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Morning vs. Evening Deer Hunts - Empirical data on success rate

Granted I only have 1 season with a bow but mornings have always been the best when using a gun but saw more deer in the evening.

My thinking is with a gun, I don't have to get in nearly as close so I'm not spooking things in the dark. Conversely, walking in mid-afternoon allows me to move quieter and see if I'm bumping anything.
 
I hunt 5 days a week through most of October, Monday-Friday, 7 days a week after Halloween to the end of season if I have a tag still, I’m basically a transient for those 2 months, living in my camp, a tent, or hotel room, I prepay any bill that isn’t already on auto pay for all of season, I upgrade my cell data to unlimited and subscribe to something like youtube tv live so I don’t miss a baseball game or the news at night, I schedule all my doctor’s appointments around deer season, I have my truck serviced just before deer season, I have my second work truck also full of fuel and ready to go just in case my primary vehicle takes a dump, my trucks back seat will be loaded with multiple bags of luggage all of season, a canoe up top and my ebike in the back, I take deer season serious and have my whole life, the last 20 years this has been my routine… In my opinion mornings are more consistent with producing deer encounters, that being said I don’t hunt mornings, unless we have snow and I’m tracking. In my opinion more people screw good spots up trying to bust in there in the dark and hunt mornings than they should, it takes a special stand to be able to do this in the morning without messing things up, they can be gold once found, usually a good place for a preset. I’m mobile, often times never sitting the same place twice when I do sit, usually I’m still hunting or tracking anyways. I sleep in, eat a little breakfast, and hunt the rest of the day, usually I’m in route via my truck when it’s still dark or the sun is just coming up, then I sneak in and hunt until dark. I don’t worry about making noise on the way out because I’m generally not coming back again. After all that.. 10 am to 2 pm seems to be the bracket for me, if I think back at my better bucks it’s usually 10-2, a few just before dark. Answers to this will be all over the map, for most folks work schedules and family commitments will dictate when and how they hunt obviously, so anytime is a good time, that is for sure, but that is my opinion, 10-2, and I do believe mornings are far better for daylight movement, it’s getting in that time unnoticed is the problem for me.
 
I kill more deer in the afternoon than the morning but most of that comes from the fact that I hate getting out of my nice warm bed to go out in 15 degree temps to climb a tree. I have forced myself to hunt more mornings the last couple of years though and have had good success. Problem for me though is when I am sitting in the morning the longer I sit the more discouraged I get if I'm not seeing deer but in the afternoon the longer I sit the closer it gets to that magical time when deer like to move.
 
Bucks: 50/50
Does: See more in the afternoon but prefer to skin does after temps get below 50 and in daylight so those results are skewed due to convenience and choice.
 
Nutterbuster said:
I don't see or anticipate much empirical data collection resulting in asking people about their recollections of their hunts.

Closest I can think of would be Dr. Sheppard's work with Bent Creek Lodge. I believe after a few decades of guiding people on that property and logging it in a database he created they put folks in the woods in the morning and on food plots in the evening.

Mississippi State does a lot of research in the SE and may have something I haven't seen.
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i was lucky to hunt private (SE Georgia) property for about 10 years before my friend sold it. Woods in the morning and food pots in the evening…its pretty hard to sneak into a food plot edge while deer are already in there feeding. Not to say it cant be done.
 
Topdog said:
I hunt 5 days a week through most of October, Monday-Friday, 7 days a week after Halloween to the end of season if I have a tag still, I’m basically a transient for those 2 months, living in my camp, a tent, or hotel room, I prepay any bill that isn’t already on auto pay for all of season, I upgrade my cell data to unlimited and subscribe to something like youtube tv live so I don’t miss a baseball game or the news at night, I schedule all my doctor’s appointments around deer season, I have my truck serviced just before deer season, I have my second work truck also full of fuel and ready to go just in case my primary vehicle takes a dump, my trucks back seat will be loaded with multiple bags of luggage all of season, a canoe up top and my ebike in the back, I take deer season serious and have my whole life, the last 20 years this has been my routine… In my opinion mornings are more consistent with producing deer encounters, that being said I don’t hunt mornings, unless we have snow and I’m tracking. In my opinion more people screw good spots up trying to bust in there in the dark and hunt mornings than they should, it takes a special stand to be able to do this in the morning without messing things up, they can be gold once found, usually a good place for a preset. I’m mobile, often times never sitting the same place twice when I do sit, usually I’m still hunting or tracking anyways. I sleep in, eat a little breakfast, and hunt the rest of the day, usually I’m in route via my truck when it’s still dark or the sun is just coming up, then I sneak in and hunt until dark. I don’t worry about making noise on the way out because I’m generally not coming back again. After all that.. 10 am to 2 pm seems to be the bracket for me, if I think back at my better bucks it’s usually 10-2, a few just before dark. Answers to this will be all over the map, for most folks work schedules and family commitments will dictate when and how they hunt obviously, so anytime is a good time, that is for sure, but that is my opinion, 10-2, and I do believe mornings are far better for daylight movement, it’s getting in that time unnoticed is the problem for me.
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I really like it around 9 am in many of the places I hunt. But a big week for me may be SAT-SUN these days. My brother likes the 2 pm timeframe btw.

You've a charmed life. Get a giant this year. If you can do that around 9 am, (between 9 and 9:20, ideally) that'd be great for my sidelined ego, lol.
 
during the rut, morning and noon/afternoon cruising

other than those prime times, i often hunt in the evening because i'm a night owl also, except if it is going to be unseasonably warm and then i like to hunt cooler morning temperatures even if not the rut
 
bigmike23 said:
Evening, because I hate waking up early with all my soul lol
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This is why I think the way I do about odds on hunting times, and ignoring super specific circumstances of why a morning or evening might be better for a single one of those circumstances.

Way more hunters think like @bigmike23 , than hunters who think like @Topdog.

As much as I want to be like Top Dog, I'm more like Big Mike. And I like to hunt A LOT, and hunt HARD.

Now I'm sad about the multiple screw ups I had on very big deer in the mornings this past season.
 
Depends on property, but prefer evening over morning for mature bucks. Noise factor kills me in the morning. It’s too quiet for me, I hate it. I get busted a lot more in the morning going to my spot than I do in the evening. I do hunt mornings during the rut.
 
I vote for mornings. Especially during bow season. I will say for me though no matter what season or time of year i see the most deer between 10 and 11 in the morning. I still prefer mornings either way one because I a morning person and I sleep for crap anyways and I really don't like to track for blood in the dark with a flash light especially if there is water around!
 
It's nerve-racking, but I like going in at gray light in the mornings. It makes bumping deer, making noise, and getting mad setting up less likely. You still get really good rut cruising.

I'm always thinking deer are watching me climb, and I've had several show up while I was climbing.

Also, once you remove the pressure of being in the tree well before first light, you can sleep in and some pressure is off.
 
I will say for opening day of Ohio gun season, I prefer to not go in until shooting time, or until the fog lifts enough for shooting.

Though to be fair ive been a bit spoiled and have hunted this same farm for just over 20 years. Its rare that i dont walk into deer on my way in, hence the wait.Im disappointed if i don't have a deer by 8am. Ive had deer hung and skinned by 9am at home if im by myself that day. Last year was around 10am when i killed my doe but had passed on 3 bucks that I had to pass on because my buck tag was already filled. Of course they were bigger than the one i tagged.
 
I could have sworn it was way more in the afternoon but it’s nearly 50/50 on bucks. I’m thinking does would be the same but I simply prefer to shoot them in the morning.
 
The time of deer sightings have always depended on where I was hunting and what part of the season it is. For the rut / gun season you better be sitting in your best spot all day long! You never know when that bruiser will chase a doe by or the hunter on the other side of the swamp will get cold and head to the truck.
 
I asked this question a while ago. Seen or shot the bigger bucks during the rut morning to afternoon. At least where I hunt that seems to be the pattern.

What time did you kill him?

Just looking to see what time or year and time of day you have killed your bucks. I'm in Michigan for reference. I've taken 4 - 2.5yr old plus bucks. 3 were in early November in rut mode. Before 11am. 1- was in the afternoon I got still hunting the end of November. I have not hunted in the...
saddlehunter.com
 
MattMan81 said:
I asked this question a while ago. Seen or shot the bigger bucks during the rut morning to afternoon. At least where I hunt that seems to be the pattern.

What time did you kill him?

Just looking to see what time or year and time of day you have killed your bucks. I'm in Michigan for reference. I've taken 4 - 2.5yr old plus bucks. 3 were in early November in rut mode. Before 11am. 1- was in the afternoon I got still hunting the end of November. I have not hunted in the...
saddlehunter.com
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i went off local wisdom and never stayed in the stand around noon, now i feel dumb because last few years i started hunting morning and not leaving until 2 pm and i saw a lot of bucks cruising between 11 am and 1 pm during the rut
 
I've always prefered mornings being an early riser and prefering to track in the daylight so my data is definatly biased. I have always thought a deer bumped in the dark is not the same as bumping one in the light (sepecultive). I've had some success hunting morning or evening and big buck sightings are about 50/50. Rut hunt I tend to stay all day.
 
Topdog said:
I hunt 5 days a week through most of October, Monday-Friday, 7 days a week after Halloween to the end of season if I have a tag still, I’m basically a transient for those 2 months, living in my camp, a tent, or hotel room, I prepay any bill that isn’t already on auto pay for all of season, I upgrade my cell data to unlimited and subscribe to something like youtube tv live so I don’t miss a baseball game or the news at night, I schedule all my doctor’s appointments around deer season, I have my truck serviced just before deer season, I have my second work truck also full of fuel and ready to go just in case my primary vehicle takes a dump, my trucks back seat will be loaded with multiple bags of luggage all of season, a canoe up top and my ebike in the back, I take deer season serious and have my whole life, the last 20 years this has been my routine… In my opinion mornings are more consistent with producing deer encounters, that being said I don’t hunt mornings, unless we have snow and I’m tracking. In my opinion more people screw good spots up trying to bust in there in the dark and hunt mornings than they should, it takes a special stand to be able to do this in the morning without messing things up, they can be gold once found, usually a good place for a preset. I’m mobile, often times never sitting the same place twice when I do sit, usually I’m still hunting or tracking anyways. I sleep in, eat a little breakfast, and hunt the rest of the day, usually I’m in route via my truck when it’s still dark or the sun is just coming up, then I sneak in and hunt until dark. I don’t worry about making noise on the way out because I’m generally not coming back again. After all that.. 10 am to 2 pm seems to be the bracket for me, if I think back at my better bucks it’s usually 10-2, a few just before dark. Answers to this will be all over the map, for most folks work schedules and family commitments will dictate when and how they hunt obviously, so anytime is a good time, that is for sure, but that is my opinion, 10-2, and I do believe mornings are far better for daylight movement, it’s getting in that time unnoticed is the problem for me.
Click to expand...
I could not have explained this or put into words what you said any better.
100% totaly agree.
now i hunt alot but not as extreme as you.
i try to get out at least 3-4 days a week and that includes in season scouting.
few years im sure i will have more time to get out more when the kids graduate and head off to college
Now considering im talking about out side of the rut and referring to morning buck movement. .
We all know rut is just a total different game.

I believe and agree with you, most hunters hunts are over in the mornings before they even get to the tree.
This being agreed with because deer are traveling well before first light especially bucks.
They are heading back to whatever bedding gives them the best advantage for saftey.
I want to add if there is some sort of bad wind
Early on and they are getting caught out there when it starts to get light.
I believe they will bed down til mid morning somewhere somewhat secure but, then get up midmorning and move to bedding that gives them more advantage to be safe.
I’m pretty sure this is the time window from 10am to 2pm that people really are or have success in.
i really think this mid morning movement happens more than we-realize.

Afternoons i love late season snd after the first two weeks of season, but again in the afternoon I think that alot of peoples hunts are over before they even know it because of bad entry to spots

Exiting= Im also the same way of exiting an area.
I rarely hunt a spot twice i may adjust 80 yards or more but rarely the same tree.
only time i hunt the same tree would be if i was successful and the following season near that same timeline

this is a great post and a ton of good answers because nit everyone hunts the same and deer act similar in different area but also react differently in different terrains.
great post lets keep going with great info
 
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