For a night sit, when do you leave your stand? When you can no longer see your pins or when it is completely dark? Last night I was sitting and got to thinking about it. (A five hour sit for me is too long, lol.) The stand I'm focusing my main hunt is just in the woods. When I can no longer shoot in the woods I usually have some time to hope to see something along the trail behind me. I then will get down, if nothing is in sight. Its usually never pitch black, but too dark to shoot. Just curious about others. My morning sits all depend on what I'm seeing.
Seems like every other sit I have to stay till well after dark because I have deer by my stand and can't get out
I wait until it's dark even if it's only at the base of my stand, the reason is for saftey I walk out in the dark when you need a flashlight because I don't want to be shot by someone seeing movement and flinging a arrow or even a poachers bullet. Never think you are alone even on private ground.friend of mine was shot a few years back with a .22 in the shoulder by a young kid doing just this. He lived to tell the story but it changed the way I exit the woods for sure.
Depends on the situation for me. If I know there's deer in the area I will wait till complete dark to pack up to try and spook them as little as possible. If I don't think anything is nearby I will start packing up when I can no longer shoot then climb down usually it is complete dark by the time I start walking out.
I am a no lights guy so I try get down prior to last light. If I cant see my pin I am packing it up. In fact, I usually have everything ready to go except for my bow so I can get down in a hurry.
I have sights that light up with the push of a button but I climb down when I cant make something out 10-15 in front of me I mean right after legal shooting light. Lol
I start packing up at the end of legal hunting hours. If no deer are around no need to sit past when I can legally shoot. I run and gun 90% of my hunts so packing up my stand puts me walking out in total darkness.
I have had the PGC approach me after legal shooting time to see if I am breaking the law, so I always lower my bow at the end of legal hours and drop the rope so I cannot be accused of hunting after hours. I generally sit until dark then just to see if anything moves but also (as mentioned) to not worry about walking put and other hunters.
I don't hunt with a compound (recurve shooter). When it's too dark to pick my spot out (I like picking quarter size spots or even hairs) I crawl on down and head out. It's usually very close to end of legal shooting time although that can depend on the cover or type of woods I'm in.
I myself use to stay well after sunset just to see what was going on after hours ,now i video i leave when the camera losses light
If there are no deer around me I get down shortly after legal shooting time. (Half hour after sunset in ND). If there are deer around I wait them out. (Yes it's bitten me in the *** a few times!) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
For me since I hunt on Public Land I am normally getting down at last light (unless I know or see something is in range)..... I try to go deep in the woods (at 1 spot I hunt I go over a mile in from the parking lot)..... Something I don't understand why I am like this, but I don't mind walking in deep and unpacking and getting set up in the tree in the dark, but I hate to pack up things and walk out in the pitch black unless it is with a deer which I then take everything back to my truck then go back for the deer..
I climb down when I have about 20 minutes of light left, unless there are deer in the area. I still hunt back up to the truck 90% of the time. Hasn't gotten me a deer yet, but gotten close to my first roosted turkey. I hunt travel routes, so 9 out of 10 times anything moving through already has.
Well today I got down when the guy smoking a cigarette carrying a bow walked through my area at Sunset. Figure I was done at that point. Usually stay until dark, but public land has some interesting characters.
I get ready to get out as soon as I can't ethically shoot anymore in terms of light. Could be earlier than legal shooting light ends if its thick, nasty woods with little lights and later if an open field edge. Anyway, I don't believe you have anything to gain with staying later, and may just bump and educate deer if you're waiting to see what shows up. If deer are in the area, I will throw rocks or cause a disturbance to make them scatter without understanding its a human. Or at least I'm hoping they're not understanding that.
When the batteries on my flashlight are dead. No, really, when I can't distinguish colors, I get down. I don't like being busted in the dark because I sat too long.
