Has Any One Ever Tryed Hunting At Night Or Am I The Only One

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

HAS ANY ONE EVER TRYED HUNTING AT NIGHT OR AM I THE ONLY ONE
i get a buzz puting arrows through a 3 inch gap at 40 yards in total darkness
range finding is done with a laser on my range finder and a light inside the scope

[Blakey_boi]

Well my dad has always been a gun hunter mainly shooting at night under a spotlight and every time i ask him to come on a hunt or anything like that he says why dont you shoot at night with your bow. I made up a small LED light and battery to fit on my sight and it seems to work fine.
I might be doing a bit soon.

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

you need a night vision head set so you dont scare game away with the light u can take your time also looking through a 4x scope the target is heaps bigger im better at night than day time

[Blakey_boi]

well when i first started bowhunting i had nowhere to hunt in the day but knowing that my back paddoc was is packed with rabbits in the night i had the idea that i could fit a light to my sight and get a small cheap night vision set. After a wile i just thought that the idea was a little far fetched and gave it up. But this has given me new hope. :D

[bowhunting4eva]

are the game easy to see with night vision and what do you hunt. also are blood trails easy to pick up at night. and wouldnt the string interfer with the googles as you would not be able to use a peep. night vision is not cheap guys

[Glenn]

I use to hunt red deer by moonlight, game is easy to see on the full moon, and I have some fantastic pig hunts by moonlight as well, you don't need a light when you hunt o the full moon...Glenn...

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

ok first of all the game dont ever move much at night especaly rabbits
however rabbits are no go for me soon as they see my laser on them they run off but deer are a diff story they dont mind the lasers. i see the game better with 4x power night vision and i use a monocular, i draw back put the laser on my target put the monocular next to my string so its touching at first then move my head to the side only the slightest bit keeping my bow totaly straight this takes practice but u can master it after about 3 nights of practice
i nail a target at 40yrds no sweat with no light using the ir light on my night vision. my only draw back is with sensitive deer you have to be realy sly with infra red light they can still see that a little bit when looking directly at it
and i use a ifra red filter on my 120 stryker spot light to find the game first,
carried on in backpack with a clip when you dont need it. waitng in ambush where u know deer come at night but not at day is the best bet thats what i do for blood trails you can use a normal spot light or black light
note dont buy a crap bow laser of ebay there crap (ie dead dot)
buy a proper laser with windage and elevation in it
and i made the sight out of an old bow sight with a laser sight which fits to riffle scopes took me ages to figure out but now i reap the rewards
thanks guys
anything else

[GlennMac]

Just say you hit a deer at night and it takes off how do you know if you have hit it in the kill zone ? Or hit it at all ?

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

i bought my night vision of ebay bushnell for about $250
coupled with a powerfull spot light with a infr red filter, fillters are about $150
you can see for about 300 mts in pitch black darkness very well

[TOWER*2007]

Ive always done most of my pig hunting on foot at night with no light(with rifle though). Only new to bowhunting but i will definately be giving it a go, probably from a tree stand to start off with.
I usually prefer half to three quarters of a moon, game is no where near as easilly spooked as on a full moon night. You get better at it the more you do and ive been hunting like that for 21 years.
Gotta be weary though, one charge at night from close range and your a goner. Ive shot pigs out to 200m at night on half moon in a normal scope without lights.
Ive used night vision and they are far more of a hinderance than a help for a variety of reasons.
Try mounting a small light with a switch you can turn on with the hand you hold the bow with and sit off your selected ground. Switch on your light when your already drawn back and ready, i dont think it would be too hard.

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

easy ,you can still see very well where its gone with night vision i can even watch my arrow in flight if i use my spot light and fillter too
havent you guys ever seen through night vision
but beware it takes the right know how get it all going
DONT go out and buy stuff if you dont have the money and determination to go all the way ill just end up making u mad

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

att tower 2007
its only a hinderence because u didnt use a infra red filter with a spotlight
which can be mounted on top of your night vision riffle scope
i wouldnt go out in the dark without both monocular or nv riffle scope and ir filter and spot light.
light force spotlights are a good place to start look up the website
thats what my mate uses he can kill deer at 250mts with his riffle in the dark no moon or lights

[Antarcher]

Guys, I have to say it. This hunting at night with a bow with night vision and lasers stinks in my opinion. If you want to shoot at night then get a spotlight and a gun and go for it. In my opinion a bow is for bowhunting from dawn till dusk and not night shooting with artificial aids. Try and find one hunting organisation where they count hunting an animal under a light or with night vision as legit. In fact under the game council laws, the taking of a deer under a spotlight or aid is illegal. The only time it is legal is when you have permission off a farmer for culling purposes and in that case a rifle is the way to go. For rabbits I don't think it matters much, but deer deserve a whole lot more respect. I'd hate to see how many you lose or injure using this method. Blood trailing at night is not an easy task.

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

well i hate to say it but im better at night than day time anyway
so id have better chance for clean kill
and blood trailing is easy with a black light the blood glows in the dark
and night vison is used by every shooter i know
and they hunt everything so take it up with them ,
and most of them dont always get clean kills most times ive seen the shooter will go for the heart shot and miss, deer will run for ages unless you get the spine or shoulder bone, unless u use a 308 to put one in there the deer will run anyway till they run out of blood
and dont be fooled its harder than day time the deer can still see you and hear you about 10times better on most nights its just that theres more of them most times, you think i dont exercise fair game the deers ears have the upper on me i have to move complety silent one drop of your realese aid and its over i cant even draw back without them hearing me

[adam]

Hunting under lights with a bow isn't hunting in MY books, its just shooting.

But you'd know, isn't there restrictions for shotting deer at night?

Adam

[Sneaky Pete]

Have to agree with Antarcher on this- I'm not too sure about other states, but here in Vic it is illegal to hunt deer using any form of night vision or infra-red equipment, or outside the hours of daylight by any means. This is because of a lot of hard work over many years by ADA members and others, to have the sambar in particular respected (and regarded under legislation) as a game animal, and it is widely acepted that these practices are unethical for hunters. These practices are used for culling animals because culling is not intended to give the animal a sporting chance. Bowhunting is a sport, and one that gives the game even more favourable odds than firearm hunting. The sport involves an honourable contest between hunter and quarry.
(now where do I pay my 20c?)

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

are you telling me there are no shooters who shoot for sport and hunting and use night vision r u kidding me, and guess what i am culling for a farmer

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

well ive see alot worse how can u justify sitting in a tree all day long what kind of chance do animalis get then 0 its just as bad maybe worse they cant even smell you
try attaching your realease and seting an arrow in the dark bedroom see how long it takes you and tell me thats not hunting

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

i beg to differ
yous obviously dont release how hard it is to sneek up to shooting range on a animal with a bow on a whisper quiet night with out looking at where the sticks on the ground are ready to snap under you feet or any wrong movement ready to screw u ,considering background light betraying u wind changing ,etc.
its ok for a shooter because they shoot from over 100mts away deer cant hear them now thats what u call shooting. but ul never make 30 to 40 ydrs on a sensitive deer out in the open and i mean never, esp on a moon lit night u cant tell me thats not hunting i dont believe u
day hunting is easy compared to this i have found

[macka]

Its not for me but whatever floats your boat if its legal. And as anarcher said there wouldn't be a hunting organisation you could rate your game with that would accept an animal that you have taken using the aids you mentioned, to me this means that majority of hunters think its an unfair adavantage.

I have walked into my deer properties before light many of times using a torch and spotted deer with my torch. Almost every deer i have spotted i have walked to within 30m of before they took off. In my opinion it would be a lot easier to get close to a deer at night using night vision and here in SA deer are classified as a pest and i am legally allowed to shoot them under a light if i wish but to me its not hunting.

If you love hunting at night go for it but as with any kind of hunting not every hunter will respect you for doing so.

Just my opinion

Macka

[NiGhT HuNtEr]

well you should come hunting with me sometime the deer are very diffrent here

[Wellsy]

Bottom line is that in NSW it is illegal.....

[robf300]

My freind built me this handy little rig for my bow, battery pack straps on with velco, the lights bolt in on the opposite side of the rest. It uses 2x 9v batteries, and is operated by a momentary switch on the grip with my thumb, so I can line something up, then put the light on. Really great setup and the lights are very focused up to about 40 meters.
http://members.optusnet.com.au/rickcampion2/spotlight.jpg

[ozarcher]

sounds like a poaching rig.......whoop's did i say that out loud?

[troy]

Bottom line is that in NSW it is illegal.....

And outside the codes of conduct in regard to ethical bowhunting.
Maybe Nighthunter has a strong arguement as to the difficulties in hunting at night, but there are reasons it shouldn't be done and why it is illegal as well.
IMO under the codes of conduct for the site, this thread should be deleted as it does not promote ethical bowhunting, in fact it is now becoming a how to thread.

Codes of site conduct are;
“To foster participation in bowhunting.
To promote humane and ethical hunting.
To protect the right to hunt.
To assist and educate fellow hunters.”

[Sneaky Pete]

NH, I don't seek to offend you but the practices you are promoting are considered unethical by hunters, which is why they have been outlawed in many places. That is the difference between hunting and shooting. There are 'more things to shoot at night' because you don't have to HUNT them. The same animals exist during the day- there are no less of them- but they have to be HUNTED instead of just being there to shoot.

[stevenn]

Spotlighting isnt hunting,and anyone that considers there self a good hunter wouldnt even think of doing it,just my thoughts.stevenn

[jason]

i hope this is a gee up...
I cannot believe some of the stupid things that people will come up with to try and shoot an animal and then get on here and try and justify it as hunting. It is not hunting and anyone that has spent time in the bush and done the hard yards knows it is not. Hopefully someone will tip off the game council and they will keep an eye out in the woolongong area for you..,

[Clemo]

From my experience most prey animals are somewhat less weary at night due to the cover of darkness. I have done plenty of pest removal with spotlight and firearms and I do know that once an animal is in the light it usually won’t move unless you take the light off it, as they are blinded by the light. I would imagine that hunting at night without a light would be very challenging and would even say that the animal would have the upper hand given the extraordinary senses of most prey animals. I would say that it is the use of a light that is unsporting and not so much the use of night vision equipment, the night vision may improve your abilities at night but it won’t hinder the ability of the animal as with a light.
Having said that I think it’s widely accepted that hunting occurs by day and culling and poaching are activities most commonly carried out under the cover of darkness.

[Bowmancam]

i hope this is a gee up...

Me too mate ...

I lived outside wollongong most my life ... and sneaking around a property with night vision and lasers just wreaks or poaching ......

Cheers, Cam

[ENGLISH]

ive hunted at night with a recurve here in england ,with my dad he has a lurcher and the lamp and i stand buy his side get as close as we can then have a shot if i hit them the dog pics them up if there getting near cover lampings legal here but any form of bowhuntings not !ive used night vision when hunting foxes with dogs over here and the pros out way the cons and ive also walked to within 20yards of roe deer on a windy night with a lamp,surely bow hunting is about being in the wild and observing the place in which your hunting i love walking in the trees and being part of nature if i was able to hunt in the day thats when i would be doing it hunting at night seems to take that away if you get what i mean .
mark.

[robf300]

I find it interesting how many people are against shooting bow and arrow at night, i've only ever had one oppurtunity to get out at night time, and it was basically on the way back to camp. Me n my mate are just nerds always looking to improve our setups anyway.
Really if you can get some ferals at night why not (i've no idea how much different it is at night, only saw one rabbit and he headed for cover, no shot).
As far as I could see, blastin around in a hilux with .308s and a massive spotlight is easy, - keeping dead quiet and using a small light with a bow is not.

[Barry]

This is can be a contentious topic amongst bowhunters.

In certain circumstance night shooting is generally considered by the bowhunting community as fair and ethical ie culling rabbits or for the sole purpose of taking meat etc. By many hunting traditional style on a full moon for certain species is also considered good and fair sport. Personally the good ol Cane Toad is number one for this style.

However you must understand as a rule Bowhunters are bowhunters for the 'fair chase' in the most. Its part and parcel of our nature, so talking about shooting at night with all of these technical aids is bound to cause some negative reaction.

Officially this site does not consider shooting at night to be sporting and we would not consider any game taken as such to be 'hunted' as opposed to being 'shot'.

Provided the rules of the law (including permission to hunt) and making an ethical kill are met nor can we condemn it, we only ask that you consider our general feelings when making your own ethical assessments.

We would however request that discussion of night hunting in all but limited circumstance be considered as an inappropriate topic for this forum.

Since I feel that this post has gone as far as it needs I am locking it here. Please feel free to take up any further discussion via PM.