Being in the stand before first light

[John Y Cannuck]

I have long been a proponent of being in the stand as early as possible. Most game, and deer in particular move most in the twilight hours.
There are augments for waiting and sleeping in.

Pros as I see it;

Being in the stand when deer are most active.
Getting to the stand at a time of day when deer panic least. (yes, they will still freak if they get wind of you)
Being in the stand and settled early enough that any small noises you make are forgotten. (Particularly important if you have dry leaves or crunchy snow to contend with)
Having your ground level scent dissipated by daylight.

Issues;
In some areas, deer move later in the day, that may mean you have to stay in the stand much longer, or, in really cold weather, risk coming to it in daylight.
Moonlight, it can really screw things up. Makes it easy to walk to the stand in the dark without a light, but it also makes it easy for deer to feed all night. Under moonlight usually late day hunts pay off.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

That comment about deer panicking least at night is sure to draw comment, so here's what i base that on.
Our old hunt camp had a field behind it. Deer would come out under star light (no moon) to feed. So, one night, I was going to the outhouse, I decided to walk towards them.
I could walk to within 50 feet, before they even took notice of me, and they'd just walk away a few steps.

 

[LawrenceN]

I'm also a believer in getting out to my hunting area before shooting light. Where we hunt, there's no resident herd, but the deer move through from dusk to dawn. During the rut, it's a whole different story and our odds of harvesting an animal increase dramatically. I pack in water, food, candies or cookies, and I'm prepared to spend the entire day. I listen to the weather reports so I know how warm to dress to last a whole day in the woods. Deer tend to amble and wander through certain areas randomly and we try to keep an overwatch on those places. It paid off this year as I'd put my partner on a good stand and a nice 5 pt. buck just ambled into the area. He nailed it with a heart shot, so we're not skunked this year like we were in the last 2.

 

[kyle700]

Yes, well before shooting light here as well. May as well make the most of the day.

 

[DVXDUDE]

Depending where I'm hunting. My one stand over looks a few ravines in the middle of a hardwood bush. Have to walk threw 50 acres of leaves and brush to get to it. I wait til daylight to walk in as I was spooking so many deer goin in the dark. I have shot deer walking in at sunup after started doing this.

My other stands that over look a swamp or field edge I get in there at least 30 min before sunlight as I can slip in quiet and from a few different sides depending on wind direction

 

[Magellann]

I like to be in the stand at first light too,but sometimes its not possible to get there because of the wind and layout of my area.
I 'll go in a couple of hours before sunset and wait for the evening feeding time.

 

[Bigbubba]

I like to walk in in daylight. Almost all our deer are shot between 8-10 am and 3-5 pm.

One guy I hunt with likes to be in the stand well before legal time, so I used to follow his lead.
Many times I have jumped deer in the dark walking in, and I wondered, why don't i wait a bit and jump them when my rifle is ready?
So now I wait until legal time to walk in.

This year (which was a poor year in my area due to rain) we got 5 bucks in rife season: 1 at 5 pm Monday and 4 on Wednesday - 2 at 10 am and 2 at 3 pm
Thursday I had a doe and fawn 30 feet from me for 10 minutes and they had no idea I was there for the first 5-7 minutes.

Personally I dont think it makes any difference when you go out, as long as you go out...you wont get too many from the couch.

 

[CV32]

I prefer the early morning hunt, but there are regulatory challenges. Such as the prohibition, in this province, against hunting more than a half hour before sunrise, where "hunting" includes "lying in wait for wild life".

 

[bbobie]

I’m in the stand 1 hr before shooting time as well

 

[CV32]

I’m in the stand 1 hr before shooting time as well

You have virtually the same regulation in Alberta as I referenced in post #8. I take it has never been a problem?

Section 1.(1)(o) of the Wildlife Act, RSA 2000:

(o) “hunt” means, subject to subsection (6), with reference to a subject animal,
(i) shoot at, harass or worry,
(ii) chase, pursue, follow after or on the trail of, search for, flush, stalk or lie in wait for,
(iii) capture or wilfully injure or kill,
(iv) attempt to capture, injure or kill, or
(v) assist another person to hunt in a manner specified in subclause (i), (ii), (iii) or (iv) while that other person is so hunting;

and Section 28:

Hunting at night
28 A person shall not hunt wildlife, except by trapping, during the period commencing at 1/2 hour after sunset and ending at 1/2 hour before sunrise the following day.

 

[Arclight]

We are in place about 45 mins before legal shooting time in Ontario (30 mins before dawn). The firearms are kept in their cases until legal shooting time. There is a lot of movement right before dawn.

 

[phinton81]

When I am bow hunting I like to be in the stand well before dawn as I use a climber and its a little noisy so I would rather be inching up the tree in the dark. It will spook any deer in the immediate area but I find they don't go as far in the dark as they do when the suns up and if they are moving from their night spots to their day spots, they will still follow same paths even if spooked in the dark.

Patrick

 

[Eagleye]

About 85% of all the game I have shot has been on the ground by 9:00 AM, so I like being
out early. That being said, game can be seen at practically any time of the day, so it is up
to each individual to decide what is the best strategy for him/her. Dave.

 

[Butcherbill]

I always say I’ll be in my spots for sun up but I’m not a morning person and when I do manage to be walking in as it’s just getting light out I don’t see anything anyway lol. I have always had more success later in the morning or in the last few hours of the legal shooting hours. Looking at my notes last years doe was shot at 5:30-6pm and my buck was at 1:30pm, this years doe was 12-12:30pm and my buck was 8am. My grouse all seem to be from 11am to last light, more later in the day though which is typical of their feeding or habits.

So I don’t sweat it if I am not out before the sun comes up, my notes confirm I should sleep in and have that second coffee lol. I’d rather be out till last light anyways.

I had a friend visiting for a couple days deer hunting and the first couple we were out before dawn and saw nothing, the day before he had to head home he was determined to get out early again but we both were tired and slept in and dragged our asses getting going. We got out by 9am I think and by 10:30am he had his first deer on the ground, so sometimes you can’t worry about the late starts.

 

[jjohnwm]

Watching the day wake up, straining my eyes to see game in the pre-dawn, listening as much as looking, are all a big part of hunting for me. I want to be in position, completely ready, at least 30-45 minutes before the beginning of legal shooting light. Yes, I see deer all day long, but the first and last 2 hours of the day are prime.

If I walked out to my stand at first light, I'm sure all my deer would be shot at mid-day like the other late-risers; when else would I see them?

But a word of thanks is in order to those guys ambling randomly around at first light; I'm sure some of the deer the rest of us see and shoot are moving because you spooked them up for us.

 

[hoytcanon]

I have never had a problem moving silently in the darkness pre-legal light... I like to be in my stand at least 20-30 minutes BEFORE legal light... I like to allow myself to cool down from the hike in, let the surroundings go back to their normal rhythms, and get myself in tune with the scents and smells and sights... sharpen my senses... and be ready to strike as soon as it is legal to do so... I have taken many of my biggest bucks and bulls during the first five minutes of legal light. I feel the same way about the evening hunt... I stay sharp during legal light and then give things 10-15 minutes before I exit... I am listening to and sensing the surroundings during this time... when I exit, I do so with as little disturbance as possible, whether I will be back to hunt there or not... no sense in educating the quarry... in general, I leave as small a footprint as possible on the landscape... for deer, I don't hunt from the same location twice, I move every morning and every evening, this makes it much harder from the deer to pattern you and begin to avoid your proximity... eventually, you can catch even the cagiest buck off-guard.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

I prefer the early morning hunt, but there are regulatory challenges. Such as the prohibition, in this province, against hunting more than a half hour before sunrise, where "hunting" includes "lying in wait for wild life".

Regs say unloaded and encased. All you need is a gun sock.

 

[Dukester]

Regs say unloaded and encased. All you need is a gun sock.

Always gotta think Province JYC.

 

[CV32]

Regs say unloaded and encased. All you need is a gun sock.

That would certainly depend on which province you're talking about.

In Ontario, section 20 of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997, S.O. 1997, c.41, says:

Night hunting
20 (1) A person shall not, during the period from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise,
(a) hunt wildlife;
(b) have a firearm in the person’s possession in an area usually inhabited by wildlife, unless the firearm is unloaded and encased; or
(c) shine a light for the purpose of hunting wildlife.

[emphasis mine]

Note here the operative term 'or', such that the firearm is not a necessary requirement of the offence.

Moreover, the definition of "hunting", contained in section 1(1) is broad enough to potentially include sitting in your stand.

“hunting” includes,
(a) lying in wait for, searching for, being on the trail of, pursuing, chasing or shooting at wildlife, whether or not the wildlife is killed, injured, captured or harassed, or
(b) capturing or harassing wildlife,
except that “hunting” does not include,
(c) trapping, or
(d) lying in wait for, searching for, being on the trail of or pursuing wildlife for a purpose other than attempting to kill, injure, capture or harass it, unless the wildlife is killed, injured, captured or harassed as a result,
and “hunt” and “hunter” have corresponding meanings; (“chasse”, “chasser”, “chasseur”)

Part (d) could be argued as a way out, and is absent in some other jurisdictions, but I wouldn't want to be the one trying to make the argument. I haven't looked to see if the provisions have been judicially considered.

 

[tigrr]

2 things come to mind. Ontario, where I hunted in my younger days, animals are driven to the shooter. So getting there before they move is a waste of time.
2 in BC I want to make it home buy not feeding the grizzly or cougar laying in wait. Left my ground blind at dark and when I went in the morning back to the blind there was 3 cougar tracks in my tracks. Testies a bit high that morning. I don't go out before daylight unless I'm in a truck!!