Deer hunting is a fine balance between patience, strategy, and an understanding of deer behavior. One of the most crucial factors that will determine whether or not you are successful is timing of the hunt. Knowing which times of the day are the best to hunt will maximize your chances of encountering deer.
One of the advantages of hunting deer is that they are creatures of habit, which means that they often follow a set of predictable patterns and do not change their routine much, if at all. Deer are easily influenced by food availability, daylight, season, and the weather. To be an effective and efficient deer hunter, you must learn and adapt to these patterns.
In this article, we will discuss the best times of the day to hunt deer and break it down into three different sections – morning, midday, and evening. This article will help you better understand what to expect from deer and help you maximize your success this deer hunting season.
Early Morning Hours
What Makes Early Morning Hours Successful for Deer Hunting?
When we say early morning, we are referring to the time right before the sun rises to a couple of hours after the sun rises. This is one of the most popular times to hunt deer because it is the most productive. You are more than likely to spot many deer during this time creating multiple opportunities for you to hunt and be successful.
Many hunters refer to the early morning hours as prime time for deer because the deer are generally getting up from their overnight bedding areas to head over to feeding areas. Deer stay more active during this time due to a combination of factors such as cooler morning weather and lower levels of light.
While you may have thought that deer are active at night, they actually tend to seclude themselves and remain at rest during the night hours to avoid predators. Once dawn begins to break, they get up and start their adventure to forage for food.
Factors That Make Morning Hours Great Hunting Hours
- Wind Direction: Before going out to hunt, it is recommended that hunters check the wind direction. Remember, deer have a keen sense of smell and if the wind is blowing your scent in their direction, this could ruin your success
- Temperature: The early morning hours tend to offer cooler temperatures, which are preferred by deer and allow them to be more active
- Light Levels: Low light levels in the morning equal active deer as the lower light helps to shield them a bit as they look for food and eat
- Feeding Patterns: Most deer wake up in the early morning hours and venture out to start foraging for food. You are going to find more deer feeding in the morning than you will during other times of the day
Challenges You May Face with Early Morning Deer Hunting
While the early morning hours are best for deer hunting, there are some challenges that you may face. First, deer are more alert when they first wake up which coincides with early morning. Because of this alertness, they have an increased radar which means they are more likely to easily detect a human and hear noises. You want to make sure that if you plan to hunt in the early morning hours that you are quiet and still.
Second, since the light levels are lower during this time, you may find it more difficult to see the deer until they are closer to you. This means that you will often have to make quick decisions, and it helps to have good shooting skills.
Midday Hours
What Makes Midday Hours Successful for Deer Hunting?
When speaking about midday, we are referring to the hours between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM. These hours are often considered to be a lull time for deer as most deer will rest and not be active during this period. However, with that said, you do not want to fully overlook this timeframe as you may have luck with it.
In general, deer are not active during the midday hours, however, there are some exceptions to this and if you know and understand the exceptions, you can have a successful hunt during midday.
To ensure a midday hunt is successful, there must be certain environmental conditions present. For example, if the weather outside is overcast or cooler, deer are more likely to be active and move around, even if it is 11:30 AM or 1:00 PM.
Furthermore, bucks are usually more active during the midday throughout breeding season as they are out looking for a mate.
Lastly, deer that were disturbed by hunters throughout the early morning hours may venture out and look for food throughout midday, a time they usually wouldn’t.
Advantages to Choosing to Hunt During Midday Hours
- Breeding Activity: As we mentioned, bucks are usually out looking for a doe during the midday hours. If you know when deer mating season is, you may have some luck during the midday
- Less Competition: Midday hours for hunting are less competitive as most hunters prefer to hunt in the early morning or evening hours, which means you will find the woods less crowded
- Spotting Opportunities: Even if you are not necessarily hunting deer, midday hours can be used to your advantage to learn about new spots or to track deer and their movement patterns
Challenges You May Face with Midday Deer Hunting
Midday deer hunting is a challenge, and you are going to see less deer than you would if you hunted in the early morning hours. Your biggest challenges of a midday deer hunt is that deer are less active, and they tend to hide more due to the heat.
If you find that you want to hunt during the midday hours, you will need to make sure you adjust your approach and choose a day where the midday hours are optimum such as a cooler or overcast day. This way, the deer are more likely to be active.
Evening Hours
What Makes Evening Hours Successful for Deer Hunting?
Just as deer become active in the early morning, deer also become active in the evening hours – generally, an hour or two before sunset time. Many hunters enjoy hunting during this time and find it to be quite rewarding.
As sunset approaches, deer are much more active as they start to move about from their resting areas to look for food before night falls. The movement of deer at this time is often referred to as the “evening rush,” and happens due to the decline in temperature and light.
During the evening hours, deer are on the hunt for food and are more likely to wander near water, into open fields, and near the forest edge making them an easier hunt. Most deer can be found actively grazing during the hour right before sunset. Hunters who understand and know this can take advantage.
Factors the Make Evening Hours Great for Hunting Deer
- Wind Direction: Just as wind direction is important in the early morning, it is important in the evening. It is important to check wind direction as you do not want to alert the deer of your presence in the area
- Food Sources: Deer often leave their bedding areas in the dusk to search for food before night falls. They are often found near water, in open fields, and near the forest edge so focus on looking for them in those areas
- Darkness: Fading light allows deer to feel more covered and protected allowing them to move around and feed during the evening hours. They also tend to not be on such high alert like they are in the early morning hours
Challenges You May Face with Evening Deer Hunting
Just as you need to be patient and stealthy in the early morning, you will need to do the same in the evening hours, even though deer may be less alert. Deer do tend to relax when they feed; however, they still have a keen sense of smell and will get spooked if you make too much noise or move too much.
One of the biggest challenges you will face with evening deer hunting is that it is harder to see. You will need to make sure you are comfortable in low visibility and be able to make quick decisions should a deer quickly come into your limited line of sight.
Lastly, it can be much more difficult to track deer as the sun goes down, so it is recommended that you use assisted devices such as sights or scopes.
The Moon Phases and Weather Are Important Factors Too
Both the moon phases and weather are important factors to consider when you are deer hunting.
Moon Phases
Deer are affected by the different lunar cycles and their behavior can change based on the different phases of the moon. Check out how their behavior is affected:
- New Moon: The sky is dark during a new moon and deer are more likely to be most active at sunrise and sunset
- Full Moon: During a full moon, deer are often active during the nighttime hours. This also means that deer often sleep later in the morning resulting in a later start to prime time hunting. When the moon is full, evening activity for deer tends to remain the same or near the same
- Waxing and Waning Moon: During the waxing and waning moon phases, deer tend to move around in the early morning and evening hours
Weather
Deer are affected by the weather and their behavior can changes based on what the weather conditions are like outside. Check out how their behavior is affected:
- Warm Weather: If the weather is warmer than normal, deer tend to move less, especially during the midday hours, so you will find that these midday trips are less successful, especially during the summer months
- Cold Weather: Deer tend to become more active when the weather cools down. The drop in the temperature increases their appetite which makes them get up and forage for food more often and for longer periods of time including throughout the midday hours
- Wind: Wind carries scent, and windy days are not as optimal for hunting as deer are more likely to pick up on human scent. Calm days where there is little to no wind is better for hunting and if there is going to be wind, make sure your scent is not carried downwind
- Rain: Rain is a bit of a tossup. It can make deer less active, but it can also stimulate them to move a bit more, especially during the midday hours. Heavy rain will usually mean less activity while light rain and overcast weather mean more deer activity
Which Time Do You Think Is Best to Hunt for Deer?
Hunting for deer takes time and patience and it helps to understand deer behavior to ensure a successful hunt each season. Early morning and evening are generally the best times to hunt; however, midday hours can yield a successful hunt if you know what the optimum conditions are for deer activity.
By having a better understanding of deer behavior and the impact that the hours of day and night have on them along with weather conditions and moon phases, you can properly plan your hunting trip and make it worth your while.
