Anyone purposely skip opening day?

[Rifleman86]

Anyone else skipping the opener on purpose this year?

I’ve noticed over the years that despite having some great opening morning hunts and opportunities, I’ve still had some great success a few days into the season. Though I’ve probably had more shot opportunities during the opener than any other day of the week, those that I do have are somewhat fleeting as it’s usually the result of pressured animals racing for cover.

Furthermore by about Tuesday, there is significantly less pressure and the animals are back to somewhat normal patterns.

I’m putting my money where my mouth is and showing up Monday night this year. We’ll see how it pans out.

One thing I am looking forward to is starting the drive west on a Sunday. Not getting stuck in rush hour traffic somewhere along the way that first day will be glorious.

Anyone else skipping the zoo that is opening weekend this year?

 

[Poser]

The Colorado archery and bear rifle opener is on a Tuesday this year. I don't intend to take the day off. I'll probably take Friday off that week and get a 3 day weekend in.

 

[Steve300xcw]

I hunt OTC units. I drag my feet a bit and let most of em get it out of their system.

 

[TaperPin]

Not this year, but I have often stayed home opening weekend with plans to hunt the drainages animals escape to. Elk know how far they need to go to get away from pesky humans. Every time I feel a knot in the stomach all the big animals have been shot out, we seem to run into a whopper. A fella can hunt the last week of the antelope season as they get into large herds after the rut and come up with some good goats that survived being chased every day.

Mulies are the same and different - more random like shaking a snow globe maybe? Still, there are travel routes between major drainages and we’ve seen some whoppers in the middle of the day making tracks through areas they would never bed down in, so we assume they are walking from one good drainage to another good drainage 8 miles away. If that has a lot of activity, I’m sure these buck groups will keep going to another good drainage 5 or 10 miles away. There is one corridor like this forming a ring between 4 amazing areas that a guy could camp out on and surely tag an above average deer, but the one year I tried it we were pinned down in a lightning storm so I’ve never felt like repeating that experience. Lol

 

[intunegp]

No. Zoo or not, there are far more elk out there than at home. I definitely won't kill one from home or while I'm driving. I might kill one on opening day.

 

[CMP70306]

Here in PA I won’t ever miss the opening day of rifle season, based on my track record the majority of my deer and all of my biggest bucks have been killed on the opener. Same for total deer, 50 to 75% of your camps yearly deer harvest is on the opening weekend with some years having greater than 50% on the first day.

 

[thegrouse]

Saturday is the opening day of archery, I think I will wait until Monday or Tuesday to go out

 

[LCguy]

In NM we only have 5 days for Muzzleloader so you bet I'll be out there opening day.

 

[roosiebull]

I’m skipping work on opening day, and all of the days that follow

 

[stumpfinder]

in AL, i will hunt bow only zones on opening day for rifle. I usually avoid hunting in areas during a gun doe season as well. I don't mind running in to other hunters in the woods but opening day on Alabama public is like an episode of the three stooges.

Archery only zones are great during the rifle opener..

 

[southLA]

No. I have always seen the most game on opening day.

 

[hunt1up]

Depends on the hunt. Deer around home, gotta be out opening day of firearm. I've done 7 antelope hunts and never hunted opening day. Some elk tags, gotta be there day one, others with long seasons, maybe not. My son has a WY elk tag and we're going several weeks after the opener. When in doubt, hunt the opener, but it depends.

 

[spike camp]

Never

 

[Q_Sertorius]

Never. The amount of pressure on the animals makes it a superb day to get up early, get to a chokepoint, and hunt.


____________________
“Keep on keepin’ on…”

 

[Maverick1]

Depends. Some years yes, others no. The type of tag plays a factor, too.

 

[Phaseolus]

Nope, with the exception of Archery, the seasons are too short in Colorado to miss days.

 

[Rifleman86]

Depends on the hunt. Deer around home, gotta be out opening day of firearm. I've done 7 antelope hunts and never hunted opening day. Some elk tags, gotta be there day one, others with long seasons, maybe not. My son has a WY elk tag and we're going several weeks after the opener. When in doubt, hunt the opener, but it depends.

My one time with a Wyoming elk tag we hunted two weeks into the season out of necessity due to a scheduling conflict.

I killed a bull the first evening we were there.

This year is Montana. I’ve always had first morning opportunities with Montana but last year I hunted there it was particularly bad with pressure opening weekend. I passed on a cow opening morning and ended up killing a bull Tuesday night.

 

[mike.adams.467]

Anyone else skipping the opener on purpose this year?

I’ve noticed over the years that despite having some great opening morning hunts and opportunities, I’ve still had some great success a few days into the season. Though I’ve probably had more shot opportunities during the opener than any other day of the week, those that I do have are somewhat fleeting as it’s usually the result of pressured animals racing for cover.

Furthermore by about Tuesday, there is significantly less pressure and the animals are back to somewhat normal patterns.

I’m putting my money where my mouth is and showing up Monday night this year. We’ll see how it pans out.

One thing I am looking forward to is starting the drive west on a Sunday. Not getting stuck in rush hour traffic somewhere along the way that first day will be glorious.

Anyone else skipping the zoo that is opening weekend this year?

Never.

 

[Jimmy]

I've had good success on opening day, but my biggest 2 bucks were both on a wednesday AFTER a saturday opener. I'm debating doing that this year...

Some places are less crowded, or maybe nobody else there. Both of those wednesdays I never saw another hunter.

 

[TSimons9]

Depends on the season structure of the unit for me. If my tag is the first tag of the season I wouldn’t skip opening day on purpose. If my tag is the 2nd or 3rd tag of the season I don’t worry to much about opening day. Example: this year I have a Coues tag, it’s the 3rd rifle hunt and there are also a muzzleloader, a youth, and archery tags before my tag opens. The deer are already pressured long before my hunt starts so I’m not worried about opening day. I know from experience the hunting gets better mid week. If I had that first season rifle tag you bet I’m up there well before daylight on opening day to see deer that have had as little pressure as possible.