balmy december

[BowEd]

I can't remember when I've seen misquitos hovering around while hunting in the end of december up here,but it's happening.It's late muzzle loader season.
Been watching deer feed in the corn field.Seeing around a dozen to a half a dozen or so every time out.Bucks are pushing does around occasionally.
I have other hunters on both sides of my property in elevated blinds.I hear an occasional shot once in a while in the distance but not from us yet.
Bow hunting is permitted but pretty sure we are all toting muzzle loaders.
1 more tag to fill for me.It's an antlerless tag.So looking to shoot a big old doe.

[Morgan]

Same down here. Be nearly 80° today and mid 70’s tomorrow. Sure strange for late December in eastern Oklahoma. 70° days are fairly regular here off and on in December, but this one has felt more like late March than December. I don’t hate it one bit.

[BowEd]

Season runs till the 10th of january here in Iowa.I'm letting 2 out of state hunters from Wisconsin park their pickup on my yard to get to their platform blind across the fence from a shorter distance.Nice fellas.Sure hope they get a shot.I can't tell them their business but I would of put their platform blind in a different spot.
They have to watch deer in my cornfield on my side of the fence and let them go.Hard rules but I make them stick to the law.
They have to buy a license,habitat fee,& then their tag.
Total for deer for them buck or doe is $644.00
For turkey it's $265.00.
That's not counting their cost of their platform kits they bought.Conservatively it probably costs them $2000.00 per person not knowing what the land owner charges them also.All because of the reputation this area has for harboring large bucks.
Being a resident landowner my fee for an extra late muzzle loader antlerless tag is $15.00 because I used up my cheap $2.00 bow tags.No cost for hunting license or habitat fee.
Quite a difference.Who REALLY gets rich from these hunting seasons?
Land leasing by outfitters for hunting in this area is in the area of $30.00/acre.Demographically that can be different too.

[gifford]

Down here in KC, the record high for this date was 66 degrees and it occurred 66 years ago. Well, it is 72 degrees at our local weather station. So new record high. The record low for KC on Christmas Eve was -18 degrees, set in 1983.

[Pat B]

49 degrees here on Christmas morning here. I think this will be one of our warmest Christmases on record. Hope Santa packed his Bermuda shorts, Hawaiian shirts and flip flops. 

[PaSteve]

Mornings here have been pretty normal weather wise but daytime highs have been in the lower 50's. A little warm for December. Tomorrow starts our extended bow and flintlock season. Unfortunately, I won't be out for either. My girlfriend and I both got covid for Christmas. Hopefully, I'll make it out before season closes.
     Good on you Ed for allowing those out of state hunters to park on your property. Hope you get a chance at a big Iowa doe.

[BowEd]

When the outfitter who had deer hunting control of over 2000 acres 1/2 mile to the north of me,I used to get people lost on my yard every year from Alabama and Florida looking for his bunk house.Pulled a couple out of from being stuck in the snow with their truck too.
It's good deer meat seasoning weather here right now.Into the 40's in the day and 20's at night.

[mmattockx]

If anybody wants to trade some of their warm temps, I'm in. It's currently -28C (-18F) here with a breeze and heading down to overnight lows of -40C/F for the next few nights. Global warming my ass...


Mark

[Pappy]

Ya it’s 75 here , I think we are supposed to set a record for high here today, high 60’s next few days then rain and back in a The freezer late next week, I like colder weather but can take either, just wished it would make up its mind . Good luck Ed. We got till the 2nd of January then 5 day land owner hunt, doe only. Then 2 day youth hunt and it’s over for another year, I am going to give it a go weather permitting but OK either way, freezer is full so that’s all that really matters even though I like being out there after them. Pappy

[Hawkdancer]

We have a week left for muzzleloader, then 15 days late firearm, season choice antler less only.  Statewide archery funds until 31 Dec.  There has been too much wind, warm weather and a bothersome knee, not to mention car troubles that make me Leary about driving very far.  Resident tags are reasonable under $90. 
Hawkdancer

[BowEd]

It'll eventually get closer to wintertime temps here later into january/february.Single digits at night and teens in the day.Once a body gets used to the cold it's easier to live with at least for me.
One good thing at least for Robin anyway about -10 F. or more temps is that it sets those wood ticks back a bit.I hav'nt skinned a deer here in the fall and winter with an excessive amount of ticks or any at all yet.
I've heard of some complaints about that in states where it stays warmer throughout the winter.
Been passing on a few deer here.Eventually I'll take the smoke pole shot.Good thing about using a gun is that you don't need as much room to shoot.Made a natural blind in a large brush pile in a small wash made up of osage limbs scrapped out from harvesting posts along a fence line.Nice blind in that it never rots away and can be used for years and years.

[Don W]

It's been on the warm side here but nothing extreme. It rained all Xmas day but hovered slightly above freezing. Had it been snow, it would have been some work!

I didn't hunt the late season. My freezer is full and I spend the time cutting some firewood for the neighbors that let hint Thier farm.

I do remember warmer hunting seasons. This one seems warmer, but cold enough to feel like winter.

[BowEd]

I got this muzzle loader tag in case I did'nt fullfill my tags with the self bow.As luck would have it I did fill my 3 bow tags with 200 pounds of deer meat.An extra 50 to 60 pounds won't hurt.We will eat it and I know an elderly couple that would like a good 15-20 pounds of smoked summer sausge too.
We have to have 2 larger freezers and can goods/dehydrated items in the cupboards to sustain throughout the year.A 14 cubic foot chest and a 5 cubic foot chest one.Plus the freezer compartment in the frig.All the food with no artificial preservatives/flavorings or processing with chemicals.I believe many people are sick because they don't have a good gut.
It blew pretty hard yesterday sitting.Had a big old gobbler come to within 5 yards of my brush blind down wind yesterday evening.I don't like firing a gun off in a future deer hunting site.They can't seem to smell like deer can...ha ha.Could of whacked him with a stick.If he does that again which I doubt,after I fill the muzzle loader deer tag he'll be in the freezer too.His season runs till the 10th of january.

[BowEd]

All in all I love living in Iowa and it's 4 seasons with temperatures ranging from-30 F air tenp. to 100 F.There's a challenge to every season.Old man winter has blew in at the moment with a gift of 10" of snow/0 F. air temp.and 30 mph winds which puts wind chill factors down to -30 F.

[Morgan]

We didn’t get the snow, but went from near 80 during Christmas to single digits last couple nights with wind chills in the sub zero range. Little bit of ice and snow but just a very little. Hard to acclimate when it bounces around like that.