If only given one time period it would be the 2hrs before dark.What do you consider the best time to hunt besides when you canLast 2hrs before darkfirst 2hrs after daylight

Except for during gun season when there are other people out in the woods pushing deer around, I have not had luck with hunting deer in the morning.

Peter

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Originally posted by WI Hunter:
Except for during gun season when there are other people out in the woods pushing deer around, I have not had luck with hunting deer in the morning.

Peter

I shot a few deer in the morning with my bow seem to be better for rattling and grunting to me. But one needs to be able to get in real quite.

Frankly, I have had some great luck between 10-2 on cloudy chilly days.

I agree with Dall85. I've taken a few deer in that 4 hour window but, most of my luck with a bow has come within the last two hours of daylight.

85% of the deer I have taken have been between 8:30 and 10:30. Of course this year has been absolutely horrible. I have been out in the woods 10 full days and have not seen a deer. Every other species has crossed my path; 4 bear,2 Wolf, 4 coyote, 5 fisher, a bunch of turkey and more partridge than i can count.

My sons and I have shot 1 elk and 7 deer this season. Two deer were just before dark and everything else was in the first 3 hours of the morning.

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Originally posted by thecanadian:
85% of the deer I have taken have been between 8:30 and 10:30. Of course this year has been absolutely horrible. I have been out in the woods 10 full days and have not seen a deer. Every other species has crossed my path; 4 bear,2 Wolf, 4 coyote, 5 fisher, a bunch of turkey and more partridge than i can count.

As soon as I read this, I KNEW you were hunting in Wisconsin. The last year I hunted in northern Wisconsin was 2008. That year I saw (in 9 full days of rifle season), ONE doe and five wolves....

I'm glad I moved to Tennessee. There's no wolves to deal with and the weather's a lot nicer....

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Every other species has crossed my path; 4 bear,2 Wolf, 4 coyote, 5 fisher, a bunch of turkey and more partridge than i can count

Could it be your just too busy shooting other things and not waiting for the deer.

The bucks are really starting to move saw 3 decent ones in broad day light today.

If you live and hunt in Wisconsin, you'd better not be shooting 4 bear,2 Wolf, 4 coyote, 5 fisher, a bunch of turkey and more partridge than i can count, because with the exception of the coyotes and partridge, ALL the other species are highly regulated and require drawing a permit. A classic example of that is my applying for a bear permit for 10 years running and not drawing one... Heck, I even had a hard time getting drawn for a turkey permit. So shooting too many other critters isn't the problem.

And my thoughts on the original question of the best time to hunt? ANYtime you have the time....

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Originally posted by p dog shooter:

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Every other species has crossed my path; 4 bear,2 Wolf, 4 coyote, 5 fisher, a bunch of turkey and more partridge than i can count

Could it be your just too busy shooting other things and not waiting for the deer.

The bucks are really starting to move saw 3 decent ones in broad day light today.

Well kind of, 2 of the coyote, 3 turkey and 6 of the partridge have fallen to my bow. Just went out again today, still nothing. Trail cams have lots of night pics.

Well the rut should be in full swing here in WI this weekend. I will be heading out to my stand early tomorrow morning to sit as long as I can. The only problem is that I still have about 200 acres of corn around me in all directions. Makes for pretty tough hunting. Good luck to everyone this weekend!

Peter

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A classic example of that is my applying for a bear permit for 10 years running and not drawing one... Heck, I even had a hard time getting drawn for a turkey permit. So shooting too

Your doing something wrong even in the most applied for area every body with at least 8 bear points and wanted one drew last year. Did you skip a year or two. Area C is about 4 points

Most turkey areas had left over permits only the far northern units all didn't draw. Even then the unit I am in the last 5 years I drew fall and spring except this fall.

Well I'm glad I went out this morning. I saw one set of eyes on the walk in, very close to my stand. Then I had a doe and two fawns come by about ten min after opening. Then I saw a monster leave the corn about 7:10. First time I have seen this buck, not even a picture on trail camera. I hope he will come out again tonight, even just for a better look.


I also have had very good luck getting a turkey tag, as long as I remember to apply. I have not been so lucky with a bear. I'm sitting at 5 or 6 points, so I should be receiving one one of these years.

Peter

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I have not been so lucky with a bear. I'm sitting at 5 or 6 points, so I should be receiving one one of these years.

Unless you apply for zone C you well have another 2 to 3 years to pull a bear tag

quote:

Originally posted by thecanadian:
85% of the deer I have taken have been between 8:30 and 10:30. Of course this year has been absolutely horrible. I have been out in the woods 10 full days and have not seen a deer. Every other species has crossed my path; 4 bear,2 Wolf, 4 coyote, 5 fisher, a bunch of turkey and more partridge than i can count.

When you saw the partridge... were you hunting out of their Pear Tree? Sorry. Tis the Season.

From all the night shooting going on now I am guessing its about 2 hours after sunset.

Hey... Don't forget about the two hours before daylight.

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Originally posted by p dog shooter:
Your doing something wrong even in the most applied for area every body with at least 8 bear points and wanted one drew last year. Did you skip a year or two. Area C is about 4 points

Most turkey areas had left over permits only the far northern units all didn't draw. Even then the unit I am in the last 5 years I drew fall and spring except this fall.

Nope, when I was trying to get a bear permit, back when it was supposed to be "only" 5 years to get a permit, I applied TEN years in a row, never missing a year, always for the same zone and while I didn't get drawn at all, a friend of mine at the fire department got drawn TWICE for the same area I was applying in!!!

And there were years that I never got a turkey permit when they had even increased the numbers of permits. At the time, I wasn't that into turkey hunting, so it was no big deal. But the bear hunting thing ticked me off. So I simply stopped applying in Wisconsin and went hunting in Canada...

I know im way behind on this but I wouldnt trade the first 45 minutes after a rain for the rest of the day.