after darkness
 

I was wondering what others do when shooting light ends and there are still deer around. Do you wait until the deer leave or pack up and risk spooking them? In VA where I hunt, half hour after sunset is as late as you can take a deer. If I decide not to shoot one that night what would be your thoughts on how to get out of the area with deer around?

If the deer can see me get out of my stand, I wait. I don't care if they see me walking across the field, they see me do that all the time, thats normal. But I don't want them to see me get out of a tree, thats not normal to them...

I wait until full dark to head out if there are still deer around. Walking and spooking deer is one thing, but them watching you get out of a tree is something entirely different IMO. For what amounts to a few extra minutes, just sit tight and let it get good and dark.

Alarm snort like a deer. You are around a bunch of em so they won't know the difference. Has worked for me several times.

I myself would stay in my tree stand untill i know there gone or it was so dark i could take my time getting out then walk out the long way by taken my time .Like others have said you don't want a deer seeing you getting down out of a tree .

For sure! stay until your pretty sure there gone or at least wont see you get out of your tree

It doesn't always work, but I will bark like a dog to get rid of deer around me at the end of legal shooting time.

-fsh

I give a loud snort wheeze on the buck roar and after they all bolt I climb down from my tree.

Bring a couple of rocks along. Throw them and then get out as soon as they leave. If you can't see deer, just get out as soon as you feel you can't shopt anymore. I agree with advice Bill Winke once gave via one of his articles, you do no good by staying after shooting light. Just get out asap as quietly as possible.

A guy up here was summons for doing just that a couple of years back. They took his 4 wheeler and bow ect.. I do not know how he would of made out on that. He was fighting the charge but ended up dieing early because his Grandlake canoe was hit by a hard cross wind. They were salmon fishing when he drowned along with a friend of his. But, I would just the same becarefull of the advice to stay in the stand after legal hours..

I don't see how they can do that. Its not illegal till you pull the trigger.... I guess anything is possible..
I think in all the years I have hunted, (about 20 years), I have only ever waited for the deer to leave three times. I don't usually wait till dark to get down and walk out. I usually will start walking back about 15 minutes or so of last legal light, just in case there is something along the way I still have time to shoot. I also hunt privet property. There is one other person that hunts on the hedge row of the adjacent land, and he walks out about a half hour after shoot time. Drives me crazy... I usually stop and talk with the land owner a few time just to let him know when I will be there and how long. Then I see this guy drive out....

i snort wheeze either by mouth or with my call.