Introduction
You’ve just taken a giant leap forward in the world of fishing and hunting. Solunar Times are the best way to know precisely when animals are most likely to be active and feeding. This helps you make the most of your fishing or hunting trip without wasting time and fuel.
The Layout
Solunar.com time tables come in two layouts. One is a Monthly format and has an entire month listed on each page. The other is the Weekly format and breaks the calendar up into 7-day periods. The Weekly format is primarily for newspapers with a once-per-week publication cycle. For the purposes of this document, we will focus on the Monthly format as it the most common layout purchased. The information is the same regardless of the layout.
What you get
Each Solunar.com Monthly order includes 12 complete months of information. At the top of each month, we will always note your order number, email address and the location coordinates used for your purchase. At the bottom of each month, you will always find the time zone used to calculate your order.
Each month contains several columns of information. A few columns such as the Moon up/down times are used more by hunters and can be ignored by fishermen. These columns are:
· Minor and Major Feeding Periods
· Sunrise/Sunset Times
· Moonrise/Moonset Times
· Moon Up/Moon Down Times
· Daylight Savings Time indicator
· Peak Period indicators
Take a look at the included legend on the bottom of each month of tables. Here is where you will always find a brief explanation of the symbols used in the Solunar time table.
Accuracy of the times
The times you see listed on your Solunar time tables are accurate to within 1 minute for the location chosen. Since the exact longitude and latitude was used to calculate these times, you can be assured of the accuracy throughout the entire 12 months included. Your times have automatically been adjusted for Daylight Savings Time and your local time zone. There is no need to adjust them any further. The times will change about 1 minute for every 12 miles East or West of the location used for the calculations. The ratio of 1-12 will vary depending on your distance from the equator.
How to read the time tables
The most important columns are the MAJOR and MINOR columns. These are broken down into A.M. and P.M. for easy reference and so you must read the times as a normal 12-hour format.
MAJOR feeding periods are 2 hours long, centered on the solunar time you see in your time table. If you have a MAJOR time of 5:30 A.M., then you would want to be at your location no later than 4:30 A.M. and remain there until at least 6:30 A.M.
MINOR feeding periods are only 1 hour long, again centered on the solunar time. That means a MINOR period of 6:15 P.M. would require (I like it when I'm required to fish) you to be there no later than 5:45 P.M. and remain until 6:45 P.M.
Peak Activity Periods
Every day of the month has four peak activity times. These coincide with the two MAJOR and two MINOR times you see listed. However, there are certain days of the month that are far better than the rest. These are known as peak activity periods and there are generally two in every month. The best animal activity of the entire month will be seen during these periods. You might notice these periods align precisely with a New or Full moon.
Our times note these peak activity periods in two ways. First, you will see the entire day highlighted in the color Red if you chose the Color PDF format. Second, you see a caret symbol “>” immediately after the day number.
If you are planning a trip and want the best possibility for action (yes I'm still talking about fishing/hunting), plan to be at your location on the days marked with the caret symbol “>” at the MAJOR A.M. or MAJOR P.M. time.
I didn't catch anything, your times don't work
There are two secondary factors that have the most influence on the success of our Solunar.com times.
The first and most important is weather. Weather plays an important role in all animal activity. My experience has shown that a significant change in barometric pressure within 12-24 hours of your fishing or hunting experience can vastly change the outcome. So if a cold front is getting ready to pass or has just passed through the area, keep your expectations in check. Fish will go deep and animals will bed down. Don't get discouraged, there will always be other times when conditions are more favorable.
The second is location. Just putting a line in the water at the 5:42AM major solunar time and expecting fish to bite an empty hook simply isn't reasonable. Saying "I saw a deer here yesterday so he should be here today at the major feeding time" isn't going to work either. You still have to be where fish and game are known to feed on a regular basis. What we can tell you is WHEN they're most likely going to be there, but you still need to have to a good idea of where "there" is.
Conclusion
Reading your Solunar.com Fishing and Hunting times is very simple. Just remember the MAJOR periods are two hours long and the MINOR periods are one hour long. The times you see listed are centered in the middle of those periods. The best days in the month will be marked in Red (if you have the color PDF version) and with a caret symbol “>” for easy reference.
For more information, check out our website at http://www.Solunar.com. We have a wide variety of articles and information that explains how the Solunar Theory works. Read real testimonials from people who have consistently improved their experience using our times.