NY/Al

Are you taking daylight savings into account here as well??

GMMAT

Yeah. I "think" I'll have shooting light about 6:20, tomorrow....so 5:00 isn't "that" early. I think sunrise is about 6:50-ish.

Kojak248

Get in before it gets light. You'll bump less deer plusyou'll be ready whenthey start moving.

mohunter82

difinitely before light. i like at an absolute minimum an hour early. even if i jump one in the dark they settle down alot quicker. on average i like to get there an hour and a half before i can see to shoot. lets everything settle down including me. if you wait till light you could take the chance of not being ready when he comes in.

Plus One

I get in early, I like to give it about an hour for them to settle down and forget me before it starts getting light. I got into that habit when I huntedon a military baseand there was only one other guy who was in the same area, but he came in just after first light.

I said to myself that I could probably sneak in early and let him push deer to me, worked like a charm and I've done it ever since out of habit.

Ken

kevin1

I creep in as soon as it's light enough to see the ground, flashlights just tip them off, even red lenses. Most deer have gone to their bedding area well before sunrise, so the Dawn Patrol is mostly the slackers and dumb ones except for rutting bucks.

madvilledoc

It all depends on where I'm hunting and what time I expect deer to be there. That said, most of the time I go in at least 30-40 minutes before daylight. If my game camera show deer to be there frequently before daylight, I'll wait until first light and sneak in. I'll observe the area from a distance to see if any deer are there and then act accordingly.

waiting_for_a_gift

I agree with most here in principle, but I think anythingmore than30 - 45 minutes before shooting light is going overboard. It is a really good hunting strategy to get into your stand well before daylight, but only if you can accomplish that without too much stress on yourself and without too much disturbance of your hunting area. I agree with several that in a big woods situation, going in that early is really hard. If you have to travel cross country more than a couple hundred yards off a road or trail, it is very dicey. It can be especially bad if the sky is heavily overcast, and / or if the leaves are still on the trees.

Human beings are basically diurnal animals. That means we function primarily in daylight. We are out of our element when traveling through the woods in the dark. I just hate stumbling through the woods making all that commotion at that time of day. Maybe I'm stupid, but I was never a fan of using a flashlight to go in the morning. Choose a location that is reasonably easy to get to, and allow plenty of time. Leave your car or house maybe 90 minutes before shooting light,walk really slow, don't be in a big hurry to get there and set up. Allow your eyes to adjust to the dark. Your priority should be a smooth entry and setup, minimal noise and disturbance.

GMMAT

The amount of activity I heard Saturday morning before shooting light only confirms why I go in as early as I do. If I'd waited....I'd have ruined ALL of that. Those deer weren't there when I went in. If they had been....I'd have bumped them.

I have never heard so many deer around me.....as I did before daylight on Saturday. I am hunting a staging area that I have to get into early. If I had to wait til first light to get in there.......I'd stay home rather than risk all the deer seeing me.

My opinion is....(and I have nothing to base this on, factually)....a deer don't know what in the world we are in the dark. We could easily be another deer.....a coyote....a cow or a sasquatch as far as they're concerned. In the daylight.....there is little doubt. I'll take my chances in the cover of darkness.

We each have to assess our own unique situations....even differing situations in separate woodlots. I have places I could wait 'til after light to go into. I know where they're staging.

GR8atta2d

As a side note to all this.. I always use a flashlight going in and coming out in the dark. It's less for me..I'm comfortable moving in the dark and if you allow your eyes to become a custom to the the available light you can see very well in the darkness.

I use a light for the rest of you guys..and the new guy who sees the horizontal line of my bow as a deers back in conditions when he shouldn't even be considerring a shot! I use my light because the thought of scaring a deer concerns me, a hell of a lot less, than the thought of being on the business end of someone elses broadhead.

It's like the guy on the motorcycle who wears a helmet, not because he doubts his skills..he just doesn't trust the "other" drivers.