who enters their stand before sunrise/in the dark?

[Justin Falon]

all good replies and that is what I was looking for. For years I walked a long way into my stands and was set up an hour before sunrise.

Roger Rothhaar and others swear that big bucks bed near their scrapes just prior to sunrise (or something like that). He and other advocate getting set up a little later which means walking to your stand when it is light enough to see. I don't like the thought of being outside my blind when it is light enough to see. Much prefer to be set up and if I have made any noise, letting the animals calm down a bit.  Hopefully I can show you guys a photo of a nice buck within the next 15 days!! Hopefully. Thanks all!

[Justin Falon]

Thanks for sharing Walt. Everyone is different I guess. I like being set up long before the sun comes up. THis year it will be possible. Only have to walk about 50 yards from the back door to the blind. For real.

[babs]

I like to be in my stand at least a half hour before daylight I like for things to settle down and for me to relax. I walk anywhere from 500 yards to a 3/4 mile to my hunting spot and than I always use a climber so I try to set that up as quietly as I can.

If you can get to your stand quietly, it is a good plan. however, on one farm the other guys were drving within a hundred yards of their stands, which always drove their deer and mine away before shooting hours. I had one stand that I needed to get to before any light to beat the deer. It was in a good spot because I shot two deer hanging out by my stand when I got there after legal shooting hours. If you are late, your best option is to still hunt to your spot.  Charging in will chase any deer in the area off that pattern.

[30coupe]

I'm usually there before daylight. I had a young buck about 3 yards from my stand last Sunday about 10 minutes before legal light. I wouldn't have shot him anyway, but if I had waited until daylight to get there, I would have bumped him for sure. As it was, he had no clue I was there.

Every deer I have killed has been in the morning, I think, so it must work. The doe I shot this year was about 10 minutes after legal light. If I had waited until daylight to get there, I would not have had a chance at her.

Frankly, I'm not very good at still hunting. I move way too fast. I know it, but I can't seem to stop myself. I think a lot of when you get there depends on your own personality. I enjoy watching the woods come to life in the morning. Enjoyment is what I do this for, not for big bucks. I'd shoot one if I had the chance, but I'm not devastated if I don't. I have a doe in the freezer, so a buck is just a bonus at this point...or an excuse to be in the woods.

[Ryan Rothhaar]

The idea is that the does/young bucks generally travel into their bedding areas near or after first light, then the mature bucks cruise through a couple of hours later on trails that run perpendicular to the "into and out of cover" doe trails.  The mature buck is thus able to scent check all of the doe trails in one pass after the other deer have went into bedding.  If he hits a hot doe's trail he can follow her up.  Of course all of this is predicated on pre- or in-rut hunting.  The plan is to enter your stand AFTER the does have moved off to bed and BEFORE the buck cruises through.  You avoid bumping the does off of the feeding area before daylight as you enter the stand, and don't have to keep from getting busted by them as they pass by.  

Most of the mature bucks we've killed in the morning have been between 9-10 AM on this pattern.

Remember, Dad developed his philosophy on hunting mature whitetails before the days of large private landholdings with food plots and low pressure.  Back in those days the rut was the way to go (and often still is).  Nobody talked about hunting mature bucks early in the season - nowadays the newer "trophy hunters" talk alot about killing old bucks on summer/early fall food patterns the first week or two of the season.  Lots of this has to do with unpressured land, food plots, and baiting in states where that is legal.

If I was hunting "deer" I would get in early.  Hunting "mature bucks" during the rut, and being EXTREMELY careful not to push the doe groups off of their patterns, I would wait 'till after daylight.

For what its worth, I never get into a stand before I can see to shoot unless I have a specific reason to - each situation dictates the approach - but I'd say 90% of the time I'm getting into the tree at or after shooting light.

Keep in mind that all of Dad's writings were focused on hunting pressured, mature (that is 4 1/2 yrs old and older) whitetail bucks.  Trying understand what he is talking about in the context of just "hunting any deer" is apples to oranges.


R

[D.J. Carr]

atleast 30 mins before shooting light. I assumed this was standard practice.

[tracker12]

I have a friend that is a dedicated big buck hunter.  He is in his stand at 4AM way before daylight.  I have always been in beofre light but not sure i am that dedicated to loose that much beauty sleep.

Wanted to add that my friend always hunts away from feeding areas intercepting bucks as they move to there bedding areas.  He also concentrates on feeding areas that are off limits to hunting like estates, parks ect.

[KentuckyTJ]

It all depends on the setup and if you think you can get around where the deer will be heading back to bed in the morning without them crossing your inlet path. I am sure more deer are spooked by smell than site so to me my scent in walking in is more important to take out of the situation than them seeing me.

Another issue is our lights we use to enter. That is why I just researched and bought a light I can use with different output levels and it doesn't wreck my night vision and is able to be held so the deer can not see the beam as they can a headlamp.

[59Alaskan]

typically I like to be in and set an hour before daylight.  That is just plain quality time with nature and our Creator.

However, if I am hunting high pressure areas I have noticed lots of movement mid-day.  If my schedule allows I have no issue going in later and hunting mid-morning to mid-afternoon, especially during rut.

Deer pattern us better than we pattern them.

[JMR]

Thanks to Ryan Rothhaar for explaining his dads ideas on mature bucks habits. It makes a lot more sense to me now that I know his reasons for approaching his stand after first light.

[Bowwild]

I consider myself late to an AM stand if I'm not in it at least 30 minutes before legal shooting time. A HUGE part of the fun for me is to be in the dark and contemplate the coming light. While very rare from my favorite stand I love to hear the sound of deer walking in the darkness.

When I hunt PM I also walk out at dark.

I realize the point about walking in with enough light to see with the theory being to make less noise. I know my hunting areas very well. I don't even need a flashlight. While deer see better than I do in low light, I'm confident they can see me better, at distance during daylight vs. dark.

[long time archer]

I have many times; however, the last number of years I have hunted only one farm. On this farm the only way to fence rows and woods is through crop fields or hay fields. Typically I have run deer out of the fields on the way in, which has also buggered up the woods. So for the last 10 years of so, I have gone into the woods for afternood hunts or waited until deer clear the fields and gone in about an hour or so after daylight.  Best of luck!

[adkmountainken]

depends on the stand, some of my stands are pretty hard to find! i am usually in the stand before first light and really try not to use the flash light that much.

[Easykeeper]

I like to be in my stand and ready at least 15 minutes before legal shooting time, 1/2 hour before sunup here.  The main reason I do it is just for the chance to watch the woods wake up and the excitement and anticipation of slowly walking in and setting up in the dark.

I can see the reasoning behind Mr. Rothaar's advice and will second that most of my buck sightings take place 1.5-3 hours after sunrise.

[Tater]

I like to be settled in to my stand and quiet 30 minutes before legal shooting time.

[longbowman]

A famous person, once said in a book I have, "It's better to be an hour early than a minute late."  So, yes, I go in before daylight.  The buck I killed this year came in less than 5 minutes after I got in my stand and fed within 10 yds. of me on acorns until it got light enough to identify him as a legal buck.  If I had waited until light enough to see I would have spooked him out of area.

[Dave Lay]

I'm usually in stand about a hour before any kind of light. I have read Rogers book as well but he hunts in a WAY different world than I do ,

[goldflinger]

I get in my stand 45-50 minutes before sunrise, or 15-20 minutes before legal shooting light. I can usually get to most of my stands without a flashlight. If I use one, it is pointing straight down. I am usually hard pressed to sit for more than 4 hours and by that time my bladder is killing me. I do not pee from the stand or use a bottle, so the 15-20 minutes gives me until about 11:00am. The majority of my deer are shot in the morning, and although I do hunt evenings occasionaly, I do not look forward to tracking and gutting in the dark.

[LimBender]

Mr. Rotthar, very interesting and thanks for that.

TJ,

That is why I use a low red led when close to the stand.  I have been on the ground right next to deer staring at me in the dark.  I'm sure they can see it, but not much compared to white light.  It also doesn't mess up your night vision and is good if you have to do small tasks on stand.