how early
 

yeah i have never really heard anything about this but, how early is good to get to your hunting spot before light?

i'm used to getting out there about 30 mins to an hour depending on how far i have to walk.


what do you guys think?

RE: how early
 

OK I'm going to take a blasting from a lot of folks here but if its gun season I don't go to my stand until I can see to shoot. I can't tell you how many times I jumped deer in the dark never to be heard or seen again when I was younger. Now I can tell you in the last 4 years since i have been doing it this way I have shot 3 deer on the way to my stand. I hunt in and out of my stand both ways. Now bow hunting is different I like to be at my stand at first light. Most times if you jump a deer with a bow your not usually going to get a shot. There are exceptions to evey rule but thats just the way I do it. Good luck !!

RE: how early
 

I try to be in place at least 30 minutes before legal shooting time. I really think we pressure ourselves unnecessarily and take away the joy of hunting. Hunt to your stand and hunt out when you leave. 12-2PM is nap time for me. :D MV out!

RE: how early
 

i get there 45-60 minutes early so i can get the shivvers from breaking a sweat when walking out then sitting in the dark doing nothing.

I think it best to err on the side of getting out too early, you only get the first few hours of opening day once a year.

oh yeah, like previous poster, between 12-2 nap time!

RE: how early
 

I kind of agree will Mike Hill. I also have scared a lot of deer off in the dark. I still like to be out there at least an hour before the first light.

RE: how early
 

I always get out there at least 1 hour before dawn. I give time for everything to calm back down completely before the sun comes at all. This was if I scared any on the way to the stand...they should have plenty of time to regroup.

Also, I like to hear the forest wake up. It is the coolest thing to go from dead quiet to sometimes noisy

RE: how early
 

I can agree with that.

RE: how early
 

Depends on several things. How far do you have to walk to get to your spot/stand? How many other hunters are in the area? What's the weather like? I like to beat everyone to the woods in hopes that they might push one to me early on. If it's overcast you usually have an addition 15 mins or so of dark but I personally don't let that factor in. I prefer to be in stand or in my spot at the very least 30 mintures before first daylight, so if I'm walking 15 minutes to my spot I leave 45mins to an hour before daylight. Tomorrow is opening day gun season in Illinois. The problem is everyone is the area hunts down where I'm hunting. Yet nobody likes to walk very far so I'm walking about 25 minutes and abput 2 miles back to most isolated area possible, so I plan on being in my spot about an hour before daylight. The cool thing is there is only one area the deer can pass through woods to avoid an open field and that's along a creek bed. From that creek bed that connects two large patches of woods the next closest patch of woods is on the other side of the road in both directions. Those roads are easily a mile and half away. I like my chances of getting some deer pushed to me if I can beat everyone to the woods.

RE: how early
 

Yea, Rifle season opened in GA about a month ago. I have only hunted on private 50 acre+ tracts, so I dont know about public hunting grounds. I would hate a crowded hunt. I cant stand to see a human whilst hunting. Your creek bed plan sounds good. Go the extra miles...especially on opening day. Beat them all to the punch!! Who cares how early you are...the earlier the better I say.....gets the worm (OR DEER)

RE: how early
 

Being there early gives you time to get HNP.