Other than during the rut, is this a waste of time,I always hunt from sunrise till around 800 and from about 400 till dark, am i missing some action not hunting midday?

Cowboysfan,

I hate to say it, but you've probably missed a lot by getting out too early and going in too late.
Of all the deer I've shot, I don't know that I've ever shot one before 8 am. Last year I shot a buck around 10-10:30. I was getting tired of sitting there but decided to give it a few more minutes, then there he came. I don't usually go all day, but I try not to leave before 11. I've seen nice bucks shot at high noon.
As far as evening, my experience has been to shoot them right at dark, but you never know when they might come by.
For what its worth.

I have had good luck even around 12, the deer get up and wander a little all through the day . If you are bored after 10 or 11 go still hunt a corn feild into or cross wind 10 mph or faster and go S_L_O_W.

Durring the weeks when there is a full moon I have found the deer tend to be out more in the middle of the day more than any other time. I try to find a feeding area or watering hole close to a bedding area for the full moon, and hunt it from about 10:00 to 3:00.

While your back at your truck having lunch I am going to be shootin your buck. Do you really think that deer just move in early a.m. and late p.m.? If your going hunting then hunt and hunt it hard. I have seen these 5x5's and 4's cruising through the property here like clockwork around 11:30am to 12:30pm on a regular basis. A deer is not going to bed up all day, it will get up and move at some point in the day, even when under pressure or especially during the rut. Good luck, Bobby

In the morning I like to hunt until 9:30 or 10. Of coarse during the rut sunrise to sunset! Those times are for early season........of coarse in the later season its dark at 5, so I usually get out at 2:30 to 3 o'clock.

Good Luck!

I've seen them as early as 6:30 a.m. to as late as 11:30 a.m. in the morning. In evening's I usualy get out about 3 hours before sunset. Although they mostly come out right before sunset I've seen them much earlier. I'd rather sit for an extra hour and know I didn't miss one than to wander in wondering.

It depends on where your hunting. In my area in S.E. Wisconsin we usually only see shooter bucks till about 9 or 10 am MAX and then again right before dark. However when I boat back into the swamps in the same area, we see big bucks all day. When I hunted Iowa last season we saw the majority of movement between 10 AM AND 2 PM. when I would normally not be in the woods back home.

I typically only hunt the first 3.5 to 4 hours of the day and then the last 3. Except on Sundays because that is when I am watching the Packers beat the Cowboys.

I personally usually stay until about noon then back at about 4 till dark. But I seem to remember somewere I heard that majority of records bucks or average time record bucks were taken is between like 12 and 2. go figure.

And last year were were talking to some fish and game guys that run around our area chasing collared deer and elk said that the most elk that they see is in the afternoon when they are driving and seeing all of the hunters in camp eating Breakfast. Once again go figure.

And last I want to share something that my Grandfather told me a few years back when I was asking him when I should be out and what the deer are generally doing at certain times, he just tells me " The deer will do what the want to when they want to do it." But that is mostly speaking for blacktail which I have found preatty darn hard to pattern.

Pinky