Hunting in the rain

[Deeter]

Ok guys this is my first season trad and I am 3 days into the season.  This morning it was raining when I went out.  What do you guys do to keep your arrow fletches dry?  Thanks.

[TraditionalGuy]

Raptor Archery makes a side quiver that is in my opinion the best quiver on the market. One of the features of this side quiver, which I rarely use since I hunt in California, is a fleece sock that covers the fletchings and keeps them dry. Ted works and hunt the Pacific Northwest, so he specifically designed the quiver to hunt in the rain. It also has a couple of small holes at the bottom of the quiver that allows the water to pour through in the event of serious rain.

[ishoot4thrills]

Bow season's too long to hunt in the rain. I wait 'til it ain't raining to go bowhunting. Although sometimes I'll hunt in a very, very light mist. Besides, if it's raining very much, it's very hard to follow a blood trail.

[damascusdave]

I do not hunt when it is raining...too much chance of losing a less than perfect blood trail...and no worries about wet gear

DDave

[Kris]

The plastic bag a typical newspaper comes in w/a rubber band around the top over my quiver works well to cover the four or five arrows I routinely take hunting.  

Many choices and variations of similar will work just fine.

Kris

[Stone Knife]

I treat my feathers prior to season and use a Safari Tuff quiver with fetching cover. If your arrows are tuned well it wont matter if the one on the bow is wet. I have shot plenty of deer in the rain and found them.

[Aunty]

Condoms........ They work great.

[TraditionalGuy]

Originally posted by damascusdave:
I do not hunt when it is raining...too much chance of losing a less than perfect blood trail...and no worries about wet gear

DDave

If you live in the Pacific Northwest and choose to not hunt in the rain, you are in effect choosing not to hunt.

[Bjorn]

I hunt rain or shine-in fact hunting pigs in a storm is ideal-'cause you can find them sleeping in their beds. I use a home made tube quiver to keep fletching dry.  

[Bowwild]

I have more than 132 days to bowhunt. I haven't purposely bow hunted in the rain for years.

I have been caught in the rain and in 1982 I shot a Doe during and afternoon hunt and it started to rain. Luckily I saw a flash of white about 100 yards out from the shot and that's where I found the Doe less than 30 minutes later.

What I remember more about that hunt was how difficult it was to get an adult Doe in the back of my blazer solo. Like a buckskin bag full of 120 pounds of jello!

Despite my bias against hunting in the rain I have to admit that the vast majority of my kills have been recovered in sight of the shot with no blood trail needed. I would hunt in the rain if on a NR hunt with limited time.

[tradarcher816]

I use a water proof powder from 3rivers. I got the big jug of it and have been using it for years. It keeps my fletchings dry in all but a huge downpour while on stand. Sometimes ill use a plastic bag to get there. But the powder seems to work most of the time.

[KentuckyTJ]

Fletch Dry. Had about a 10 minute rain the other evening and the drops just rolled off my fletchings.

  http://www.3riversarchery.com/feather-dri+water+repellent+powder_i5086_baseitem.html

[durp]

as stated there are many options...one more is gerber bottle bags...just slip them on over the fletch and push the nock thru the bottom to hold them on.

i dont recomend them if ur still hunting or stalking...the brush will pull them off...they do work good in a stand.

[Brazos]

I like the idea of using a news paper bag.  I may just throw one in my hunting bag just in case.  I don't like hunting in rain but my best hunting (and biggest bucks) have been right after the rain stops.

[AkDan]

The fleece socks on the raptor and chief style side quivers will mash those feathers flat!

If you have a side quiver, a simple foam plug with notches will hold the feathers seperate like in a bow quiver.  I forgot to add the how lol, in case you're scratching your melon over this, shove the plug in the open end of the chief or simliar quiver.  The notches are along the outer edge of plug.   I dont use mine for roving/small game opting out for a backquiver.  

Rain and stain if you can find it works. (payless)

As does baby bottle liners.  If you're stalking flip them around so the bottom of th eliner is on the leading edge of the feather, works good.  You can add a rubber band if needed.

[LB_hntr]

seran wrap and the little rubber bands girls use to hold braids together (buy at and drug store).  wrap a piece around each arrow and use the rubber bands to hold it on. when ready to shoot just pull the seran warp off and leav the rubber band (they are small thin and wont hurt anything). One roll of seran wrap last a really long time!
  Even when im on stand in the rain I pull the wrap off my knocked arrow and still pay the seran wrap over the fletching loosely to keep my knocked arrow dry.

[killinstuff]

All that stuff isn't needed if you have tuned your arrows right. Wet feathers don't affect my set up at all.

[30coupe]

Originally posted by ishoot4thrills:
Bow season's too long to hunt in the rain. I wait 'til it ain't raining to go bowhunting. Although sometimes I'll hunt in a very, very light mist. Besides, if it's raining very much, it's very hard to follow a blood trail.

X2    

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

Personally I do not hunt in the rain. It;s just too risky to lose the all important blood trail. Why take the risk?

[VictoryHunter]

I love hunting in the rain. It's the best time to stalk because the leaves are quiet. As for keeping fletching dry I've had pretty good luck with a homemade fletching cover made out of a ziplock back.