Walking in to the stand

[DayDay]

as long as you did the speed limit on the way there, thats all that matters!

Got to have enough time to smoke a joint before it gets light enough to see some movement to shoot at which usually occurs 40 minutes before sunrise.

I like to get completely settled in the stand about 20-30 minutes before legal shooting time, so 50-60 minutes before sunrise. I walk in at a normal pace.

 

[BSK]

Same observation here. Many times I have seen their eyes in my faint green light, and I just keep walking along and they never move....even at 20-30 yards away. Heck, I have seen deer in food plots let me walk right by them in daylight. I saw them and intentionally made no eye contact, just kept my head down at the ground and kept walking. Got all the way past them and out of sight, glassed them and they had put their heads back down to feed. Very unusual for that deer behavior where we are, but I've seen it happen numerous times. Whether it is daylight or dark, many times you can slip right by them if they think they were undetected by you.

I think it is part of their situational/spatial awareness. Just as deer ignore the farmer working in his fields, deer tend to ignore humans at night. Humans at night cause them little harm. It is humans in daylight that are dangerous.

I too have been able to walk right past deer in the dark. I can see their eyes shining off to the side, but as long as I don't turn directly towards them, they just let me walk past.

 

[Willysman]

Try to get to my stand (private land)when I can just barely see how to get settled in before light. If I use a light at all it has a red lenses shining on the ground. If on public land I use a pretty bright light. I want to be seen. Even if I spook deer that's too bad. I want to be around to hunt again.

 

[Snake]

I typically like to be in my stand at least 30 minutes before sunrise but as long as I'm there before sunrise I'm ok . Like to get situated and have a special talk with the good Lord . Like others have said I've walked past deer in the dark and if the wind is right they most times don't even blow and I've even watched deer get up out of bed in my stand, they've been there there the whole time while I was climbing .

 

[Tn_Va_Hunter]

Depends on the situation for me. If my son is with me. We use a good flashlight. Because we have a lot of bear on and around the property we own and sometimes it takes us a little longer to get in stand. But we do get in before daylight. Usually 15 min or so. If it's just me. I'm in 30-45 min before light And I'll use a dim light to see with.

 

[Vince]

Mornings - only on weekends. I like to be in stand before light and settle in. I use light on my cap visor to get in. If I am early enough before dark, I walk in slowly because I sweat a lot. I feel so blessed and thankful sitting in the woods as sun rises. I have had better luck in the afternoons and so go more at this time (even on weekdays after work). I walk in around 3pm and wait in the stand for activity that's usually after 4.30. I try to take every step without making noise while walking in.