Naps in the woods

[catman529]

man I feel like I have slept on every hunt this year. Or at least a lot of them. I have trouble falling asleep if I go to bed too early (messed up sleep pattern) and then get up very early to hunt, and usually end up dozing off once if not a few times throughout the day. Several times I have dozed off only to wake up to hear the sound of a deer approaching. Once or twice I dozed off only to hear a deer spook very close by because it walked up on me (only happened hunting from the ground).

There's no telling what I may have missed taking those 30 minute tree naps but when I am lightly sleeping I often wake up if anything in the woods makes a noise out of the ordinary, like deer crunching through the leaves or a squirrel real close by. Seems my brain is programmed to wake up when a deer comes in. But then I don't know if I may have missed some deer because I was sleeping for 30 minutes in some cases.

Anyone got any funny stories concerning deer and falling asleep in the woods? I think DA just had one recently if I remember correctly. Lets hear em

 

[Vermin93]

Dozed off in the stand on Saturday morning. I was in a great spot, but I went to bed really late and couldn't stay awake in my Treewalker. Woke to the noise of a group of does passing in front of me. Went into a panic and had a misfire trying to get a shot off. Completely missed and the deer bolted. Didn't see another deer the rest of the weekend. It definitely wasn't funny!

 

[catman529]

Dozed off in the stand on Saturday morning. I was in a great spot, but I went to bed really late and couldn't stay awake in my Treewalker. Woke to the noise of a group of does passing in front of me. Went into a panic and had a misfire trying to get a shot off. Completely missed and the deer bolted. Didn't see another deer the rest of the weekend. It definitely wasn't funny!

man I had a doe and fawn come in on public land a week or two ago. Perfect chip shot. Just her shoulder, neck and head were showing from behind a tree at 30 yards or so. I was in my climber and didn't have the gun rested on anything, sitting down shooting to my right. I got the crosshairs on her shoulder. my trigger is not much of a hair trigger so I squeezed, pulled, and then the shot went off, over her back. At least it was a clean miss. Next time I squeezed the trigger, which was last friday, I was on the ground and the deer was at 24 yards, bullet went in and demolished the heart. Made up for my embarrassing mistake.

 

[Treestand Troubadour]

Me and a buddy hunted his secret once a year huntin spot third week of november. We were set up in two trees that were about 6' apart in our climbers facing opposite directions. Since it was his honey hole i told him i would do some filming. Well at one point i heard some deer comin down the ridge to turned the camera on when they got in sight. As i was watching them browse i looked at my buddy who was dead asleep. So these deer walked right down between our trees and never got nervous or nothing. So in spite of him bein asleep i had to film the deer that were right under him and then pan up and get some video of him sawin logs just so he knew what went down while he was out.

 

[wildb1]

I sure do enjoy those little cat naps. Peace, tranquilty and silence....perfect combination for napping. I too wake up with any little sound so I am pretty confident I don't miss much.

One time my dad was hunting out of his pop up blind up on a bluff. I was a couple hunderd yards away hunting around the bend of the bluff. I hadn't seen anything so I decided to climb down and go get him for lunch. I was walking directly at him in my orange hat and verst and all I could see was his camo. Once I got to about 10 yards through thick dry leaves I noticed it was the top of his hat I had been seeing. His head was down and he was snoring. I pulled out my buck grunt and let out a LOUD grunt. He woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed and started laughing as soon as he saw me. It was pretty funny.

Another time, same thing, I was walking up to him in his blind. I figured he was sleeping again. When I got close enough to see him, he wasn't in there. I headed back to camp and I could hear him snoring as I got closer to his tent. I started scratching on his tent until I heard him stop snoring, then I let out a high pitched LOUD fawn bleat. Needless to say, it startled him. I heard a heck of a commotion in the tent, He told me he almost fell off his cot. Another good laugh shared.

 

[Don'tDrinkTinks]

some of my best naps have been 20 ft up in the air lol

 

[Bayou Buck]

No better place to take a nap than in the woods. I sometimes do it on purpose while things calm down after I walk to my spot.

 

[AndyW]

Rifle opener last year. Running on no energy as work and farm life had kept me over employed. Got 25 feet up an oak well before daylight and dozed off. Woke up and it was 1030. HAHAHAHA Thats dang near a night's sleep.

 

[Brisco Darlin]

i usually will take a nap before it get's daylight. took my daughter last weekend. as soon as i got her harness hooked up she fell asleep against the rail of the tree stand.

 

[WRbowhunter]

woke up my boys on more than one occasion during youth hunts to shoot deer. I tend to take 5 to 10 min naps in the stand. sometimes its just slow and I'm tired. Better to be in the stand then home.

 

[Shed Hunter]

I've involuntarily fallen asleep while hunting, but if I'm going to sleep, I'd much rather be in my bed

 

[catman529]

I've involuntarily fallen asleep while hunting, but if I'm going to sleep, I'd much rather be in my bed

I only get about 4 hours on average of sleep before a morning hunt so it's almost guaranteed I will sleep in the woods.

 

[Redfred16]

I had a 2 man ladder stand that was perfect for those early archery season naps. There was a branch that I could put my feet on, and I had figured out a way for my harness strap to prop my head up. I could sleep so good up there.

Many does lives were saved by how comfy that was up there.

 

[Jim H]

Love them always have my best dreams in the stand. I always wonder what i scare away with my snoring.

 

[BirdDog123]

My buddy just has to send me a text message when we are both hunting asking me if I have seen anything. One day I answered his text then dosed off with my phone on my lap... woke up, saw a deer, stood up... phone dropped 25 feet.. good thing I got an otter box lol

 

[TheMMAn]

I'm convinced that my tricked-out Summit is the most comfortable bed that i own

 

[CBU93]

It's worse on me during turkey season than deer.

 

[Winchester]

I very rarely sleep while hunting but the very few times i sit on the ground its hard for me to stay awake, just another good reason for me to be 25 feet up!

 

[plinker22]

My first few seasons I slept a lot in the stand.

I don't think I have slept in the stand ANY in the past few years.

 

[HerdThinner 2012]

Hunt stand now, but was exclusively ground in my earlier days. A few years ago, woke up opening day of gun about 30 minutes late. Busted does walking out didn't see anything the rest of the am. Went back had lunch and watched a little football. Went back out around 230...found me a nice spot on ground and took a seat. Figured I had some time before things got active so I laid back and apparently, fell asleep.

Woke up hearing what sounded like an elephant running down the holler. All I could do was get my head turned up to see a 140+ class buck crossing the fence about 30 yards from me.

Completely pi$$ed at myself, telling myself that I am not a hunter... Getting ready to go back in.... Mad.... Lit a cigarette.... Stood.up to.take a leak.....

Next thing I know.... Here came a tag-a-long 8 pointer...nose on ground and not a care in the world about me. With cigarette in mouth and Willy out of coveralls.... I took that second buck. I am sure that was a sight.

Have never questioned my hunting ability again.