Twilight? or First Light?

[Woody]

I was sitting in the stand yesterday afternoon wishing we could "freeze" time for an extra hour or so.

There is something magical about the last 45 minutes and the first 45 minutes of shooting light. -- I expect to see deer any second during those periods.

Afternoon is my favorite time -- which do you prefer? -- and why?

 

[Darryl Yates]

Woody,I enjoy the mornings..I like watching things come alive..

 

[DaddyPaul]

During the rut I think I like mornings the best. I have a little better luck with deer responding to calls in the morning. Hunting food sources like food plots or large agricultural fields I prefer afternoons. Like you said Woody there is something magical that makes you sit up straight and pay attention for that 1st and last hour of the day. Any second it could happen.

 

[SlipperyHill Mo]

Afternoon

The afternnon has always been more productive for me. You have to stay til you cannot see, legally of course.

Watching the morning wake up is special also.

 

[Jeff Phillips]

I couldn't possibly pick a favorite :

I likes em both

There is nothing like watching the woods come to life, but evening hunts when it starts to get cold after the sun drops out of sight are great too!

 

[nevamiss270]

I like mornings because you get to watch the woods wake up but i like the afternoons because you dont have to worry about getting out of the stand too early. I've killed deer in the morn and afternoon so i dont really have a favorite, just bein in the woods is good enouff for me!

 

[Havana Dude]

I enjoy

the mornings watching everything come alive, but also, I can sit as long as I want to, the sun going down don't run me out of the stand. Having said that, I don't ever recall not having a good time hunting, morning, noon or evening. There is also something to be said for watching the sun come up while standing in 4' of water waiting on the ducks to pile into your dekes. But the deer woods is my favorite place to be.

 

[Kansashunter]

First Light for sure!

I used to get in the woods 1 to 2 hours before first light. I would love to sit there and contemplate the coming morning's hunt. Right at the break of day is the most wonderfull part of the day. IMO The excitement of what the day will bring. There is nothing like the feeling of living the beginning of a day.
The end of the is OK too. Reflecting and being thankful of the day you just lived.
But the not knowing is what makes life such a treat. Sort of like: What if you knew that if you laid out of work tomorrow you were going to kill the worlds largest deer. Yes that would be exciting but then what do you have to look forward to if you knew the future?

 

[Bowhunter24]

I would have to say the last 45 min of daylight for me, i have had the most luck then, but also its alot easier for me to stay awake to tell ya the truth I do enjoy watchin the woods wake up in the moring though but if i had to pic a morning or an afternoon hunt i would go with an afternoon.

 

[Scouter]

Morning is the time for me. Listening to the woods come alive. In the cutover, water the sun come up with the rays of the sun warming you up, the glistenning of the frost .
Man it is great to alive to see what the Lord Jesus has done for me

 

[Al33]

Evenings for me.

I suppose because my best three bucks all came in the afternoons. Unlike hunting the mornings when the excitement is peaking at daybreak and wanes as time goes on, the evenings hold their excitement until the very last. This allows for something to look forward to while sitting and waiting. I like the mornings too, but as hours pass without seeing deer, so does the confidence I made a good stand choice.

Al

 

[leo]

It's hard to beat the Mornings

watching the woods come alive, seeing all those shapes take on a form of something familiar rather than what you imagined them to be It don't get a lot better than that for me

leo

 

[Jim Thompson]

Gotta be the mornings....no other time can you get the world to open up to you

Jim

 

[Condor]

Evenings

I like the evening hunts better, I think it is easier to get to the stand undetected & feel the deer are hungry and hence more likely to come out during those last minutes of light. I have seen a lot more deer in the evenings than in the morning.

 

[7 Mag]

Mornings

I have to say the mornings are my favorite times. As many have said, seeing the woods wake up and come alive. My best bucks have also been taken in the mornings.

 

[Davexx1]

Personally I like the morning hunt better. It is nice to be out there in the cool pre-dawn air and enjoy the sounds of silence and then watch darkness turn to daylight and see the woods come alive.

That said, the morning hunt is good but can be risky. The pre-dawn hours are a favorite time for mature bucks to be on the move so you run a risk of being seen, heard, or smelled when you are trying to get to and into your stand in the dark. When the woods are quiet before daylight the slightest sound carries for great distances so we have to be very careful.

The afternoon hunt has proven to be very good, much easier, and much less risky. You have good light in which to navigate to and into your stand quietly. You can be in your stand before the late afternoon deer activity begins so there is much less chance of being seen, smelled, or heard when entering the area and stand. This equates to better chance of success.

We have learned that mature bucks favor the darkness for their travels. Knowing and anticipating that, I stay in my stand until black dark for two reasons. First, to get the best chances of seeing the elusive buck right before the last light fades but also hoping to be able to climb down and slip out of the woods in the darkness without being seen.

I have enjoyed much good success the last 15 minutes or so of light but I have also learned much valuable info during those last few minutes of light and after. Remember, if he gets there right at dark or after you can back up a ways on his trail and reposition yourself so you see him with more available light. Sometimes this may only require a move of only a couple hundred yards.

Good luck to all.

Dave1

 

[Hunting Teacher]

I would have to say the morning. I've had better luck in the mornings on our property, but more than that, just knowing that God is giving me one more glorious day in the woods and being able to thank Him right then and there for the beauty of His creation makes mornings the best. IMHO
Teach

 

[hnter270]

anytime is a good time to be in the woods. i personally like the afternoons. cause it seems a better time. morning is nice too but i always feel im coming out to early.

 

[woody116]

I agree with everything said here. I love being out when the world wakes up, but its tougher to get in there undetected. I have a hang on stand with ladder, and I cant leave it where I hunt. So, I am a not as quite as I need to be. When I go up to our camp in Wisconsin for the rifle season, then I can leave the stand up and slip in and out a bit easier.

Afternoons are great too though. Something about 3pm (after daylight savings) just starts my blood pumping. "magic time" is what I have always called it. Seems like right about then I almost always see something moving around.

 

[Mechanicaldawg]

It's all good!