Wyoming Hunting: Triple-Digit Heat, Wildfires For Start Of Bowhunting Season

Wyoming’s archery hunting season is off to a blazing start, literally, with temperatures across the Cowboy State soaring into the 90s and even the 100s, along with the spread of huge wildfires in some areas of northeast Wyoming.

Even so, “the days are numbered” for sweltering weather, and some of the high country could see snow soon, meteorologist and avid archery elk hunter Don Day of Cheyenne told Cowboy State Daily.

Archery season for antelope opened Aug. 15 in most hunt areas, while many archery elk and deer seasons are set open on Sept. 1.

Rifle seasons are set for mid-September in many antelope hunt areas, and most elk and deer rifle seasons kick off in October or early November.

Bring Your Own Freezer

“If you don’t mind hunting in 90-degree temps,” there is some opportunity for antelope now, bowhunter Owen Miller of northeast Wyoming told Cowboy State Daily.

Starting Sept. 1, hunters should look for elk and deer “in higher altitudes where it’s 10-15 degrees cooler,” he added.

In hot weather, it’s vital to put the meat from a kill somewhere cool as soon as possible.

That’s particularly important for out-of-state hunters, who’ll have to transport their antelope and venison long distances along burning-hot highways, Miller said.

“For non-residents I recommend a good cooler to save the meat,” he said. “I know guys that bring a small freezer and generator to keep meat frozen going back home.”

‘Bigger Animals Like To Get Up And Stretch’

When it’s boiling in the fields and lower mountain slopes, hunters might have to put in some extra planning, bowhunter Mike Schmid of La Barge told Cowboy State Daily.

“I have found animals will move later in the day and retreat earlier in the morning, find a bedding area and set up between where they feed at night and rest during the day for an ambush-style hunt,” he said. “It takes homework/scouting but makes for a satisfying hunt, especially if your plan comes together.

“North-facing slopes in dark timber will be the place to poke around and still hunt for a great spot-and-stalk style hunt.”

Even during the hottest time of the hottest days, there’s opportunity for tenacious bowhunters, Schmid said.

“I have also learned bigger animals like to get up and stretch and drink mid-day,” he said. “Not sure exactly why, might just be less company at the waterhole. Not a bad place to be around 1-2 p.m. in my book.”

However, for hunters who like setting up ambushes on watering holes, afternoon thunderstorms can blow that plan, Schmid said.

In that case, a spot-and-stalk hunt in the morning or evening might work better, he said.

Spot-and-stalk entails finding animals from a distance — usually through binoculars or a spotting scope — and then trying to figure out a way to creep within bow range. That’s generally about 40-50 yards with a modern compound bow, and about 20 yards with a traditional recurve bow.

Heat Could Mean Bigger Bucks

In the La Barge area, deer seem to be slowly recovering from the devastating winterkill of 2022-2023, but antelope numbers are still “in the sink,” said La Barge resident and archery hunter Zach Key.

“I’m not seeing much for deer” during pre-season scouting, he told Cowboy State Daily. “They are healthy, but I’m not seeing too many big ones yet.”

Because so many deer died during the 2022-2023 winter, Key opted out of the fall 2023 deer season. And he launched the Let a Deer Walk program program, which encouraged other hunters to turn in their deer tags as entry tickets for a prize drawing.

Key said he’ll try archery deer hunting this year, but will shoot only if he finds an absolutely huge buck.

Hot, dry years might help bucks grow bigger antlers, he said.

Bucks might gobble down lots of grass while it’s still green in the spring, and that could mean more protein during the early stages of antler growth, he said.

Elevated heart rates help too, Key said.

“Their heart rates elevate in drought years, to help keep their bodies cool” and the increased blood flow might also accelerate antler growth.

“I think the chances of seeing a complete Booner (Boone & Crockett record book buck) could be good,” he said.

So far, nothing he’s seen on his scouting trips has been anywhere near that size range. Unless his fortunes turn in that regard once the season starts, Key plans on taking nothing but memories home this year.

He added that he didn’t even put in for an antelope tag because the herds around La Barge are still sparse.

His son, Parker, drew an antelope tag, but has opted not to hunt this year, giving antelope more time to bounce back, Key said.

Better Days Could Be Ahead

In northwest Wyoming, the heat might make hunting difficult, at least early in the elk and deer archery seasons, said prominent outdoorsman and Park County resident Guy Eastman.

“It depends what you’re hunting. Antelope hunting will be better. If you hunt at or near water,” he said, because thirsty bucks will seek more drinks.

“Elk will be tougher. They will be very high and timbered up. Deer will be very high up in the high country. The low-country bucks will be shaded up and nocturnal,” Eastman added.

But fortunes could change soon, Day said.

As things stand, the weather is right on schedule, he said. Mid-July through mid-August is consistently the hottest part of the year in Wyoming.

Late August and early September should bring cold fronts.

Temperatures this weekend have started to cool in parts of Wyoming, Day said. Daytime highs might go from 90-plus down to around 70.

If the cold-front pattern holds, there could soon be snow in the high country of the Big Horn Mountains and Yellowstone Plateau, Day said.

During a typical year, the first potential for a hard freeze or snow in the high country is around Sept. 18-21, Day said.

As a hunter, Day said he takes a cue from elk behavior, though he notes it’s “anecdotal, not scientific.”

When bull elk start to get more active and bugling, it seems to signal that cooler weather is a few days to a week or so away, he said.

“That’s what I’ve noticed,” Day said. “They seem to have an innate ability to know when a big change in the weather is coming.”

Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.