Sunset shooting

[Four Season Whitetail's]

Today's sunrise / sunset in my area is 
7:34 am .......... 6:12 pm

Which equates to- being able to see a take a perfect shot from 7am to 6:35.


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[Five Seasons]

13 hours ago, cdbing said:

Are there statistics for accidental shootings etc in states where it is legal to hunt 30 mins after sunset. NYDEC seems to base the regs on safety at least according to the DEC folks I spoke to some time ago.

My guess is no hunting after sunset is feel good reg. that adresses a non-issue from a safety standpoint and that statistics from states with more generous shooting times would suggest that hunting in those states is not more dangerous than in NY (for humans or non-game species). But that's just my guess, with no stats whatsoever to back that up. Flame-on.

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There probably are stats. I imagine this is one of those regs, that is very similar to that of the rifle ban in many counties. After decades of research proved them unfounded, the state thankfully changed their mind. But in this culture of gun fear... I just don't know about this one ever being changed, and the guy who shot the woman walking her dog last year (i think 45 minutes after legal light?) across a road, on to posted property with a pistol... well that isn't going to help.

Well known i lived in the south for a few years. the 30 min rule is in effect there, but they also have mandatory blaze orange (regs actually describe how much is needed) and safety harnesses (above 12' in the air) on public land regulations. I wonder if anyone would agree to the later 2 if it also came with the 30 minute rule. Not that harness has anything to do with the 30 minute reg.

[Five Seasons]

12 hours ago, Reb said:

Personally I do not shoot out of hours,I hunt all woods and usually about 20m before legal sunset it's dark enough I cant see good enough to make what I consider a ethical shot.  

20 minutes before legal sunset is not even close to dark. legal sunset is barely dark. 

[Five Seasons]

11 hours ago, Jdubs said:

Honestly, if I'm out hunting, I'm out hunting and not checking the time on my cell every 5 minutes.  Never took a shot outside of legal times, but can't say with 100% certainty that it will never happen.  Maybe 10/15 minutes off is possible, but not 30-60 minutes.  There you have it.  The guys knowingly jacking deer know who they are. 

there's a member here who isn't really active anymore whose watch would beep at legal times. Imagine a nice buck working his way in at sunrise and your watch beeping? 

[Five Seasons]

1 hour ago, The_Real_TCIII said:

7:40, time to nock an arrow


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do you really not have an arrow nocked in the morning? Plenty of morning sits I've had deer around me in the dark. I certainly would want to be ready if they're still there when legal light hits and not moving all around in the stand. 

[Five Seasons]

1 hour ago, wildcat junkie said:

Never said it was. In fact I posted a thread here a few years back about accepting a mandatory BO requirement in exchange for extended hunting hours.

There was quite a backlash over that.

on public land I think it should be that way. In MS, you could remove your BO if 12' or higher in a tree or in an enclosed blind. On private land, it should be a choice as it is now. Hunters get an extra hour a day, and maybe one of the best 30 minutes of the day and all we sacrifice is some orange that most all of us wear during gun season anyhow? win!

[wildcat junkie]

16 minutes ago, Belo said:

. I just don't know about this one ever being changed, and the guy who shot the woman walking her dog last year (i think 45 minutes after legal light?) across a road, on to posted property with a pistol... well that isn't going to help.

Well known i lived in the south for a few years. the 30 min rule is in effect there, but they also have mandatory blaze orange (regs actually describe how much is needed) and safety harnesses (above 12' in the air) on public land regulations. I wonder if anyone would agree to the later 2 if it also came with the 30 minute rule. Not that harness has anything to do with the 30 minute reg.

 

4 minutes ago, Belo said:

on public land I think it should be that way. In MS, you could remove your BO if 12' or higher in a tree or in an enclosed blind. On private land, it should be a choice as it is now. Hunters get an extra hour a day, and maybe one of the best 30 minutes of the day and all we sacrifice is some orange that most all of us wear during gun season anyhow? win!

There are still many that oppose any sort of BO requirements.  I posted a thread a few years back and got a lot of criticism.

 

[Five Seasons]

6 minutes ago, wildcat junkie said:

 

There are still many that oppose any sort of BO requirements.  I posted a thread a few years back and got a lot of criticism.

 

Yeah i remember. I see i posted my same views then as I have now. There's also a handful of people here that believe everything is a conspiracy. I'm pretty libertarian when it comes to regulations and I understand the reluctance to adopt anything new. But if it's a compromise I'd be for it. 

My other assumption is that most hunters, particularly archers hunt those 30 minutes anyhow. 

[Core]

I was in stand last night for a sunset sit. 

Sunset at 6:15 or 6:16. At 6:14 finally deer come by. It was just damn dark in the woods. I had a shot I would have taken with better light. I could still see my pins and housing okay, but the deer was blending with the trees enough that I did not feel comfortable. I drew and had pins on its vitals (maybe?), but at 25 yards I need to see exactly what I'm doing and it was just too much darkness. BTW I think my night vision is just fine.

I've been out many times before sunrise and felt I could have safely taken a shot 10-15 min before sunrise and I could see well. Could have been the cloud cover last night or whatever

They walked to a field 60 yards past me and I could see that field very brightly lit. It would have been a perfectly visible shot if I was in a tree right on the edge and shot into the field. No issue at all.

Edited October 25, 2018 by Core

[Five Seasons]

2 minutes ago, Core said:

I was in stand last night for a sunset sit. 

Sunset at 6:15 or 6:16. At 6:14 finally deer come by. It was just damn dark in the woods. I had a shot I would have taken with better light. I could still see my pins and housing okay, but the deer was blending with the trees enough that I did not feel comfortable. I drew and had pins on its vitals (maybe?), but at 25 yards I need to see exactly what I'm doing and it was just too much darkness. BTW I think my night vision is just fine.

I've been out many times before sunrise and felt I could have safely taken a shot 10-15 min before sunrise and I could see well. Could have been the cloud cover last night or whatever

They walked to a field 60 yards past me and I could see that field very brightly lit. It would have been a perfectly visible shot if I was in a tree right on the edge and shot into the field. No issue at all.

what you describe is exactly what it's all about. Different conditions present different opportunities. Even if the 30 minute rule was in affect, there are plenty of days (especially with archery) where i'd be getting down 5 minutes past sunset. Legal is not always ethical.

[The_Real_TCIII]

do you really not have an arrow nocked in the morning? Plenty of morning sits I've had deer around me in the dark. I certainly would want to be ready if they're still there when legal light hits and not moving all around in the stand. 

Of course I do. Bow has been like this since 6:45


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[brownclown]

its unfortunate that people suck and there isn't more leeway in the regs for legal shooting as light and conditions can vary significantly.  Some of my locations i can easily identify target and believe i could take an ethical shot after or before legal hours and others i would wouldnt feel comfortable even with in regulated hours. There so many variables that can influence that time. I find my greatest difficulty in lower light is with using a peep. i just cant see it. through the years of practice with muscle memory,  proper anchor and form im pretty confident I would be taking a good shot but for me it wouldn't be ethical. I need almost total confidence when i decide to take life before i pull the trigger.

[G-Man]

this by far is worse regulation in nys. you can hunt turkey 1/2 hr before sunrise and same hold for ducks/ geese before and after..you have to be able to see a beard or identify species but cant tell a deer or if it has antlers?? rules are rules but i will say this is a very poor one.

[wildcat junkie]

1 hour ago, Core said:

I was in stand last night for a sunset sit. 

Sunset at 6:15 or 6:16. At 6:14 finally deer come by. It was just damn dark in the woods. I had a shot I would have taken with better light. I could still see my pins and housing okay, but the deer was blending with the trees enough that I did not feel comfortable. I drew and had pins on its vitals (maybe?), but at 25 yards I need to see exactly what I'm doing and it was just too much darkness. BTW I think my night vision is just fine.

I've been out many times before sunrise and felt I could have safely taken a shot 10-15 min before sunrise and I could see well. Could have been the cloud cover last night or whatever

They walked to a field 60 yards past me and I could see that field very brightly lit. It would have been a perfectly visible shot if I was in a tree right on the edge and shot into the field. No issue at all.

In my youth we used to hunt cottontail at night with recurve bows in the sparsely populated suburbs south of Chicago. If you shoot truly instinctive, as long as you can pick a spot, you can hit it.

 

Edited October 25, 2018 by wildcat junkie

[philoshop]

18 hours ago, wildcat junkie said:

A Coleman lantern with a good reflector makes blood trailing after dark much easier. If I have a blood trail to follow as it gets dark, I go to the house to get wifey and the Coleman lantern. Something about the lantern light makes the red color of blood pop out.

Wifey can spot blood a lot better than I can, day or night.

Somebody makes bulbs for flashlights that simulate the lantern glow that makes blood trails really pop out. I've always just used the lanterns, but I can see where they might be a little dicey in the dry leaves if one gets knocked over. Like

[philoshop]

19 hours ago, Pygmy said:

In Alaska there are no  shooting hour restrictions....At  one second after midnight on opening day, it is legal to shoot a moose..

However, it IS illegal to shoot big game with an artificial light....

 

SO if you want to go moose hunting in the middle of the night with GRIZZLY bears roaming around, have at it...Just don't shoot them over a light...

And don't expect Alaska Fish and Game to bail you out if your'e doing something stupid. They have their limits.

[philoshop]

4 hours ago, Four Season Whitetail's said:

Which equates to- being able to see a take a perfect shot from 7am to 6:35.


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I see golfers on the course way before sunrise when I drive to the diner for breakfast. I know they're not just out there whackin' range balls either. If you can see a two hundred+ yard tee shot, a twenty yard bow shot shouldn't be much of a problem.

I don't like to admit to illegal activity on a public forum but the sunrise/sunset thing is something I'll admit to violating a few times.

Changing out of hiking gear and into hunting gear in a tree stand when a buck shows up an hour before shooting time. I'm standing there in my Duofold longjohns with this buck looking at me in a creepy way. Are there deer lawyers by any chance? He seemed to like the electric lantern, and I illegally fed him pieces of a granola bar. I would have taken the shot if I could have gotten to the bow more smoothly. My buddy said I should have just grabbed the arrow and made the jump onto his back.   Good friend with lots of memorable scars and stories.

[Core]

2 hours ago, philoshop said:

I see golfers on the course way before sunrise when I drive to the diner for breakfast. I know they're not just out there whackin' range balls either. If you can see a two hundred+ yard tee shot, a twenty yard bow shot shouldn't be much of a problem.

I don't like to admit to illegal activity on a public forum but the sunrise/sunset thing is something I'll admit to violating a few times.

Changing out of hiking gear and into hunting gear in a tree stand when a buck shows up an hour before shooting time. I'm standing there in my Duofold longjohns with this buck looking at me in a creepy way. Are there deer lawyers by any chance? He seemed to like the electric lantern, and I illegally fed him pieces of a granola bar. I would have taken the shot if I could have gotten to the bow more smoothly. My buddy said I should have just grabbed the arrow and made the jump onto his back.   Good friend with lots of memorable scars and stories.

Anybody who's been out opening day of gun knows that sunrise seems to start 20 min early that day.

The light restrictions are a bit wild, because there is no law against me shooting a deer at 70 yards with a bow (for me that would just be hitting general mass, so a thoroughly unethical shot), but if it's a sunny morning and 5 min before sunrise nope that's too dangerous.

Laws are slow to change. 

[moog5050]

Even more comical is that you can hunt other animals with a rifle in shotgun only WMAs any time.   How is that safer?

[Reb]

12 hours ago, Belo said:

20 minutes before legal sunset is not even close to dark. legal sunset is barely dark. 

For where I hunt it is dark enough for me,not saying it's to dark for everyone.  I'm in thick woods,if I was in the field next property over it wouldn't be a issue.

[Lawdwaz]

5 hours ago, moog5050 said:

Even more comical is that you can hunt other animals with a rifle in shotgun only WMAs any time.   How is that safer?

How about this: In counties where centerfire rifles are prohibited, a centerfire handgun with a 16" (max) barrel is legit.

 

[Zag]

I don't drive 1 mph over speed limits and don't rip tags off my mattress I have to live with myself.

[Hock3y24]

Idk, do whatever you want. Just don’t brag about it on here then get busted lol. I will say hunting the field edge ive been hunting has allowed me the full half hour before and after.... if I was one that broke the rules...

[moog5050]

7 hours ago, Lawdwaz said:

How about this: In counties where centerfire rifles are prohibited, a centerfire handgun with a 16" (max) barrel is legit.

 

I just learned that from my buddy the other day.   He has his pistol ready.  

[Five Seasons]

9 hours ago, Hock3y24 said:

Idk, do whatever you want. Just don’t brag about it on here then get busted lol. I will say hunting the field edge ive been hunting has allowed me the full half hour before and after.... if I was one that broke the rules...

i dont think anyone is, or should be bragging. But I get what you're saying. I put this reg in the same bucket as 7 rounds in a mag.