Hunting Early Season Mornings

[nextstepbowhunter]

I am planning an out of state trip for a mid-September bow hunt. From what it sounds like, most people do not hunt mornings because mature bucks are back in their beds before light so you will likely do more harm than good. However, if I am driving 10 hours, I plan to utilize my time as much as possible and was thinking to try and set up to catch some of these bucks heading back to their beds (which I already identified on a scouting trip). With a TON of public land to play on, is there any reason I shouldn't hunt every morning I'm there?

[matt1336]

No reason not to. As long as you have a bunch of land scouted- who cares if you burn up a few bedding areas.

[jteulker]

Im having the same dilemma. I think you just have to be smart with your morning sits. Maybe use them as kinda a conservative setup to do some observing in the early season. But if you think you have a good plan for a morning spot where you feel you can get in without bumping to much out of the area go for it, but remember what Dan says scout 3 times to the 1 hunt. (Or something like that)

Hope this helps. I look forward to hearing what everyone else says.

[Bonecrusher101]

Absolutely I would hunt in the mornings. We still have a lot of hot weather here throughout October. Deer move well till 9 or 10am from my observations. I have set up near suspected bedding many times in the afternoons and have yet to have much success with it when the weather is above 80 degrees which it normally is the first few weeks of October.

Overall, I typically struggle the first few weeks of our bow hunting season which opens the last weekend of September. By the third week of October usually the hunting gets better, and the weather cools up a bit.

[Stanley]

You need to ask yourself what is the biggest difference hunting a buck bed in the morning and in the evening? In the evening the buck is more likely to be in the bed where you know he is. In the morning there is a good chance he is not in the bed. So you more than likely don't know where the buck is, or coming from. You lose an advantage in the morning.

Given this information you need to decide how you want to hunt the bed most effectively. It is a known fact the first hunt is almost always the best opportunity. Hunting less often efficiently, is more effective, than hunting more often, just to be hunting. Choose wisely grasshopper.

Do you think it is an accident, Dan, one of the premier/successful big buck hunters in the world prefers evening bed hunting?

[Rob loper]

morning spots can be hunted but the deer trails and entrys can not be used you gotta plan your entry routes so deer dont cross your path going to their bedding
then the wind has to be right to of course . so entry trails must be planned out ahead of time

[Divergent]

You need to ask yourself what is the biggest difference hunting a buck bed in the morning and in the evening? In the evening the buck is more likely to be in the bed where you know he is. In the morning there is a good chance he is not in the bed. So you more than likely don't know where the buck is, or coming from. You lose an advantage in the morning.

Given this information you need to decide how you want to hunt the bed most effectively. It is a known fact the first hunt is almost always the best opportunity. Hunting less often efficiently, is more effective, than hunting more often, just to be hunting. Choose wisely grasshopper.

Do you think it is an accident, Dan, one of the premier/successful big buck hunters in the world prefers evening bed hunting?

I would like to add to this. Save your best bed locations for evening hunts at the beginning of the season. However, you can still hunt a good trail in the morning that leads into bedding. Place yourself between food and bed where a trail necks down in thick cover and stay at least til 11am. I find that most bucks move at daylight and again between 10-11am.

Just make sure you scout beforehand. You can sit all day in the wrong spot or you can sit a few hours in the right spot.

[headgear]

Mid sept is around opening weekend in MN and WI, I have seen enough guys stumple into huge bucks on accident opening morning to think that you can catch some of them my surprise. If the season opens up earlier where you are going and there still isn't a ton of pressure I would still go for it. Heck if I'm on a trip I'm hunting as much as possible no matter what. Like others have said maybe save your best spots for the evening but throw some of your best guess work at some morning sits.

[Jonny]

You can also just scout in the morning as well. Maybe that spot you have been drooling over all summer had 15 trucks parked by it?

Maybe you stumble across some hot sign in an area you previously overlooked that you wouldn't have ever found otherwise.

I have seen plenty of deer early season in the mornings to know its not impossible to shoot one. But like Stanley said there probably is a reason why Dan prefers evening hunts.

Are you planning on going back again later in the season or is it one crack at it? If I was going back in the rut, I would definitely use it as a scouting trip and try my hand at a couple bed hunts in the evenings. If it was only the one trip, then I really don't know. I'd still opt to scout and put myself in the best spot I can each night. Cause I don't think a lot of guys have consistent luck going in blind. And those that do, have been doing it for a long time.

[DaveT1963]

There are far too many big bucks killed every single year in the AM to not hunt them during that time. Especially on an out of state hunt. You have to think through your approach and exit and try to intercept them at the best spot. And not every buck or bed is created equally... some are better set ups and some bucks are more vulnerable in the AM; some are better set ups/more vulnerable in the evening. There is no 100% rule. If you are not confident in your AM ability then glass and if you see one head to bed, go slip in mid morning (around 0900) and hunt rest of day as deer seldom stay bedded the entire day - they get up, browse, drink..... especially during the pre rut and rut. If you don't see one while glassing, scout by foot until you find fresh sign and then set up.

Stanley brought up a good point above, in the evening you more then likely know where the buck is - in his bed (and mornings you don't know that for sure). However, to flip that around, in the evening you really can't be sure (unless you can read the mind of a buck) what he is going to do or what time he will do it. He might head this direction one day and a totally different route the next. Or he might stay in his bed until after dark.... you never KNOW. In the morning you KNOW with a fair amount of certainty where he is heading in early season..... to his preferred bedding/core area.

There are pros and cons to both and it is HIT or MISS both AM and PM depending on so many factors it is futile at best to try to ascertain or generalize when is a "better" time. The biggest challenge of AM hunting is due to our poor seeing in the dark, if we had better sight we could just as easily stalk our tree in the morning as in the evening.

[NYBackcountry]

On my out of state trip (rut) I used the morning to glass and observe spots of interest. Since you have the advantage of a previous scouting trip, maybe consider a little more of a honed in/aggressive observation sit as opposed to just glassing general areas and pin point one of your targets before you move in on him.

[PK_]

Early season mornings have been good to me on out of state trips. Unless you were limited on good sets it would be silly not to maximize your time, like you said.

[Bonecrusher101]

In my opinion this question could vary greatly according to region is being hunted.

My friend killed a nice 3.5 year old buck on public 4 years ago but it's been his only velvet or early season buck. He killed it opening weekend in the morning at 8:30am. A big group of us meet up ever year for opening archery usually about 20 hunters. We didn't make a kill all weekend, buck or doe this season.

I also don't remember any Mississippi or Tennessee hunter on this forum posting any kill pics until half way through October last hunting season. I was looking. I'm not saying it can't be done but chances weren't in your favor. Bedding is where it's at and I believe in these tactics, but I do not know one single bow hunter in my region that kills decent bucks during early season with any consistency.

There are very few bucks killed during the first few weeks of our hunting season, especially if it's hot. I didn't see any on Facebook or hear about any good bucks being killed during the first few weeks of our archery opener.

It's also important to listen to the successful hunters in the region, to maximize your chances. From what I've seen In my area, I think your chances are better in the mornings on days it's really hot. Catching them returning to bed or still on their feet in the cool of the mornings. Evenings are tough on hot days because the deer don't seem to get up and move far till after dark.

[<DK>]

I agree w many comments posted. If youre out of state then just go for it and learn some things. However, iv never heard anyone shooting bucks in the mornings early season unless it was a AG setup.

If it were me, id hunt morning beds closer to access and save deeper spots for evenging hunts. If you muddy up a spot it will push the deer to better areas for the rest of the hunts.

What state or region are you planning to hunt?

[<DK>]

In my opinion this question could vary greatly according to region is being hunted.

My friend killed a nice 3.5 year old buck on public 4 years ago but it's been his only velvet or early season buck. He killed it opening weekend in the morning at 8:30am

That is a great point BC, I have never had an opportunity to chase a velvet buck but that would be different situation id definitely hunt AM early season.