Mojo, I've been up close and personal to deer in the dark plenty of times, I think they just seem more secure then...
Many times, I've had deer around my stand when I wanted to climb down but didn't want to spook them so I would stay up until an hour or two after sundown...It was amazing how much more vocal they were too, after dark...
I can see why the early settlers used a canoe and torch to kill game, it would be pretty efficient...