Reading a number of the recent hunt reports got me thinking; what do other states have for Legal Hunting Hours, and are they enforced. Lots of the reports of deer sightings seem to come right at the cusp of a legal shot. New Hampshire and Maine have (what I thought was pretty standard) 1/2 hour before Sunrise to 1/2 hour after Sunset shooting hours...which they enforce strictly...and by their watch. Loosely this translates to "no shooting in the dark"...as the sun is below the horizon but there is still daylight by their parameters. But it's not open to interpretation, they publish tables indicating evey day's legal shooting hours...to the minute... with the 1/2 hour before and after already calculated in. The tables indicate I could shoot today (Oct 2) from 6:05 AM until 6:43 PM. Do you adhere to this guidance religiously? Apply a personal "no one will know if it was really 6:50" mentality? Or are legal shooting hours not enforced in your states? Just curious.
Yeah the laws are there for a reason and I follow them. Out legal hunting hours are in the book of regs and up to us to know what time close is. I have been asked by a warden when I came out of the woods what time was close tonight, of course I knew when it was. This time of year is dark well before the legal close due to all the leaves still on the trees!
Our hours are 1/2 before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset. They published down to the minute and zone. I rarely hunt until the last legal minute anyway. I climbed down with a half hour left yesterday evening.
In NY, it's sunrise to sunset ...on bright days or moonlit nights, there have been MANY oportunities 1/2 before or after for me ... but I can't break the law ....even if noone else knows, Ido ..and of course, so does The Lord
If everyone did wear a watch.... Lumenocks, fiberoptic pins and day-glow arrow wraps wouldn't be needed.
I hunt until I can't take an ethical shot anymore, and rarely do I look at my watch while doing so. However, hunting with a camera in tow greatly limits your shooting times. In most cases, I'm done "hunting" well before legal shooting hours are over.
I know our states laws for legal hunting hours, but I've never really taken out my phone to check the time during prime hunting hours. I usually sit until I can't make out branches and my pins start to get too hard to see. It's not that hard to know whether or not you'll be able to take an ethical shot.
I don't wear a watch but I'm always making a note of the time, due to legal hours in the AM or PM as well as the time I see deer movement. When I shoot one, first thing I do is look at the time! :D
1/2 b4 1/2 after here as well, i just wouldnt wanna take the chance... no deer, to me is worth losing privilages over!
