When do you glass up deer

[stan_wa]

what time of day do you glass up the most deer ?

All the books and experts talk about first and last light but I seem to find way more deer 1-2 hours after sunrise and 1-2 hours before sun set. Maybe it’s just a cascades/Washington thing .

 

[hereinaz]

In AZ, first/last light the animals are moving a lot more. But. many keep moving in the 1-2 hours.

For # of animals per minute, nothing beats first/last light.

 

[ThreeOhSeven]

For bucks, first light always produces best for me.
Does dgaf and they love being on the road at high noon

 

[MuleyFever]

It probably depends on the area. Another consideration is very few people are actually glassing mid day. That time just after sunrise and just before sunset are when you catch them moving to and from the feeding and bedding areas.

 

[Quicksilver]

Seen does mid day, bucks morning or evening. Now that’s movement, not glassing up bedded. East and west WA.

 

[TaperPin]

Depends. In my favorite areas, by volume of hooves, early morning finds the most deer out and headed to bedding areas. In evening, a close second, mostly does, fawns and young bucks start to come out. By far the most old deer have been seen mid day - either in beds, or while standing up to stretch, pee and lying back down, or sneaking away from someone. Shy nocturnal bucks might be anywhere, you just don’t usually see them during shooting hours.

Honestly, I don’t know how many areas have nocturnal bucks, but these can’t be the only places. The more I think something sneaky is all figured out, I watch an individual old deer, and it reminds me they are just trying to conserve energy - like an old dog.

 

[KurtR]

Depends on time of year and weather. If its cold and its the rut its an all day thing. If its warm and the rut its an all day thing. Warm pre rut early and late. If its cold and front moving in it can be later mid day. Also the moon plays in a big factor of when the deer are moving. Late season post rut with some snow its easiest to pattern when the deer are going to move

 

[EdP]

As a whitetail hunter, I have seen bucks most often at first and last light during the rut. Deer coming out to feed (bucks before and after rut and does anytime) seem to come out in the morning after it warms up a bit rather than first light. I don't see deer coming out to feed on vegetation covered in a heavy frost. Late in the season the deer tend to wait until last light to come out to feed, perhaps in response to hunting pressure.

 

[MNGrouser]

All my mule deer hunting experience is in extreme northeast Montana. The ranchers who allow us to hunt their property are sticklers about not getting out too early. They prefer the sun to be up before we head out to glass. So I would say an hour or two after sunrise.

We do also catch a fair amount of movement right at the end of shooting light but have not had much luck turning that into a successful stalk. We run out of daylight and generally don't find them there the next morning.

When our trips west coincide with the rut, and especially fresh snow, all bets are off. Anytime is a good time to see a killable deer.

 

[Solm]

I remember on my grizzly hunt up in BC that we spent 90% of the day behind binoculars and in early June there is a lot of daylight.

Also on my coues deer hunt we spent 3-4 hours in the morning and the same in the evening. Now this was the end of December when the days are short

 

[pulligWa]

Ive also noticed it changes with the way the slope faces with the sun! eastern faces they bed faster or move over to a different side before the sun hits them

 

[justinspicher]

The deer are out all the time where I am at. Everyone gets to the trail head hours before sunrise to beat the crowds. I don’t start hunting until the sun is up and have seen way more animals this way than trying to be the first nerd in the woods.

 

[wytx]

All day should be an option. Glass at first light , then later after they bed, again just before last light when they get up again.
I've taken most of my buck not at first light, however we hunt mainly more open country.

 

[stan_wa]

@wytx are you saying that there in not any time of day you glass up deer more often? Is it a totally equal distribution ?

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Folks tend to "glass" more deer at first and/or last night because the deer tend to be in more visible spots more at those times. They're heading to bed or getting out of bed to go eat and/or drink.

But if a hunter were to stay out all day and actually glass, then they'd find a lot of deer typically in cover. Some will be bedded, some will be up taking a leak/dump, some will be stretching their legs, some will be browsing, and some will be moving from the sun back to the shade (due to the Earth rotating).

So I agree with wytx on the "all day" option. Moon phase, temperature, hunting pressure, prowling predator, storms, etc all can impact what I will glass up in the "open" as well as hunkered down.

 

[CoMulies]

Where i live, I can glass the foothills of a range for about 2-3 miles. In the spring and fall, I’ll see deer up and feeding all day long, but activity definitely picks up in those windows you mentioned.

When I’m hunting, I tend to see most bucks between half hour to an hour after first light. That said, I filled my tag last fall at ~2:45 in the afternoon walking to where I planned to sit for the evening.

 

[JohnnyB]

Never

 

[S.Clancy]

I've glasses a lot of bucks and bulls midday when they are getting up and moving around a little.

 

[Mish-pop]

Where I hunt I normally start right at sunrise. That's because I have passed a few on my way to glassing points in the dark and now start hiking to glassing point at first light as I have good cover on my way to glassing point and have chance to see deer on the way. Close 2nd for me is last light right after sunset

 

[Bachto]

I spotted the buck I killed this year because a doe got restless and got up to do a small feed circle and then laid back down in the middle of the afternoon. I kept an eye on her for awhile and then all of the sudden I checked on her and there was a buck standing behind her like 15 yards that had probably been there the whole time and was just bedded somewhere I couldn't see.

I still feel it is important to be at your glassing spot before first light but you should be glassing all day.