morning vs. evening

[Robinsons Rebel]

After a quick count of all the deer I've killed over the years, I wound up with an interesting answer. I know I prefer a morning hunt over an evening hunt just for the fact that if I kill one, I don't have to worry about failing light. I've never lost a deer that I shot, but I do worry about trailing blood in darkness. Guess it's more of a mind game problem in my head. I thought I would have killed more deer in the evening, but my numbers don't lie. I have killed 52% of my deer in the evening and 48% in the morning. Guess I'll have to hunt both times! As for hogs, killed more in the evening and the same goes for turkeys. Maybe I should have counted when I see the most deer? Lol! Well anyway, I just thought it was an interesting conclusion. Hope everybody had a good hunting season.

[grouse]

I don't have exact numbers but my morning vs. evening kill ratio is pretty similar to yours. Like you, I don't like the prospect of tracking a deer in the dark, though the only one I have lost I found the next morning torn up by coyotes.

I also like mornings because I enjoy watching nature wake up and come alive. Also, our season opens on Sept. 15 and evenings are often too warm for me, but the mornings are usually nice.

[Carnivorous]

Last year in our annual group muzzleloader hunt all 7 deer were shot in the morning. 5 bucks and 2 doe. Even my archery buck in 2023 we're shot in the morning.

[papabear1]

I'm like grouse, I love to be in the woods early
in the morning and watch nature come to life.
I have not hunted afternoons in about 15 yrs.
or so, if i have a kill i have plenty of time to
find it and get it taken care of, no rush unless it,s
pretty warm, I get up @ 4:00 am every morning anyway
( old habits ) so no problem getting going,
If it is too warm i just stay home and drink more coffee.

Dave

[Lonewolf McQuade]

40+ years of hunting, dozens & dozens of deer, I've only had a.m . success 4 times! 4! All doe. Majority of deer movement, especially big bucks, has been around last hour or 2 of light for me. Lazy slugs I tell ya

[DuckHunt]

I've been tracking key details of my harvests for years now, so I pulled up the data.

Like you, the overall numbers are similar. Overall I'm at 54% in the evening and 46% in the mornings.

What about just decent bucks, 6 points or larger? I've bagged 39 of those in total. That's 51% (20) mornings and 49% (19) evenings.

Things are pretty close until I start breaking it down by weapon type.

Our muzzleloader season falls right in the early rut the first two weeks of November and is prime time for big bucks. It's literally 50/50, with eight each. It appears that rutting bucks will move at any time, who knew?

If I'm carrying a rifle, the numbers change. My nice buck harvests are 80% (8) mornings and 20% (2) evenings. I'd almost consider this data point an outlier. I'm guessing the reason for this is that I don't kill as many during rifle season in the evening because I'm at home processing morning kills.

For archery gear, which is generally before the deer get pressured, my nice buck harvests are 69% evenings (9) and 31% (4) mornings. This number doesn't surprise me, because I'm a working man. I hunt on weekends and sometimes after work during the week. I end up with way more afternoon hunts. I can hunt 7 evenings a week, but normally only 2 or sometimes 3 mornings.

[longbow joe]

There is no bad time to be hunting or fishing

[colouredchameleon]

Mid Morning.
in Stand/Blind before first light
9:00 am to 10:15 am (Peak Time) (9:15 plus or minus 10 mins most active

Mid Afternoon
In stand by Noon
2:00 pm to 4:00 pm (PeakTime)

Mid Morning is the most successful time to shot the Big Bucks or Doe
Mid Afternoon is best time too shoot a Doe

[papabear1]

Mid Morning.
in Stand/Blind before first light
9:00 am to 10:15 am (Peak Time) (9:15 plus or minus 10 mins most active

Mid Afternoon
In stand by Noon
2:00 pm to 4:00 pm (PeakTime)

Mid Morning is the most successful time to shot the Big Bucks or Doe
Mid Afternoon is best time too shoot a Doe

[Robinsons Rebel]

40+ years of hunting, dozens & dozens of deer, I've only had a.m . success 4 times! 4! All doe. Majority of deer movement, especially big bucks, has been around last hour or 2 of light for me. Lazy slugs I tell ya

That is so crazy!! What state do you hunt in?

[papabear1]

Southwest Missouri
in the ozarks,

Dave

[Shalako]

There is no bad time to be hunting or fishing

I agree, although I prefer morning hunting.

[Riflemanz]

I hunt evenings due to morning jobs i need to do but I do like mornings.