Always a bit amazed...

[t_barb]

at how openly people talk about how early and late they shoot or contemplate shooting deer.

 

Maybe I am just way to conservative in my approach to hunting, but in reading thru posts over the course of the past couple of days, I can't even imagine thinking about shooting at 6:30am, yet there are people on here talking about shooting that early (and talking about 100 yard shots or more)...

 

Where I hunt in 8M, the first shot I heard was at 6:29am..  I remeber saying to myself how could that possibly be...  It was still pretty dark and I have always assumed those are cases where someone has a deer come by within 10 yards or so and makes the deision they are going to shoot the first deer they see.  Then I read these posts and people are talking about shooting at long distances at that time..

 

Same goes for end of day... 

 

I apologize for the rant, but for me it just seems a bit crazy...  but what bothers me even more is that the people that do it brag about the fact that they got a deer at 6:30am on opening day, at xxx yards....

 

I don't know, like I said i must be to conservative or to law abiding....

 

Good Luck to everyone still out looking!!

[bubba]

Careful you will be told how wrong you are and the laws are stupid

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[t_barb]

yea...  I hear you..

 

put the law aside..  It is really around ethics to me... 

 

In general, we only hear about the deer that were found..  I wonder how many of those pre-7am shots result in wounded deer vs. recovered deer..  Kind of a stupid question because we will never know the answer, but it is the question I always ask myself when I hear shots at 6:29am...

 

At the end of the day, everyone needs to make their own decisions and live with the consequences..  We are all adults..

 

 

[genesee_mohican]

Legal shooting hours are sunup till sundown, period.  The actual amount of light allowing humans to see well varies from day to day. Some mornings the full moon is up, the skies are crystal clear and one can see very well 20 minutes before sunrise. Other mornings there is no moon and dark clouds making good visibility difficult even at sunrise. Opening day was one bright morning here in 8M and I was surprised I didn't hear more pre sunrise shots.

 To each his own, I don't stress over it.

 

[growalot]

Well I have to say...it was wonderful this morning...not hearing the 6:30...6:45 a.m. shots...the camp guys denied being the ones that did the shooting ..yet...whala...a visit from the DEC and...No 30-35 min early shots...geezz..go figure....

[Dutchess hunter]

I went out sunday morning and hunted stissing WMA...it was cloudy and misting. so at 6:20 am the woods open up with gun fire..I could not see 20 ft ..I press my back harder into the tree I was sitting next too ..and it is not one shot you hear...I am talking 3-4 shots in a row..now i am a true believer in taking one shot ..and if i cannot take a deer down with one shot i do not take a shot period..it is just scary that you can be walking to your stand in the early morning hours knowing thier are hunters shooting at anything just before sunrise.

[orion]

"Some mornings the full moon is up, the skies are crystal clear and one can see very well 20 minutes before sunrise. Other mornings there is no moon and dark clouds making good visibility difficult even at sunrise."

 

So true. This is why hunting hours won't change. There was a big difference between Saturday morning and Sunday morning this weekend.

[Paula]

I don't think shooting time is sunrise to sunset not according to the book the time is a bit later than what you can see . So the book says for sat 648 and add 15-18 min. but there was plenty of light at 635.

 I will always go with the book, will never take my chances on a fine that i can not afford to pay.

 Last year i was at a friends hunting and it was still light out but according to book i was done. They laughed at me. I called them as i was pulling out of driveway to tell them that the dec was sitting up at the road and i am sure where i was sitting they could see me. Glad i got down when i did.

[growalot]

Last night quitting time was at 4:44...I set my alarm to buzz in my pocket at 4:40...I actually pulled the phone out several times before that afraid it hadn't gone off...a front was moving through and it was getting dark fast...I wouldn't have shot a deer coming in at 4:30 ..unless it was dang close to me and a large buck...I did stay on watch just to see what movements would happen....setting your cell phone to buzz as a warning of time really isn't difficult...but even with that one has to make a judgment call...... big buck  because that's what I'm really hunting for now...and it started to rain and I messing with a doe wasn't too appealing....

[apoallo]

The past few days I have heard shot as early as 6:03am (opening day) and as early as 6:12 the day after that. I think the same thing how can anyone see that early?

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[landtracdeerhunter]

OK, so who would shoot a 150" buck at 30 yards, 2 minutes after  evening legal light.?

[Oldebona]

I hunt in 9Y.  On opening day we heard more shots before and after legal shooting hours than during the course of the day.  My area obviously has a fair number of ethically challenged individuals making this choice.

[steve863]

OK, so who would shoot a 150" buck at 30 yards, 2 minutes after  evening legal light.?

 

 

I tell you one thing.  Anyone who claims that they would PASS a deer that they really wanted to kill just because it was 2 minutes before or after sunrise/sunset is a big fat LIAR.  You can try to convince me until you are blue in the face that you wouldn't, but I still wouldn't believe you.  Some of you start counting down for deer season in freaking April, and have wet dreams over big bucks all year round, and then you would PASS that deer if it came around a few minutes before or after legal shooting time.  I say BS to that, and you guys damned well know it, but none of you are man enough to admit it.  Not promoting illegal activity here, just spelling out the truth of the matter here.

[d-bone20917]

The law should change.  NY is one of the last states that has the sunrise to sunset law.  Nearly every other state has 30 minutes before sunrise and 30 minutes after sunset which allows the hunter to decide to take a shot when they have adequate light.  Even if they made it 15 minutes on either side it would be an improvement.  People will still take unethical shots when it's to dark like they do now, but walking out the woods when there is plenty of adequate light is ridiculous.      

[d-bone20917]

I tell you one thing.  Anyone who claims that they would PASS a deer that they really wanted to kill just because it was 2 minutes before or after sunrise/sunset is a big fat LIAR.  You can try to convince me until you are blue in the face that you wouldn't, but I still wouldn't believe you.  Some of you start counting down for deer season in freaking April, and have wet dreams over big bucks all year round, and then you would PASS that deer if it came around a few minutes before or after legal shooting time.  I say BS to that, and you guys damned well know it, but none of you are man enough to admit it.  Not promoting illegal activity here, just spelling out the truth of the matter here.

 

Exactly.  And who sits there staring at there watch?  I look at it every so often, but I'm not staring at the second hand wondering when it will hit the exact sunset time.  And I don't plan on setting my alarm either.    

[Paula]

Not sure, i am paranoid about doing the wrong thing and knowing DEC was there while i was squirrel hunting might make me think twice. But i think if i feel the shot will be good and it will stay on property i just might but....

[growalot]

ECO told me the other day that they do have a leeway on the time ...but 25-30mins is definitely NOT it...Now I know a guy a few years back that shot a deer in Conesus...walked out and the ECO was standing there...You make that shot...yep...10 mins past legal...ticket...deer taken....So I guess the leeway is up to the individual ECO officer....

[landtracdeerhunter]

ECO told me the other day that they do have a leeway on the time ...but 25-30mins is definitely NOT it...Now I know a guy a few years back that shot a deer in Conesus...walked out and the ECO was standing there...You make that shot...yep...10 mins past legal...ticket...deer taken....So I guess the leeway is up to the individual ECO officer....

 

Yeh, and if it's a 150" buck, how do you think it would go?

 

[jjb4900]

OK, so who would shoot a 150" buck at 30 yards, 2 minutes after  evening legal light.?

my watch is usually 2-3 minutes off either way............. 

[growalot]

 

Yeh, and if it's a 150" buck, how do you think it would go?

 

 

On who's end? the person making the decision or the ECO?

[growalot]

 

And I don't plan on setting my alarm either.

 

So why not? what is so difficult about having your phone vibrate in your front pocket..You think a deer 50yrds or even 10yrds away is going to hear it...and by that time I would think you'd have shot it , being that close in gun season

[landtracdeerhunter]

I believe that 60% of the deer harvested in this state are harvested  before of after defined legal light conditions. That number, most likely is higher.  I talk with alot of deer hunters and most don't even know when sunrise and sunset times are, and further more even care.

 

 

Edited November 20, 2013 by landtracdeerhunter

[CuseHunter]

Maybe the people I know That hunt are completely unethical hunters who might take a shot before or after legal time, even though there is adequate light. Yet I find it hard to believe everyone else follows these rules. I don't know anyone else besides these forums that follows the rules to the T. Yesterday I was hunting a field, legal sunset was 4:35pm, It didn't get even get low light till 5:20 where I was. My point being, I would have shot at 4:45 most definitely.

[Doc]

So, I guess we are saying that abiding by laws is conditional on the size of the buck ..... lol. Filling an antlerless permit is done according to law, but if it happens to be a trophy, legality can be ignored. Interesting mindset.

 

 

[dlgerow]

I have been overseas the past couple seasons and am stationed in NC. Was surprised to learn legsl shooting light changed. Anyone know rationale? If safety is concerned I would love to see reports of people mistaken for deer and shot during those hours. The irresponsible hunter in Oswego shows time of day didn't matter.

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