Hunting Poor Conditions Question

[imchestnut]

I have a question for most of you on hunting poor conditions. In Idaho right now, we don't have hardly any snow on the south facing slopes. I can find a track but the lion will always walk over hundreds of yards of open sage with no snow at all before it hits a north slope with snow. We do this same routine over and over again. I can walk in and find the track again (sometimes) on the north slopes only to loose it on the south facing stuff again. My dogs (and I only have one that has seen more than one or two lions, most of them are more bear dogs) don't seem to be able/want to trail a lion over that much open country. Is that atypical or do alot of you guys run into the same situation?

[sheimer]

I'm no professional but I'd say its not unusual for dogs just getting started. I also believe that if the track is made in the same conditions as your running it in, your dogs should be able to move it, within reason. If the track was made at 15 degrees and its up to 45 or 50 when your trying to run it, it is going to be coniderably harder for the dogs. Good luck and keep at it.

Scott

[catdogs]

Scott has it right, shouldn't matter if the track goes from snow to dirt it should be runnable, what will kill you faster than anything is the temperature change, not that its going to dirt. Gotta get through those south slopes early before the sun hits them..JMO

[dhostetler]

I have found for myself running in poor conditions that temperature change isn't as big a factor to run from snow to bare ground if it stays below freezing but once the temperature warms to above freezing it gets very tough.

Yesterday I turned on a track at 11:30 with tempertature in the upper 20s in an inch of snow. Unforturnately I turned on the bad end and ran the dumb end 8 miles below the road. Soon after I turned loose the south wind picked up and the temperature climbed to the mid 30s and a light rain started falling. The last 2 miles under the road they had a very tough time with it once they crossed the road and got on a south slope with no snow they managed to move it better. Finally at 8:30 PM they treed it after running it for 16.5 miles,

My theory is running bare ground is easier then running wet nasty snow under dripping trees.