Hunting Washington Forum

Big Game Hunting => Deer Hunting => Topic started by: grousetracker on October 09, 2016, 09:28:45 AM

Title: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: grousetracker on October 09, 2016, 09:28:45 AM: I have a spot where lots of deer feed but only at night, there is a 30-40 acre overgrown clearcut on the left NO TREE FOR A STAND, road on right about 100yds, nice drainage straight out in front but trailcam shows no action. thought about a tripod stand but am nervous might spook the deer out of there bedding spot and become even more nocternal, any ideas ?
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: bobcat on October 09, 2016, 09:38:18 AM: Good question. All I can suggest is to wait for the rut to happen.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: vandeman17 on October 09, 2016, 09:42:30 AM: Quote from: grousetracker on October 09, 2016, 09:28:45 AM
I have a spot where lots of deer feed but only at night, there is a 30-40 acre overgrown clearcut on the left NO TREE FOR A STAND, road on right about 100yds, nice drainage straight out in front but trailcam shows no action. thought about a tripod stand but am nervous might spook the deer out of there bedding spot and become even more nocternal, any ideas ?

Ground blind? Either a pop up blind or go in and cut natural vegetation and build one
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: JimmyHoffa on October 09, 2016, 09:43:38 AM: do you have buddies that you can do a drive with?
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: dreamunelk on October 09, 2016, 10:09:36 AM: Still hunt the area. BT don't move far. They are laying there watching you. Spend all day in a few acres watching every twig, fern, leaf, and ect. Their main strategy to avoid predation is hiding. They are very good at it.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: scoutdog346 on October 09, 2016, 01:16:33 PM: Later on in the season when their bodys need more food and as it becomes harder for them to eat with less moon and sunlight it will be more likely they will come during the time u need them to come.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: HunterofWA on October 09, 2016, 05:10:35 PM: Have you been hunting the area? Have others been hunting there as well? If so, the deer can sense when there being hunted or if your just moving through. They are most likely going through the October lull, which is when the bucks change there summer patterns, shed velvet, get their winter coats, and turn nocturnal to avoid overheating and etc...

Clear-cuts of that age, generally have an abundance of forage for the deer throughout the fall, when deer are spooked out of an area there's no rush for them to move back in that area anytime soon if there's food elsewhere.

I would not suggest you do a drive, mainly because it puts unnecessary pressure and stress on the deer which can make it hard for deer to store energy to make it through the winter. Instead, I would either spot n' stalk the area very slowly, or set up a pop up blind. The clear-cut I hunt sounds similar to the one you hunt, and what I have found helpful is to not disturb the area, by leaving very little or no scent behind, and do your none-hunting expeditions during the time of day when the deer are least active.

Good luck!
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: fish vacuum on October 09, 2016, 09:16:19 PM: What's the spot where they're feeding at night? Newer clearcut? Pasture?
How overgrown is the clearcut you mentioned? Is the area flat?
Not enough info.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: scoutdog346 on October 09, 2016, 09:51:39 PM: When doing the drive hunt you' u might b more likely to see deer but you're NOT more likely to get a successful shot off in my opinion.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: fishnfur on October 10, 2016, 12:11:17 AM: Tough one.

Maybe getting in there in the middle of the day after a rainstorm and try to determine where the tracks enter and leave your hunting spot will localize the bedding areas better for you. I like the idea of the blind back in the brush near those travel corridors - early or late as the case dictates - try to catch them coming or going to/from bed.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: grousetracker on October 10, 2016, 07:25:10 PM: The deer want to feed in a 2-3 year old cut, but probably feel to exposed to use during daylight, I have over 8,000 photos of deer all at night, the ground blind idea seems possible, I know where most of them come out of but worry about the wind. the wind changes constantly on the ridge.Might just wait till a little later in the season and see they show up during the rut.
Title: Re: where to hunt when the deer are showing up at night only?
Post by: fishnfur on October 11, 2016, 12:11:48 AM: If the does are living close, they will normally be up feeding sometime in the middle of the day. It is hard to envision just what your spot looks like, but with a clearcut of 30 - 40 acres, there should be plenty of food to keep at least a few does close by. If you're close to civilization, it may be that the deer are just in the habit of feeding at night to minimize encounters with humans.

Kind of sounds like my back yard. There are deer in there most of October through mid-December, but virtually never during the day - usually 10:00 PM till 5:00 AM. You would have virtually no chance of killing one of the bucks that comes in at night here. They come in several hours after dark and are long gone before first light. I've never seen them once.

If you never see animals at first or last light when scouting, you might just want to find a better spot with more cover - someplace that holds some does that you can see occasionally. Think hard before you possibly waste your valuable hunting time during the best days of the season hoping to see deer where you've never seen one before.

Good luck.