
1. 19 Degree temp drop from Tuesday to Wednesday
We can almost stop right there because that same drop swept through the area last weekend and it resulted in many Booners on the ground. When you see double digit drops you need to take advantage of them, but when you see drops of close to 20 degrees or more you can't miss out!
2. The potential for heavy rain
Heavy rain during the front, followed by rising barometric pressure and a calm evening can be one of the best days in October to be in the woods. The high wind forecast combined with rain will keep deer off of their feet and ready to put the feed bag on when the conditions clear. If the winds sufficiently die prior to dark, with clear skies and temperatures nearly 20 degrees cooler than the day before; make sure to find a seat in your favorite stand.
3. Thursday looks like a hot, cool all-around day!
The best combination of sits would be to find a food source near bedding on Wednesday night (if your forecast is similar), a food to bedding transition area for a Thursday morning sit and a different food source movement stand for Thursday evening. For my personal sits this week, I will hunt during those 3 opportunities and then wait for the next cold front next week, which looks to be shaping up for around the 18th through the 20th.
4. Know when to take a seat (on the couch)
While there are 2-3 potentially great days within the 2 week forecast, there are several poor days (red) and few average days (orange). Something very important to note is that you will not experience even close to the value of a great day if you burn your land and stands out on a poor or average day. With solid Pre-rut action taking place within 10 days to 2 weeks in many locations, hunters can not afford to risk sitting bad days if they have great days that they can take advantage of. How do you kill mature bucks? By knowing when to sit on the couch.
Conclusion
We typically do not get 2 great cold fronts within a week, but this week's temp drop is another golden opportunity to find a mature buck on his feet during what some folks refer to as the &October Lull&. Would you like to find a way to find success during the dreaded lull? Then make sure to hunt this front this week, if you possibly can.
