Moon phase ‘app’ aids deer hunters

Steve Burnette dropped a 160 5/8-inch Caswell County 12-point buck after it checked scrapes around a field on a 52-acre farm.

Some hunters don’t believe moon phases affect deer and fish movements, but with years of experience, deer hunters Jon Tilley and Steve Burnette are convinced the moon influences whitetail ramblings.

“During the rut, I like to hunt during cold weather,” Burnette said. “To me that’s the most important factor because I think it puts on the move. But I definitely don’t like to hunt after a full moon because I think does feed at night. I feel like I’m wasting my time if I hunt after a full moon, but I still do it to get out of the house.”

However, Tilley downloaded a free iPhone application called “Time2Hunt” to his smart phone, and many tests show the app works, he said. Other apps exist for predicting hunting and fishing movements and offering peak feeding times, other hunters’ locations, solunar periods, sunrise data, weather and best stands, but they include a fee.

“Time2Hunt predicts peak deer movement during daylight hours of all moon phases,” he said. “I’ve watched it work for years, and it’s surprisingly accurate. I killed my big buck when there was a “waxing gibbous moon,” a half-moon headed toward full moon.

“When there’s a full moon or new moon I don’t like to hunt. I think it throws off their movements. Of course, it can’t allow for weather. If late November turns out to be in the 70s, the weather plays as much a part in deer movement as the moon phase.”

About Craig Holt 1382 Articles
Craig Holt of Snow Camp has been an outdoor writer for almost 40 years, working for several newspapers, then serving as managing editor for North Carolina Sportsman and South Carolina Sportsman before becoming a full-time free-lancer in 2009.

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