Who hunts mornings early season?
- Thread starter Kwood
- Start date
Chainsaw
Well-Known Member
Mornings very early season have always been good to me. It is not that mornings are better but the early setup I like to hunt is best in the mornings. The deer leave the alfalfa field before sunup and eat from the bordering apples and then move into the hickory nut area at first light and steadily sometimes until about 9:30 am.
Food plots evenings early season bring lots of deer but it is hard to be in position to shoot bucks then as compared to being at the favorite hickory tree in the am.
Food plots evenings early season bring lots of deer but it is hard to be in position to shoot bucks then as compared to being at the favorite hickory tree in the am.
95% of the deer my wife and I take are in the mornings...early season back in the woods on the oaks has been best for us...
g squared 23
Well-Known Member
Have never seen a shooter buck in the mornings in the early season. It is my favorite time to shoot a doe, especially during cold fronts, they will move almost the entire morning.
Doctorbrady
Well-Known Member
I like morning hunts better, probably due to cooler conditions. I have killed a lot of game in the mornings during early season, though most buck sightings are in the evening. The one exception is at water holes where I tend to get a lot of early am buck photos when conditions are hot and dry.
Heart shot
Active Member
Hunted 2 mornings so far this year, saw 4 the first morning, and nothing so far today. It seems if I can get in on the oaks the does will filter through in the mornings. Bucks I rarely see early season mornings except yearlings
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
I would suggest staying out of the woods early season mornings. I feel more damage can be done than chances of getting on a good buck in the mornings. Unless I had up to date intel on a buck that is in an area in the mornings during daylight conditions I would stay out and save that area for a later time when you know that buck will be on his feet during daylight. The problem with hunting mornings is for a hunter to have any chance at all he/she would have to be right in that bucks bedroom. Awful lot of things that can go wrong and if something does go wrong then that target buck will probably move on to an area with less pressure.
For me personally that is a chance I am just not willing to take in the first of October. Now around November 1st I will be taking that chance.
For me personally that is a chance I am just not willing to take in the first of October. Now around November 1st I will be taking that chance.
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
Kwood were these buck pictures at the water hole before velvet shed? In my experience bucks will change their daylight movements considerably after velvet shed. Typically a mature buck will turn almost nocturnal during this early season phase. The exception I have seen is in the evenings on secure food sources. After checking some cameras last weekend I noticed several bucks still carrying velvet and the bigger bucks that I had hard horned pictures of started moving late in the evening with very few even early pre-daylight pictures of mature bucks.
Kwood
Well-Known Member
Blizzard, all of them were velvet so far. But really nice deer. Haven't been there to check cards in about 3 weeks so not sure if it changed. Don't want to bump a good buck but also am trying to weigh whether or not I want to give up a day of hunting to avoid bumping a deer. I live two hours away and plan to hunt 10/1 evening. I will either hunt the next morning or head home. I agree patterns may change. Just thinking I may have a crack at him if he's around. Risk reward maybe? As a rule I've never hunted mornings until November. But seeing all the AM pics is changing my mind a bit.
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
If it were me I would hunt the evening of 10/1 and try to get in and check the card after climbing down. If you don't get the intel you need to kill that target buck I would stay out and come back and get him either in the evening (on edges) or wait until after the first of November and get after him hard then. The way I look at hunting mature bucks is can I kill him on that given day, if the answer is uh maybe then I stay out until a day or time that I have the intel to say I am going to kill that buck on that given day (still may not happen but odds swing in your favor). If that makes sense?
