Hours In Your Blind

How long do you guys typically sit in your blinds for during the morning waiting on that nice one to hopefully show up?

Man I usually sit until 10 but if there is action or the solunar says to sit, I keep sitting. Unless the wind starts to howl.

It really depends on the time of the season, weather, temps, wind, deer movement and what I have to that day after I am done hunting. Ideally 3 hours after daylight and then it depends on how the deer are moving that morning. Late morning has been very productive for me in the past. Mid-day on a good ranch during the pre-rut to post-rut can be very good on a clouldy, misty, cool day.

Get out at 9:30 to 10 and back in about 3:30. We have zero movement during the day at the feeders. Only during the rut will the boys move and that is only a 2 or 3 day window.

I did get a really nice buck at 10:30 once at a friend's ranch but that was because 5 bucks were chasing a doe hard and I was waiting on my buddy to pick me up. It was Dec and rut was supposed to be over a month ago but this doe was hot.

In South Texas they will move all day though in places.

I always prefer to hunt all day, from daylight till dark. Often things will be going on that I need to get down but I always hate to. If others are in camp or if a deer has been killed or work is to be done then I get down. If Im out there alone I will almost always stay all day. If I do get down it would be to quickly change stands and sit again. I have killed some of my better deer in the middle of the day.

Exactly the same for me

Thanks. Do you guys leave the blind if does are still out at the feeder and senderos with no bucks present?

Almost never if they are going to be able to see me. I don't want to let those does see me coming and going from a blind. I had a doe see me leave an open bowhunting ground blind on a bluff once and that same doe started leaving the group to check that blind for me on every hunt, then blowing my hunt when I was present. I ended up having to shoot her. But learning from experiences like that I placed all three of my current blinds so that I can leave from the back of the blind or back of tower down hill to a creek or gully to walk out unseen from any animals in my shooting lanes or at feeders. My tower blind and tripod has brush or topped trees in front so I can climb in and out of those without being seen before dropping down into the low area to leave.

Thanks. Had a chance to go out there on Monday just for the morning. Saw some nice younger bucks chasing some does. How long before they stop chasing? Trying to see how much time I might have left to get back out there. Was out there last week on Thursday and Friday but they weren’t chasing yet.

For me it depends on the time of the season and what I have going on after the hunt. I do not like deer to see me exiting or entering into the blind but it happens. I will try to scare them off using a predator call if I can. I always drive into the blind to drop off things when I am hunting...so I run them off with the UTV. I then road feed the area and back into the blind quickly. If I do have to run deer off then I will road feed a little area when I am leaving...even in the evening after a hunt. The exiting the blind after you shoot a deer is more critical than just leaving to head to the camp or house IME. Deer hear the shot but really do not know exactly it comes from until they see the excited hunter bolting from the door to retrieve his deer. That association of shot and hunter immediately after is bad IMO. When I shoot a deer I wait till all the deer are gone if they did not run at the shot before I exit the blind. If you do not let the deer see or hear you in the blind after the shot then they do not really know where it came from. Once they associated the shot with the blind or human activity they become more leery of the blind and hunting pressure. You can see this when the neighbors shoot a firearm and the deer look that direction of shot.

I usually stay until 9:30 -10, then start the pm hunt around 3 pm. I often see deer between 9 - 9:30. I have never stayed in the blind from sun up, until sun down. I think it would greatly increase the odds of seeing deer, but I get impatient sitting to long. I have stayed longer in the morning, if the conditions are ideal.

We see these articles that predict wildlife movement based on the solunar tables. We read article after article about noon deer movement. Just based on my trail cams over the past decade plus and my experience over the past three decades in TX, KS, OK, AR, and MI, the best movement is at night. Next best is just at daylight and just at sunset. Yes I have pics of shooters during midday of shooters. 1 every about 1,000.

We've averaged 6-8hrs a day in the blind this year. Hard for me to sit longer than 3-4hrs with my knees in the shape they're in. Plus, the wife likes to take a mid-day nap.

May be correct on the mid day Trophy sightings and maybe not. What I do know is that when that one out of a 1000 steps out at noon I will be in the field locked and loaded. I understand it’s not important enough for some to play the long odds but it is for me.

I bow hunt exclusively. I cannot stay in a tree stand for more than 3 hours. Just cannot do it. I hang my stands 30 feet high because I can't be still. That height allows me to move around a little without getting busted. I hear of guys sitting in a tree stand all day, especially during the rut. I wish I could but I just can't do it.

I have begum hunting ground blinds some in my old age (58). Now in a ground blind I can sit for 4-5 hours, but still not all day. I know I miss some opportunities, but it just isn't in my DNA I guess to be able to do that.

Since my now 10 year old son was 2 years old, he's been with me on almost every hunt. He's a pretty disciplined 10 year old hunter, but an all day sit is out of the question. Given the right conditions, I would hunt all day if I had the opportunity. But I haven't done it in years.

Also, this weather sucks.

For me, 3 to 3 1/2 hours is max when deer hunting. When I'm after hogs, I'll sometimes sit from 5pm to midnight, but only if my game cameras have indicated that there is hog movement during those hours. I'm sure I leave "game on the table" with such short hours in blinds, but I no longer hunt for antlers (I leave them for the kids/grandkids), so I'm looking for large mature does or bucks with gnarly head gear that need to be removed from the breeding pool. With hogs, it's total smackdown for any and all that might get into my field of fire at any time of the day or night.

In the blind usually until 10:00 unless there is game movement or negative weather.

Can't sit there that long. Won't lie. Wait until that first wave clears out. Give it a while. Then I'm walking or driving. Killed some good bucks on foot or spot and stalk.

I haven't sat in a blind for several years now going back to the early 80's when I bowhunted more from tree stands.. That's when I'd stay from first light until about 10am and then from about 2pm until dark (typical hours).

Now and for the last several years I'll stalk/still hunt starting about midmorning until late afternoon but the older me is not as interested in killing deer as I am nature watching, photography and video

These are the hunting & outdoor endeavors that can be shared to a wider audience especially those that do not understand or experience hunting like we do and only see the blood and guts...

When morning hunting, I get in the stand at 5:30 am and stay till about 9 am. Then 4 pm till dark in the evening. Like my dad before me, I’m more of an afternoon hunter these days (lazy, no other way to say it).

As for results, I see more deer in the evening usually. I’d rather shoot deer in the morning though, so I can track in the daylight if need be.

If the weather is cool or cold, and I have a good book and something to drink, I can sit for hours. It helps to have a good chair. That reminds me that I need to get another good chair.

I usually leave the first stand around 9 to 915 go to a different one and sit for an hour or so depending , if its cloudy I try to hunt all day if suns out Im done after 2nd sit

I’m not proud of it but I won’t sit more than an hour in a blind. I’m not that mad at them anymore.

I’ll get in the blind about 15-20 min before daylight and hunt until 9-9:30. Evenings I get in around 3:30 ish and hunt until I can’t see.

Enjoy the evening sit much better but I’m about 50/50 morning kills vs. evening kills. This year I’ve found if I’m really not trying to kill something skipping the morning hunt doesn't bother me much, but I’m gonna give it an honest try this last week of season.

I hunt in NE Louisiana on public land. I hunt until 11:00am then 20-30 minute walk out. Then 2:30ish to dark and walk out.