Mid-day hunting
 

Where do you hunt during mid-day hunts?Over openings,food plots,thick wooded areas,swamps,logging trails?Any other terrain?I usually hunt in semi-open woods,next to thickets,places where I always see sign,but never see deer in the mornings,or evenings.Any help would be greatly appreciated.Thanks in advance.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

This week, I'm hunting travel lanes; trails leading from one area of deer cover to another. The bucks are rambling, looking for does.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

How come you don't hunt where you see them in the morning and evening. They should be in that area too and if you sit all day you will see more.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

I saw a nice 8 or 9 point at 2:30 today rubbbing sapplings in a little brush about 75 yards off a field. Not a care in the world. Something must have chased himaway from any does, he was alone.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

To be honest this year has been a real struggle with alot of heat,and Deer movement has been real low.I'm hoping to catch one moving around mid-day during the upcoming full moon..I see piles of sign,and tracks,but no deer.Thanks for the help so far guys!

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

Look for a bottle neck ( funnel ) in you hunting spots. The bucks are traveling so pick a spot that increases your chances. I'm telling you funnels are how you get big bucks.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

I usually just hunt in the am. I haven't tried much evening hunting and any time I do go out in the evening, I don't see much. On opening day, I was in my stand from morning all day and stayed till it got dark. I didn't see anything early, but had a couple of young doe come in around noon. Didn't see anything after that either. I'm hunting in a wooded area that has a natural funnel coming in to my area about 50 yards to the north. I'm sitting almost in the middle of the area and have a couple of rubs about 30 yards from my stand. This is the first time I've hunted this area and didn't get the chance to do much pre-season scouting. I haven't seen a lot of activity yet, but they seem to be moving from about 8am until about 1pm (the few I've seen anyway). I hoping that the rut will be starting soon, and I might have some bigger bucks come through. I'd like to get a wall hanger this year. I've only got two deer under my belt, one buck and one doe. I guess we'll see how the rest of the season pans out. If I get to hunt this land again next year, I'm hoping to get it set up better and get to do some more pre-season scouting. I know there's deer out there, I'm just having trouble figuring out where they are. Good luck to you. Don't know if this helped or not, I kinda went off on my own little thread here.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

I WISH EVEYONE HAD THEIR STATE LISTED UNDER THEIR USER ID SO WE COULD KIND OF COMPARE OUR AREA'S ... I AM IN NORTH ALABAMA 25 MILES BELOW THE TENNESSEE STATE LINE AND WE ARE COVERED WITH ACORNS MAKING IT VERY HARD TO PATTERN THE DEER ... IVE BEEN HUNTING AROUND WATER ..TOOK ONE DOE BUT HAVE NOT SEEN JUST A LOT OF DEER MOVEMENT SO FAR ..

ROLL TIDE
DD

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

I think deer movement will slow down but a hot doe is a hot doe and I dont think what the temp is, if a buck gets a whiff of her he will go anywhere anytime. I will be hunting my ridge stands. Here in SW Missouri lots of Ozarks Hills, I have stand strategically placed along side ridges where bucks will troll trying to catch whiffs of a hot doe.

Hunt all day!

Chris
SW MO

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

This is so right. Its EXACTLY how I hunt.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

Movement here has been minimal at best. Lots of deer but it just hasn't cooled off enough yet. We have private land to hunt, and a long season, so I'm not in a rush. Things will be MUCH better here in about 2-3 weeks. Bow season is Oct 1-30, general season runs Nov 5- sometime in Jan., and I will bowhunt general season. Rut will run late Nov. to early Dec.

For us, if you have a good one patterened you can try early and late with a decent chance of scoring right now. I prefer to hunt very low impact untill mid -Nov. Deer movement goes way up then, that is the time to pull out the stops and go all day, anything can happen. To really spark deer movement here we need overnight lows in the 30's, highs in 40's or low 50's, and have had at least one real good blue norther.

Where? I would hunt any areas that concentrate does as the rut approaches, that is where bucks will be. Food sources, travel routes, etc. Don't overlook those secluded areas either. Many times when a buck is with a hot doe they will find an area away from the other deer to bed for a day.

Dr. D, I am in the Tx panhandle, the part that sticks up by Oklahoma, over on the east border. This is rolling plains country, mostly grasslands with brushy riverbottoms, plum thickets, shinoak motts.

Hope this all helps.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

I like to hunt a major river crossing or funnels. River crossings work great because with all the running around during the rut the bucks have to drink and they like to do it where there are major crossings to check scent on hot does at the same time. Good luck!

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

Mid day CAN be a good time to catch a buck cruising for does. I doe all-day hunting at this time of year just to catch a buck. I'm usually there from an hour before sunrise until it's too dark to see anymore that night. That's a LONG time to sit in a treestand! I was out today from 5:30am until 1:30pm and didn't see a thing. I spooked some on the way in, but that doesn't usually matter. It's the heat. Today was supposed to be 70's and tommorow and Saturdayis forecast is for upper 70's![:@] That really cuts down the daytime activity around here. It isn't supposed to cool off anytime soon. [:'(]

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

I would normally hunt bottle necks or funnels between cover during the midday.

However, without fail, every year (and I mean every year) I will be driving along going to some relatives for T-day and see a monster out in the wide open field between 12-1pm. You COULD hunt near fields at this time of day but you have a better chance hunting all the aforementioned places. The only way I would really consider hunting a field at this time of day would be if the time forms a U around the field and that field was set aside and served as a bedding area.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

Last week I had things to do at the house and snuck out around 10 on Saturday--by the time I had gotten to my stand around 11:30, I caught sight of 5 bucks feeding on an oak flat between bedding areas. I tried to reproduce the oak flat/bedding area relationship on another hunt only 3 days later, had 5 deer within range, one at 10 am, 12 pm, and 2 pm...mid day stuff, right off bedding areas.

vashadowhunter

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

Every big buck I have ever killed has been between 12pm and 1pm. And all have of them have been killed in funnels between doe bedding areas.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

Now this is what I call serious help!!Thanks guys.Dr.death I'm from southeast Ga.I guess deer movement is down everywhere due to this heat.spde911,you did help alot,and so have the rest of you.I think I'm picking good spots,just minimal movement.I have seen deer tues,wed,and today.I think it will be doing great this weekend.The best of luck to all of you.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

travel lanes and natural funnels

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

My favorite scraping/seeking and breeding phase...of the rut....bowhunting set ups are situated in a funnels or inside corners. I always make sure these structures are located between doe bedding and feeding areas.

RE: Mid-day hunting
 

here in western new york i haven,t seen or heard a lot of chasing going on. saw a 8 travelling high ground around 9 am. must not be that time yet....But just the fact that he's in this given area at this time tells me its close. think the bugger was looking for apples in the area. been wrm and windy this whole week too.