Winter hare hunting is very popular among amateur hunters, especially among novice shooters. There is a strong opinion that there is nothing easier than getting a hare. But this is far from true; not everyone knows how to properly hunt a hare in winter.

The hunter needs to take into account weather factors, be well versed in the terrain and know many of the subtleties of the behavior of the oblique in order to return from the hunt not empty-handed.

Hare hunting usually opens at the end of October and lasts until early February. The hare is successfully hunted along river beds, along ravines overgrown with vegetation, on the edge of dry swamps and in bush plantings. In the steppes you can often find the hare, the hare in the forests, and near human habitation a cross between these species - the cuff. Tumak almost never leaves the vicinity of settlements; he likes to feed in the gardens of surrounding dachas.

The most exciting and popular way of hunting hares is tracking. Its essence is to track the animal along the trail. This method of hunting begins with the first snow and continues until the end of the hunting season. A hare's trail is called a malik. The footprint of different types of hares is different; the hare's is oblong, while the hare's is round and larger in size. Beginners learning to trail need to know that when running, the hare brings its hind legs forward over its front legs, so there will be an imprint on the snow, first from the hind legs and then from the front legs. Without knowing this, the hunter begins to target the heel. The hare is most often targeted because it lies in relatively open places. In many localities there is even a synonym for the word tracking - harping. On the first night after a snowfall, the hare practically does not go out to feed, but on the second night they fatten to the fullest, after which they go to rest for the day. It’s easier to start tracking by finding a running trail; it differs from a fat and rutting trail. The walking track is a clear imprint of a series of uniform, calm jumps of a hare. It is not recommended to follow the trail clearly because when approaching the slant's bed, it is easy to attract its attention. It is better to walk 10 meters away from the malik. It often happens that the tracks converge or intersect; there is no need to change the route, as you can wander through the small areas all day and not see a single hare. It happens that a new trail is a loop made by the same animal, following which you can waste a lot of time. It’s easier to look closely at the footprint; there are no two birds with the same paws. If you still have doubts, it is better, of course, to follow the loop and continue the pursuit further. After some time, the hunter comes to an oncoming trail, which will be located closely or even along the first trail and break off without continuation. This is the so-called “deuce”. Having walked fifteen meters further in the original direction, it is easy to notice that the hare has turned back. You should not follow the “two” path; this is an indicator that the hare’s bed is not far away. Here you need to quickly find the trace of a huge sideways hare jump, the so-called “discount”. There are three or four discounts, and the last one necessarily goes to the eared one. Pay attention to the nearest hedges, bushes, hummocks, most likely the hare is lying there. Don’t walk along the mall with a “discount”, the animal will immediately notice and jump up instantly, not even allowing you to shoot.

It is necessary to approach the intended prone position from the opposite side, so there is a chance of approaching at a distance of twenty steps and making a successful and effective shot.

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Russian hunters have long been especially fond of hunting hares, because they are widespread in forests throughout almost the entire country. As a rule, beginners believe that hunting a hare is much easier than challenging a boar or a wolf, but in reality this is not at all the case. The hunter will need certain knowledge and skills, as well as stamina and attention.

Peculiarities of behavior of hares

The caution of these animals is one of the main problems when hunting a hare. Professionals act as carefully as possible, approaching only from the leeward side, otherwise the animal will most likely sense the approaching danger. The fact is that hares often rest on their beds with their muzzles turned against the wind so that the wind does not blow against their fur.

These animals are excellent at confusing their own tracks and throwing off their pursuers. Having caught the hare by surprise, the hunter must shoot for sure, because he most likely will not have a second chance. When a hare runs away, it can reach speeds of up to 60 km/h and calmly get lost in the forest.

Types and habitat of hares

There are two main types of hares living in Russia - hare and white hare. The former prefer to live in areas with complex terrain, places with small ravines and tall grass. Often the hare can be found in an open field. Snowshoe hares prefer wooded areas, as there is a lot of vegetation in the forest and it is easier to hide or escape.

Some people mistakenly believe that during the winter hare hunting season it is easier to catch a hare than a hare. In reality, the gray or white color of the fur coat is not of fundamental importance, because both species are capable of burying themselves deeply in the snow if desired, leaving only their nose visible.

Necessary equipment and preparation

Of course, the hunter will need to acquire weapons and ammunition. Experienced hunters advise choosing shotguns with 12, 16 or 20 gauge. If the choice fell on a weapon with the largest caliber, then it is best to load it with magnum cartridges. To increase your effectiveness, you should learn the basics of how to hunt a hare with a semi-automatic weapon, because many beginners hastily, out of surprise, shoot a doublet at a hare that appears right in front of them. Usually, after such a shot, all that remains is to watch as the animal rushes as fast as it can across the field.

By the way, the size of the caliber in hare hunting is not so critical. An animal can be mortally wounded with fairly modest calibers, so the use of large shot is not at all necessary. You should always follow all safety measures, especially when hunting hare in the forest in winter. In a semi-enclosed area, you should shoot from a position below human height, and also be sure to track the movements of your comrades in arms and hunting dogs so that they do not end up in the line of fire immediately at the moment of the shot.

Main types of hunting

Depending on experience, personal preferences, financial capabilities, seasonality, terrain and other factors, the priority is a specific type of hare hunting: from the approach, tracking in the fall, with hounds.

Hunting with hounds

One of the most poetic types of hunting. The bottom line is that the dogs drive the hare from its resting place directly towards the hunter. With such a hunt, the level of physical fitness is important - you will have to run a lot through forests and fields.

The best time to hunt with hounds is early in the morning, when the dogs can easily follow fresh tracks. The hunter encourages the hounds with his voice to search for hares, and he himself, alone or with his comrades, slowly moves after them in anticipation of a loud bark, which will mean the successful discovery of a hare's bed.

Tracking in autumn

Relevant in the presence of the first snow and drifting snow. The hunter easily finds fresh tracks and traces. In this case, you need to take into account morning or night tracks; following older ones does not make much sense. You can learn to find a hare's bed in this way only with experience, tracking the animal's ornate wanderings.

Every hare knows how to confuse their tracks and use cunning - this fact should never be overlooked. When looking for an animal’s shelter, it is best to walk next to the tracks, looking at the horizon. It happens that a hare returns in its own old tracks and looks for a new shelter or bed in an area that has already been previously explored.

Hunting from the approach

This type involves a measured and leisurely process of tracking a hare. The hunter carefully approaches the animal, which immediately gets up and begins to run away. As a rule, the hunter does not have much time to make the right shot before the animal disappears from sight.

During the long autumn and late onset of winter, hunting a hare from the approach brings the best results, because hare and hare already have time to go through the molting period and become clearly visible in predominantly monochromatic terrain.

Experienced hunters undoubtedly know some tricks and techniques that will help make it easier for beginners on their first hare hunt. Among the recommendations, professionals especially highlight the following:

1. Shooting at a distance of more than 50 meters rarely makes sense.
2. The first shot usually decides everything, because you almost never manage to hit with the second.
3. The best weather for hunting hares is a frost of about 15 degrees.
4. You need to wait for the hare calmly, without unnecessary movements.
5. To warm up, it is enough to relax and tense your muscles without giving away your location.
6. Hares often show their main activity late at night and lie down during the day.
7. To wait for game, you should take a chair. You won’t be able to sit on a stone or snag for a long time, as your back will become very tired.
8. Warm clothes will help you avoid freezing ahead of time and feel comfortable at all stages of the hunt.

The main thing to remember is that not every hunt is successful. This rule is true even for seasoned hunters. A gradual gain of experience and proper adherence to advice will help you not only achieve success, but also enjoy the hunting process itself.

This type of leisure activity is popular among those hunters who know how to read hare tracks. Although hunting a hare in winter is a very entertaining process, it is not as simple and productive for trophies as it may seem to beginners.

For most people who like to hunt with a gun, tracking down hare is practically the only available way to get game in the winter. The main role here is played by the recognition of hare prints, which are very diverse in nature.

The trophy is certainly important - you can easily find many ways to prepare and use it, as well as dishes that are prepared from hare meat. But a real hunter is interested in the process itself.

Hare hunting in winter is not always carried out under favorable conditions. It is very complex and requires the development of intellectual skills - knowledge of animal habits, good and quick reading of tracks. The campaign is ideal at a temperature of about 2 degrees below zero, no wind and snow that has fallen in the evening (Figure 1).

It is most difficult to implement the plan in severe frost and biting wind. The situation is also bad during powdering and in blacktops, when paw marks are almost invisible.

In the absence of fresh snow in the morning, animals are reluctant to get up from their beds and leave short tracks.

Hunting a hare with a dog in winter is especially popular, but it has its own clear rules about where to look for prey:

1. The optimal time for it is black trail or the first snow that falls.
2. On the fresh crust, an alarmed bunny rises like a dog from his bed and runs around it until the hunter fires a shot.
3. During the thaw, the four-legged assistant also finds a resting place where the target hides, pressing tightly to the ground so that it can be approached for a volley.
4. It is worth remembering that there is not the slightest point in searching the same places, since the animals are constantly changing their feeding and bedding areas.
5. When the weather is damp, they go to higher ground, and when it’s dry outside, they hide in the lowlands.

Figure 1. Winter hare hunting

The most important thing is to obtain a shooting license, so as not to later pay a fine for illegal actions. If we talk about choosing an assistant, then representatives of hound breeds will best cope with this task.

Let's look at what their strengths are so that winter hare hunting with hounds is successful:

1. First of all, dogs need to be trained and constantly given opportunities to practice.
2. They need to be taught that if during the process they see the same fox, they should not switch to it from the previous task.
3. You also need to give them a taste of hare meat so that they develop an interest in this game; without it, the cunning animal will easily slow down the pace of pursuit and disappear from view.
4. More strict training is needed if dogs work not only with small fur-bearing animals, but also with other animals.

Hare hunting in winter with hounds is carried out as follows: representatives of the breed, as a rule, already know their tracks and follow them well. They vocalize as soon as they come across hare prints, letting the owner know about their location. Hiding from them, the game runs in a circle and returns to its previous position, where a loaded gun is waiting for it.

From the approach

Hare hunting is carried out in winter from the approach before the first snow falls or after the absence of powder for a long enough time for the hare to be clearly visible. You should be prepared for the fact that this method will require a lot of patience and endurance from you (Figure 2).

Hunting a hare in winter from the approach has three extremely important conditions:

1. The presence of a large number of animals in relatively open areas- if there are few of them, it will turn into fruitless wandering through meadows, fields and clearings, reducing all chances of raising game to zero, and in a poorly visible area where there are weeds and bushes, small animals are almost impossible to detect.
2. Knowledge of animal resting places where they rest for the day- although these cute creatures settle down to rest almost anywhere, where they are reliably hidden and can easily escape when danger approaches, it is worth giving preference to areas of land untouched by the plow near large stones, individual bushes, ditches and holes near pillars, clearings with piles of brushwood and fallen tree tops .
3. The endurance and strong legs of the hunter himself- you will have to walk a lot off-road, leaving up to ten kilometers behind, until you pick up the scythe and get closer to him to shoot him.

Figure 2. Hunting from the approach

Such an event is very exhausting and keeps you in constant tension. Its significant disadvantage is that, even after spending the whole day, you can return home empty-handed.

Trapping

This method is used after powdering or when strong drifting snow has hidden old animal tracks. Winter hare hunting by tracking is good because it reduces the hunter's adventures to a minimum, guaranteeing him more likely success.

Having found a fresh malik, you need to follow the animal along it to its resting place, pick it up and immediately put it down with an accurate shot. Good endurance and openness, a wide view of the hunting grounds are also important here. In addition, it is necessary to understand the intricacy of prints left by hare's feet, and their numbers can be very high (Figure 3).

It is worth considering that each individual covers a considerable distance in circles during one night, and it will be easier to find its little one than its owner. But you only need to follow the morning tracks, or at least the night tracks left by the animal when it left the shelter and went to feed at night. It’s worth choosing the most recent malik and following its route; sooner or later it will lead you to the oblique, which in any case is located somewhere nearby.

On trails left by game, it is also possible to hunt a hare with a loop in winter:

1. The best place to set the trap is in a ditch or a fallen tree on the trail.
2. The free end of the loop is attached to a tree or bush using a belt or cord, and twigs are stuck into the snow around which it is stretched.
3. Such a trap is placed at the level of the hare's head, about 10 cm from the ground, the diameter of the noose is about 20 cm and the same length is left for fastenings.
4. To camouflage the loops, they use a ski track, hiding the trap under a ski trail on an already beaten path.
5. Up to 10 pieces of loops are installed at a time to increase the likelihood of getting caught obliquely - they are left for a couple of days, especially if the installation was carried out without ski tracks.

Figure 3. Obtaining a trophy by tracking

At first, the hare is cautious and does not approach the trap at first, but then it gets used to the situation and gets caught, which makes this method one of the most productive.

In the Uzerka

This method is applicable for a very short time, when a thaw sets in or the winter turns out to be snowless (Figure 4).

This winter hare hunt is entirely based on the habits of the obliques:

• In frosty weather, the animals lie tightly pressed to the ground in their thickets;
• When the snow and ice melt or there is heavy rain, drops begin to fall from the branches, which drive the hares out of their hiding places;
• They go to the clearings, fields and edges adjacent to the forest, since they cannot stand raindrops;
• In open areas, it is much easier to hit the animal, which makes it easier to shoot at it, although the same hare is not easy to spot because of its fur, faded in the cold, which blends into the snowless landscape.

Figure 4. Tracking a hare's tracks

Out of hiding

For those who like to hunt at night and have the proper patience, hunting a hare without a dog in winter from an ambush is perfect. For this purpose, a moonlit and bright night is chosen and a place where the animals go to feed in abundant quantities. They come to stacks, haystacks, and fields with crop residues, where they can find some kind of food (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Ambushing a hare

In the evening, the hunter chooses a position where he can sit comfortably for a long time and then make a successful shot. As a rule, animals reveal themselves by a characteristic noise, which is clearly audible when the snow is covered with crust and the grass and leaves covering the ground have already frozen.

It is very difficult to hit such a fast target, since it is very difficult to see the outlines of the oblique and not confuse them with a shadow or a domestic cat. Therefore, the method is rarely extractable and very unique, requiring absolute silence.

In order for such a winter hare hunt to be successful, you should follow these rules:

1. Choose cover so that the hare's stitch goes towards it and the shadow of the animal does not prevent you from making an accurate shot.
2. While in an ambush, you should absolutely not make noise, move suddenly, or smoke.
3. You need to raise the gun at the moment when potential prey begins to eat complementary food - apple tree branches, hay or cabbage.
4. In order not to get caught in the shadow, it is worth remembering that the silhouette of the animal will always be lighter than its projection in the snow.
5. To shoot in the back, they aim at the front of the body, and if the prey senses danger and begins to run, shots are fired at the tips of its ears.
6. When the target panics and rushes towards you in a panic, the volley is fired at the front paws.

Hunting a hare in winter along the black trail

If hunters decide to hunt along the black trail, they most often target hare, since tracking the hare is very difficult due to its careful tangling of its tracks and its white skin blending into the landscape (Figure 6).

Figure 5. Hare hunting along the black trail

As a rule, this is a hare hunt with a dog in winter:

• It also requires silence and extreme concentration, the ability to shoot on time;
• A large company of 5-7 people takes part in the action, which is divided into shooters and beaters with hounds;
• For this, large areas with hare stitches trampled on the ground are selected;
• When a fresh malik is discovered, the dogs are lowered along it and they silently lead to the prey, giving voice only when it is discovered.

Hare hunting in a very snowy winter

During heavy snowfalls, the animals become more cautious, so it is very difficult to hit them. They hide well and do not give themselves away under any circumstances. Hunting a hare with a dog in winter at this time is also very difficult, due to the fact that it will be difficult for the dog to chase prey in deep snow, and the hunter himself cannot do without skis or snowshoes.

As the winter 2018 hare hunt video shows, the event in snowy weather is best started early in the morning. At dawn, scythes like to go out to feed, experiencing virtually no danger.

From this moment on, you can monitor the behavior of the animals, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, hiding behind the nearest snow-covered tree or bush, or large snowdrift.

Since animals become more cautious during snowfalls, the best places to search for them will be fields and plowed fields, where they will try to lie down in ditches or hide in loose snow.

Selection of equipment for winter hare hunting

Preparation for the event deserves special attention. Winter hare hunting requires special equipment and warm clothing that does not restrict movement. It is best to place some additional warm clothes and ammunition in a backpack, and put on overalls to protect your lower back from the cold. In addition to clothes, you should take with you a first aid kit, a thermos and a flashlight, a folding chair and, if necessary, a newspaper for lighting a fire.

Hunting a hare with small animals in winter also has its own characteristics:

1. Small guns are suitable for distances of no more than 70 m; it is better if it is a simple double-barreled shotgun of 12-16 caliber, since a single-shot gun will be ineffective.
2. The ideal distance to the target is 15-20 m, so the shot for shooting from long distances with long-range cartridges is all numbers from 1 to 0.
3. When shooting from 30-40 m, choose standard cartridges with shot sizes 2 and 3; from 25 m, you can use No. 4.
4. If the temperature is below 15 degrees, shoot bullets with felt or wood-fiber wads.
5. Long-range cartridges are loaded into plastic bags or containers with dry potato flour, after which they are taken out on the spot and carried in a closed bandoleer.
6. When using rifled weapons on individuals weighing over 4 kg, the main requirement is that it can hit the target in a range of up to 300 m.

Hunting a hare with a bow in winter, as the first winter campaign, is a very difficult task in terms of finding and killing game, since it is not difficult to track it. Problems arise with the actual shooting of the gun, since the waxed bowstring becomes woody in severe frosts, and the moisture accumulated in the blocks jams them.

Most hunters almost immediately abandon this idea, since preparing archery equipment will take a lot of time, and the event itself will be unpleasant and unlikely to bring any prey.

Hare hunting in winter is a great way to test your strength. This timid and harmless-looking animal will make you experience the whole gamut of experiences from mild excitement to the utmost intensity of emotions, and will not allow you to relax for a minute. Before you go hunting for prey, study its habits and characteristics.

Brief description of the species

The animal's elongated, slender body is covered with soft fluffy fur that changes color depending on the season. Small round eyes, long ears, short tail, unevenly developed limbs - the hind legs are more powerful than the front ones. Body length is on average 45-70 cm.

They live both in pairs and alone. They reproduce quickly; a female can give birth 3-4 times in a year. Hares are born already developed, with a fur coat and open eyes. The mother takes care of them for only a short time; she feeds them for no more than a week, so that a significant part of the offspring die from predators.

Hares are distinguished by sensitive hearing and smell, but their eyesight is weak.

Favorite habitats are open forests, fresh clearings, bushes along river banks and ravines, deserts and steppes. They often settle in close proximity to humans, where they cause great damage to garden and vegetable crops. In nature, they do not build special dwellings for themselves, but use natural shelters under the rubble of branches, in holes and ravines. Sometimes they live in abandoned holes of foxes and other animals. They feed at twilight and at night, hiding from prying eyes during the day.

Allowed hunting periods

To hunt on public lands, you must contact the Department of Hunting that controls this territory. There, based on your application and verification of documents, you will be issued a permit for the extraction of hunting resources (voucher) indicating the dates of the hunt. It is allowed to hunt hare from mid-September until February 28. Private hunting farms on their territories may regulate other hunting conditions - at the same time as obtaining permission, they offer related services, such as escort by huntsmen, cutting up harvested carcasses, providing overnight accommodations, etc. Obtaining a permit from private organizations is usually several orders of magnitude more expensive than a permit to hunt in public lands.

When going hunting, be sure to have a hunting license and permits with you.

How do they hunt a hare?

There are several classic types of hare hunting:

1. Collective– a corral, when participants are divided into shooters and beaters and each performs its own function. It’s an exciting activity, but it requires a lot of discipline because it’s not safe.
2. Trapping– this requires a lot of experience and knowledge of the animal’s habits. Hares are very careful and cunning animals; they know how to confuse their tracks, and they do this deliberately. It’s difficult for a beginner to understand their intricacies, but at some point you have to start. Listen to the advice of experienced people, study the theory, use your powers of observation and over time you will be able to understand all the subtleties.
3. From the approach– the hunter’s task is to find the animal’s resting place and approach it within shooting distance. Used when it is impossible to calculate prey from tracks. Only a truly passionate hunter is ready to walk tens of kilometers off-road for the sake of a trophy.
4. In the Uzerka– when the bunnies have already changed their summer color to winter, and the oncoming thaw has driven the snow away from the fields, a short period of exciting hunting begins, based on looking out for animals in a light fur coat against a dark background.
5. Out of hiding– this method involves determining where the hare is feeding and waiting for them to come out of the shelter to feed. This type of hunting is most successful on bright moonlit nights.

Let's take a closer look at how hunting is done from the approach, since this is the method most often used.

Winter hunting from the approach

It is carried out both with dogs and without. If you have good trained dogs, and the snow is not covered with a thin crust that cuts their paws, then be sure to take them with you. They will greatly simplify your task of detecting a hare's bed and raising it at your command.

If the snow is bad, then it is better to leave the dogs at home and hunt on your own.

Your task is to find the place where the bunny is hiding, pick it up and have time to make an aimed shot. It is easier to find the hare in open clearings with hillocks and ravines, among dead grasses and shrubs. The white hare hides in more forested areas. A well-prepared hunter must study the area in advance and find out the approximate habitats of the hare.

Hunting in winter from the approach will be successful only if:

• the number of hares is quite high;
• you have good physical fitness and endurance;
• you have excellent shooting accuracy;
• you know the habits of hares and know how to correctly decipher the tracks;
• you have good equipment, comfortable and warm clothes;
• you are passionate and persistent.

You will have to walk a lot and for a long time, a lot of disappointments await you when, after a difficult approach through snowy rough terrain, you do not find the desired animal. You shouldn't be upset. Rest for a while, set your next goal and move in that direction.

In order not to waste time and effort in vain, you first need to determine possible lying areas. As you know, hares always try to confuse the trail, for which they can change direction, make discounts by jumping to the side at a decent distance. It is in places where the tracks begin to wind and get lost that you should pay closer attention and be prepared for the fact that at any moment a bunny will jump out very close, even from the side where you did not expect to see it at all.

During the day, hares choose a hiding place with a good view, so there is very little chance of approaching unnoticed.. And even when you pass very close, the hare can simply hide and not come out of hiding until the last moment. Especially if the weather is windy or cloudy with snowfall. For approach hunting, it is better to choose clear and quiet days with little frost. If the temperature drops below 15 degrees, then it is almost impossible to raise a hare from its bed, and the hunter himself will be too uncomfortable on such a day. However, luck plays a big role in such a hunt. A lucky hunter can take a hare in any weather.

Secrets of successful hare shooting

In open areas, the hunter has a better chance of getting a successful shot. Success depends on his endurance and ability to correctly assess the distance to the target, the aiming point and the lethality of the gun.

The aiming point depends on the position of the hare relative to the hunter. When aiming, the person running away is covered with the barrel, the person running on the counter is targeted under the front paws, and the person running from the side is aimed right in front of the chest.

If the hunt takes place in the forest, and visibility is limited, then the hunter must have excellent reaction time in order not to miss an opportunity until the target disappears from sight again. Moreover, excessive haste is also harmful.

Shooting from a distance of less than twenty steps and more than fifty is also not recommended, as it is more difficult to ensure accuracy and you can either release the wounded animal or ruin the skin. When hunting with dogs, you can try to hit the target from a greater distance, because your four-legged friends will help you catch up with the wounded animal.

The choice of weapons for shooting a hare is limited to double-barreled models of 12-16 caliber and self-loading ones.

Single-barreled ones are not suitable, since there will be no time to reload, and carbines with optics are prohibited for use when hunting hares.

The hare is not particularly strong when wounded, but shot that is too small for its slaughter is not suitable. Each hunter individually decides the question of what shot to shoot; most often they use shot from 0 to 5 numbers.

Train as often as possible, study the capabilities of your gun in terms of firing strength, shot accuracy and aiming, and you will have your own secrets of successful hunting.

It is not only sporting interest and the desire to test their capabilities that drive game lovers out of their homes. Hare meat is a real delicacy, and the catch will delight not only you, but the whole family.

Winter hare hunting

But winter hare hunting much more difficult than summer! What is the reason for the “complications”? Of course, the fact is that moving through snowdrifts at sub-zero temperatures is much more difficult than “jumping over bumps” in the middle of autumn.

In winter, the hare becomes a real “conspirator”!

It is its amazing ability to camouflage well in winter that is the main difficult factor for hunting a hare in the snow, on which its tracks would seem to be so clearly visible.

What you need to know when going to recreation centers for winter hunting in central Russia and expecting success?

Hunting is a small war against the beast. And in it, the one who has chosen the right strategy for himself and managed to turn the animal behavior patterns known to every good hunter against the “eared enemy” returns with prey.

Let's start with the fact that hares are bad at playing hide and seek. Their habits are such that, sensing danger, they simply try to run away from it, which compensates the hunter for the “virtual invisibility” of the brown hare when hunting in the snow.

But tracking down the “oblique” one is really difficult. Therefore, for effective surveillance, hunting masters advise going on a “winter adventure with a gun” not alone, but in a group, with several wide-eyed assistants.

What is optimal weather for hare hunting?

Experienced hunters say that correctly “guessing the weather in central Russia” is 40% successful. It is good to go hare hunting when the temperature ranges from -2 to -15º. And lower temperatures:

• impair a person's attentiveness
• increase the intensity of the hunt
• reduce the pleasure you get from it

Besides! In extreme cold, the beast does not allow us to get as close to ourselves as we would like. Therefore, it is best to choose the moment when the recently fallen snow begins to melt.

Having managed to “change clothes”, the hare will be clearly visible on the wet ground!

The hunter should also take care of clothing; when going to recreation centers with a gun, he must clearly understand that hunting a hare in the snow will definitely take more than one hour. Equipment must be warm and of high quality.

Are there “ideal places” to hunt brown hare?

Professionals who have a lot of “skins” on their “balance sheet” - people who are able to chase two birds with one stone and catch three, testify that the best places for hunting this animal in the winter in central Russia are:

• reclamation ditches
• meadows with copses
• hayfields
• and, of course, arable fields

After all, it is there that the hares go to “profit” from the remains of unharvested vegetables.

Hares are very fond of open areas, which are replete with small shelters.

In an effort to catch a fresh scent in these places, hare catchers wander off to hunt early in the morning. They know that it’s just great if it snowed at night, on which the tracks of the animal will definitely be “repelled”, allowing them to count on a successful hunt for a hare in the snow.

Strategies for successful winter hare hunting

• Start making a detour not through the field, but around it.
• Did you notice the trail? Only an amateur will go “directly”, following the trail. Move nearby, nearby.
• Are you three? Determine which of you will play the role of a beater in this winter hare hunt, and which will become a shooter?
• Look with all your eyes! A trained look around allows you to recognize the secluded places of the “hare’s bed”, its “secret hiding places”.

How does the hare go? What are his key habits?

Its course forms a kind of “arc”, laid in a wide variety of ways. An experienced hunter, having noticed that a hare has passed at least once twice in the same place, immediately understands that the animal is nearby and the hunt may well take place.

Important! Once you realize that the beast is close, don’t even think about stopping. Continue to walk slowly, because the hare may perceive your stop as a threat to its safety!

• Keep your gun ready, knowing that the scythe can literally jump out from under your feet.
• Continuously look around, tracing a circle/semicircle with your gaze, carefully studying the space around you. However, keep in mind the fact that the key to a good hare hunt is a good reaction from the hunter. After all, the rise of the beast will be unexpected, sharp, noisy, giving only half a second to shoot.

The target, as a rule, will be 10-15 meters away from you!

The mistake of many novice hunters is to rush to shoot at the moment when the hare finally appears. Shouting “Well, wait a minute!”, of course, is unnecessary, but taking good aim, realizing that there will be no second attempt, is quite reasonable... Otherwise, you will have to look for a “new hare.”

Give the hare a good “round-up” - This is the name of the method in which the beaters direct the target closer to the shooters, blocking the hare’s escape route during the winter hunt.

There may be a “reliable trap” - Using technical devices of handicraft (and factory) production when hunting in winter, in general, is not forbidden. But is the game worth the candle? After all, having driven an animal into a trap, you can get the carcass of a killed animal, but you are unlikely to experience the excitement of the hunt and the joy of a well-aimed shot. However, everyone chooses the “hunting format” for themselves!

Take the brown hare in a noose! Its use is not permitted everywhere. But, if you use it, we recommend that you “adopt” a soft loop, because when using a hard “structure” there is a high probability that the animal may break out.

Are you going hunting with dogs? This is a separate and very beautiful story, in which there is a confrontation not only between man and beast, but also one beast against another. Such a trip can bring wonderful results.

Where to go for winter hunting? Where to go?

You can find a suitable recreation center yourself. Or you can turn to the services of Nabazu.ru specialists who will help you decide on a suitable location in the region you are interested in.