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Bowhunting in the rain?

woodsdog2 said:
I bought some last year and didn't need to use it, but what is the shelf life of the activator and would you then just mix it up ahead of time? My take on it was that you kind of waited until you needed it but maybe I wasn't paying attention.
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You mix it when you need it. I read that a mixed batch will last a month or so but there is no need to pre mix. Mix it about a half hour before you start trailing.
Shelf life of the activator tablet...Jerry Allen (the guy who sells the stuff) told me it expires in 3 to 5 years but like anything else, it depends on how it is stored. Store in a cool place not on your dashboard.
If you squeeze the foil pouch for the activator and its no longer a hard tablet, then it has expired. 8 ounces of fresh hydrogen peroxide can be substituted for an expired tablet. We experimented with peroxide last year and it worked but we got better results if we mixed double luminol tablets per batch.

Luminol is not a substitute for sound blood trailing skills but it will allow trailing during or after a hard rain.
And as good as luminol is, it obviously can't find blood that is not present. It won't help find a critter if a wound isn't bleeding.
The sole reason I own it is for a rain event after a hit.
Some guys wont hunt in the rain, but what if its border line as to whether it will rain? Or if some other factor delays us from tracking and it does rain before we can return?
Luminol is not a last resort but I would call it a second to last resort. Last resort is a grid search...they suck, and I hate doing them.
Hopefully, you will never need luminol, but what if?? Everyone should have some in their kit just in case.


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woodsdog2 said:
I know it goes against the ambush method of hunting deer but when I first started bowhunting I didn't have the money to buy a treestand after getting outfitted for my bow and arrows etc at 14 years old. So I cut my bowhunting teeth on still hunting for deer. I was blessed to have an enduro run through my families farm ( and several other farms and landowners properties) in September and they would have like over 150 to 250 bikes go through the area providing what? A great and quiet walking trail through some great bedding areas. Everyone says sit during the rut and I do that now more than not but back when I was poor and eager, I would get completely cammied up, I used burnt cork for "face paint" and my Great Aunt had died and she left me a pair of opera glasses (which were like only 1x or 2x mini binoculars). I waited until the wind was blowing in my face on the north-south trail and when I got to an area where I knew they liked to bed or I could even smell them, the hunting was fun and fast. There was nothing better walking through there after it rained all night and then a cold front would come in and the snow flakes would start, the bucks would run like crazy right on by paying me no attention. I missed so many deer but man that was a blast. Earlier in the season because you kept the wind to your face, if you missed the first time they would spook but there was a road about 150 yards to the east and an open pipeline and then more open fields to the west and they liked to just loop down into heavier cover. So I would back off about 75 yards or so and loop down to the east and go slow and they would run right into me again (mostly does during the early season though). So yeah, boy that took me back.
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Do you mind sharing location state or town? I just rode in an enduro race like this for the first time and it was pretty wild. Can’t believe they get that many land owners on board. The one I did was in Ohio the lumber jack 100. Was 300 bikes and is one of the harder things I’ve completed in my life.


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I sat out the morning sit of the WI opener because of the all morning rain and the washed out blood trail concern. I’m expecting it to let up early afternoon so I plan to be out for the evening sit. My “perfect” setup for one spot is an all night rain that stops around 4 am as the deer tend to come back to bed a little later in that situation.

I don’t hesitate sitting in a light drizzle situation or a scattered showers situation.
 
Currently sitting in the rain. It wasn't forecasted. I expect them to move when it stops, but it sucks for me. Should've worn my hoodie...
 
Allegheny Tom said:
The sole reason I own it is for a rain event after a hit.
Some guys wont hunt in the rain, but what if its border line as to whether it will rain? Or if some other factor delays us from tracking and it does rain before we can return?
Luminol is not a last resort but I would call it a second to last resort. Last resort is a grid search...they suck, and I hate doing them.
Hopefully, you will never need luminol, but what if?? Everyone should have some in their kit just in case.
Click to expand...
@Allegheny Tom - Great points. I have never heard of this product before ... thanks for telling us about it. After all the time, energy, and resources you invest to >finally< loose an arrow on a whitetail ... if you find yourself on a really difficult blood trail, in the rain, in the dark ... with fleeting hope of a recovery ... wouldn't you want to have this in your tracking & recovery kit?
 
@Allegheny Tom - I've always preferred morning hunts to evening hunts because I don't like taking a shot at dusk. Last year I purchased one of the Primos bloodhunter HD AA flashlights that help you see blood much more easily at night. Today I just purchased some Bloodglow product online at the link you provided. I found a discount code "TRACKEM" that was good for 15% off any order over $25. I will keep it in my truck next to a water-filled spray bottle to retrieve for any tough tracking jobs. Thanks!
 
Thanks for all the input guys. They definitely move in the rain. Spent last night in a steady rain glassing a bean field full of deer. My greatest concern is losing a blood trail. Turns out I don’t have to worry about that as I’ve seen 0 deer this morning!
 
PastorKen said:
Does that light really show blood better than a regular light?
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Without a doubt! And I went with the version of the light that uses AA batteries so that I can share batteries between my all purpose headlamp, my GPS, and my blood hunter HD light. Keeps my kit & battery management simple.
 
LoadedLimbs said:
@Allegheny Tom - Great points. I have never heard of this product before ... thanks for telling us about it. After all the time, energy, and resources you invest to >finally< loose an arrow on a whitetail ... if you find yourself on a really difficult blood trail, in the rain, in the dark ... with fleeting hope of a recovery ... wouldn't you want to have this in your tracking & recovery kit?
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The stuff is absolutely amazing but there is a little bit of a learning curve for using it. There is iron in some soils and also some plants and it's possible to get false positives, BUT a false positive glows differently than a blood positive and for a shorter period of time.
It's suggested to lay down a simulated trail prior to hunting season.
We made a mock blood trail when we 1st got the stuff. We bought dried blood (from Jerry at Bloodglow) and we added water to the dried blood, dipped a rag in it, and dragged a mock trail. Blood was not even visible to the naked eye. We returned after dark with our spray bottle of luminol to test the results. The trail glowed brightly. What was even more impressive was the next day we received over a half inch of rain...obviously no blood could be seen with the naked eye. But we sprayed the trail again after dark and it glowed even better than it did before the rain!
Jerry is pretty helpful if you call him, but he will also talk your ear off. If you have any questions about luminol, call him and ask away. You WILL need to leave a call back number or he will assume you are a spam call and he will block your number...make sure to leave a message.
 
LoadedLimbs said:
@Allegheny Tom - I've always preferred morning hunts to evening hunts because I don't like taking a shot at dusk. Last year I purchased one of the Primos bloodhunter HD AA flashlights that help you see blood much more easily at night. Today I just purchased some Bloodglow product online at the link you provided. I found a discount code "TRACKEM" that was good for 15% off any order over $25. I will keep it in my truck next to a water-filled spray bottle to retrieve for any tough tracking jobs. Thanks!
Click to expand...
I can't comment on that light...never used one.
But I can't imagine that the light can detect a blood trail that has been rained out. Luminol can.
And try to avoid leaving luminol in a hot vehicle. It shortens the shelf life of the activator tablet. The actual luminol tablet doesn't seem to have a shelf life.
And use windshield washer fluid rather than water. Works better and won't freeze in the spray bottle nozzle.
 
Allegheny Tom said:
You mix it when you need it. I read that a mixed batch will last a month or so but there is no need to pre mix. Mix it about a half hour before you start trailing.
Shelf life of the activator tablet...Jerry Allen (the guy who sells the stuff) told me it expires in 3 to 5 years but like anything else, it depends on how it is stored. Store in a cool place not on your dashboard.
If you squeeze the foil pouch for the activator and its no longer a hard tablet, then it has expired. 8 ounces of fresh hydrogen peroxide can be substituted for an expired tablet. We experimented with peroxide last year and it worked but we got better results if we mixed double luminol tablets per batch.

Luminol is not a substitute for sound blood trailing skills but it will allow trailing during or after a hard rain.
And as good as luminol is, it obviously can't find blood that is not present. It won't help find a critter if a wound isn't bleeding.
The sole reason I own it is for a rain event after a hit.
Some guys wont hunt in the rain, but what if its border line as to whether it will rain? Or if some other factor delays us from tracking and it does rain before we can return?
Luminol is not a last resort but I would call it a second to last resort. Last resort is a grid search...they suck, and I hate doing them.
Hopefully, you will never need luminol, but what if?? Everyone should have some in their kit just in case.


Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I can also attest to this stuff. Used it several years ago, it works great. I kind of forgot about it, but because of the reminder (thanks @Allegheny Tom) I just ordered some.
 
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