Ever get the heebie-jeebies while hunting in the dark?

Only two things that give me the heebie jeebies when hunting in the dark with my one eyed dog. The Loup-Garou, the Cajun Werewolf, the other is a Wildlife & Fisheries Agent,....... AKA the Game Warden, much worse than the first.............
 
I think it's kind of cool being out in the dark when I'm hiking in to get to my deer hunting spot. Like Buzzcook, my main fear is falling/stumbling or getting poked in the eye. I've been out in the dark when I've heard coyotes calling and it's extremely loud but kinda neat. I sometimes pack a Ruger .44 mag Super Blackhawk or a .45 Colt Vaquero when I go out in the dark.

I do feel a bit vunerable as I'm stumbling through the bush in the dark. I usually have a headlamp on and I'm making a lot of noise (even though I'm trying to be stealthy) and anything or anyone in the woods could probably see and hear me coming a mile away.

Edited to add that although I am comfortable in the woods of NH at night, I would not feel comfortable in the dark on Kodiak Island! Great post and pictures KodiakBeer!
 
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I haven't hunted in the dark, but I used to do a lot of backpacking.
I had more trouble with wild dogs, then anything else. I never had to shoot one, but when we had a small fire going at night, once and a while you'd look up and see eyes reflected by the flames. The eye's that I'd see above my eye level would give me pause now and then.
The funniest actually happened to another hiker. And sorry to say my brother and I had more then our fair share of laughter at his expense.
My brother and I where hiking a section of the Appalachian trail in Virginia. We were going north, and had stopped in one of the open front shelters that dot the AT, just south of Bear Fence Mountain.
We were the only ones in the shelter until about sunset, when a southbound hiker came in. he was a real tall skinny guy, my first impression was Ichabod Crane. He was very nervous, and alone ( this was his first time making an extended hike). He said that a bear was following him. We had had a nice chat and he seemed to settle down ok. He fixed a meal using the small fire I had lit in the fire ring. And we passed a flask of emergency Bushmills that I always carry. My brother and I had already laid out our pads, and bags, on the lower platform, and he had just finished laying his out on the upper platform. I put out the fire, and lit my candle lantern to have a little light, and hung it from a nail. This guy had just got into his bag, when a bat flew in the shelter just pass his face.
Me nor my brother ever saw this guy's feet hit the ground, we heard a scream and a bang, and by the time we looked up this guy was clear across the other side of the fire pit. I think he had enough. He packed his stuff, and left. We tried to get him to leave in the morning, but he was too spooked.
Never did see him again, as we were hiking north.
But at least he didn't have far to go in the dark, there was a trail head a few miles south of the shelter, which is I suspect he headed for.
 
Not really heebie jeebies but it's funny.
A few years ago I was asleep in a tent up in the Bob Marsahall and a black bear woke me up about three feet outside grunting and generally sounding like a bear.
A few minutes later I heard some clanging in the cook tent, took up my flashlight, and out comes the bear being chased,cussed, and flogged with an old towel by a half naked outfitter.
 
Never while hunting but have been freaked out while wilderness camping alone (with dogs) in the Allegheny National Forest. My 1 1/2 year old lab was in heat so I had the 2 males in the back of the truck and the female in the tent with me. After the fire died down the coyotes were getting awful close to camp. I think if she could have crawled in the sleeping bag she would have.
 
I spent the first 19 years of my life living in a coal mining camp in West Virginia. There were no street lights. At night the only way I knew I was headed in the right direction was because I kept walking towards a porch light that was on the side of somebody's house, or the occasional car or truck that came down the road. I can honestly say that I've never seen anything in the woods that gave me the heebie-jeebies. I did walk up on a guy in the woods that was trespassing one time and didn't like the feeling that gave me at all. I can also think of a time when I got crossed up in the woods and had to keep my senses about me as I worked my way out. A few snakes. These happened during day light hours though. Guys in my hunt club keep talking about seeing "Hootie" here and there. Some hairy man like creature they swear they've all seen at one time or another. Imagine the rifles and reloading supplies I'll be able to buy if I bust a cap in his hind quarters and drag him outta the woods :)
 
If I'm hunting in the dark it's only to walk to my deer/turkey stand. So it's usually very early and I'm way to grumpy for the heebie-jeebies.

Once while scouting for deer season I thought I was on a deer trail walking along and stumbled on to a bunch of pot plants. At the time you'd read all these stories about how these growers would booby trap or stake out their grow plots. So now I needed to back out the way I came and hope someone didn't take a shot at me.
 
Once I was archery hunting deer sitting in a patch of weeds in a small field opening where deer came out like clock work at a certain time,it got to be well past that time (wind was right for me) and I'm wondering where they are. Then I see movement out at the wood line I think here we go, then another movement right next to it. I realize it's way to dark in color, they start rolling around and right when I see what it is mom came out. They start walking right towards me 60,50,they get to 40yds and I'm becoming concerned, ( all I've got is a bow ) right when I go to stand up and make all kinds of racket and perhaps take a shot for no reason they just turned and went the other way. The next weekend I'm on my way to the stand at 0 dark thirty about 300yds from where this was and I hear a very loud, heavy snap and a BIG crash, sounded like it was 20-30 yds to the right. I came very,very close to water falling on the ground! I very quickly decided that another stand was a better option. I now carry an M&P 45 when I bow hunt.
 
I was working on a deer hung in my garage, de boning the meat. I felt like something or someone was watching me. I kept looking over the shoulder but didnt see anything. I was dragging the bones and hide when I saw eyes staring at me across the ditch, was a bobcat. I went and got a shotgun but he was gone when I got back.

I go out at night all the time, best time to be in the woods. Used to run coons and such but those days are over.

Winter nights out on the sled, now thats fun.
 
Never had a problem until,,,

I read the post here about groundhogs climbing trees,,,
Now I worry that one is lying in wait, ready to ponce on me.

It ain't safe out in the woods any more! :rolleyes:

I watched too many black & white monster movies when I was a kid,,,
Every time I drive the desert at night I remember the giant ants from Them.

I swear that one night driving across the Mojave,,,
I was being paced by a giant gila monster.
 
My worst night was when there was basically no moon, and I was still out trying to get a few pigs to come out of their hiding place where I had cornered them. After waiting about 30 minutes, I heard this deep growl maybe 100 yards away, and believe you me, it did not make me a happy camper. I shouldered the rifle, pulled out the .45, chambered it, pulled out a knife in the other hand, and slowly and very carefully made my way about 1000 yards back to my rover. Most of the way was an open field, not that I could see anything; but if it hadn't been, I have no idea what I would have done. In the pitch black, bobcats or mountain lions are not something you want hunting you, no matter what you're armed with, and no matter if you're scared or not.

Other than that, hunting at night is pretty good. I've only ever hunted hogs, and they can be a real pain in the ass to see because they're mostly pitch black themselves. Just makes it fun. I once got within maybe 50 yards of about 30 of them before I realized how close they were. That was sure alot of fun :)
 
When I was 12 (1972) my dad (I always called him Papa) and I were deer hunting in SW Texas for about 5 days on 1300 acres at the dead end of a 15 mile long county road where the Edwards Plateau and the hill country collide. An area of rugged canyons dropping off the plateau. Camp was a tent, coleman stove, campfire, no electricity, no running water (windmill was 1/2 mile away) during cold part of winter. No blinds, no stands, no feeders. It was the best primitive camping / hunting in my life with vivid and fond memories of the three years we hunted there. We hunted and shot whitetail, turkey, and javalina. Average shot for deer was 250 yards across canyons. I shot a javalina at 300 yards and Papa shot one at 15 feet (it jumped up as a surprise). We would hunt mornings and evenings. One of my chores was to stoke up the campfire at 4 am and get the coleman stove going for eggs, bacon and coffee. Papa made scratch biscuits in a dutch oven each morning in the coals while I did the eggs and bacon. He was born in 1918 and spent his younger years as a ranch hand on the border near Del Rio TX. He said it reminded him of his youth to primitive camp like that. I know I ate it up like I ate up the milk gravy on the biscuits! We got our limits ever season on deer.

Spooky part happened when my dad said we were going varmit hunting at midnight with a call and a light. I had never been varmit hunting. The call was the "wounded rabbit" type you blow through. We set up in the center of a little clearing around the windmill (just the two of us) at an isolated bush. The clearing was only about fourty yards across, then the brush got thick and a big canyon dropped off . We were armed with a .22 rifle, a .270 bolt action, and a Rem. 1100 12 gauge. The spotlight was a 12 volt plug in spotlight hooked to a boat battery.

We lit up a few big jack rabbits, some armadillo, and possum. I shot those with my .22 rifle. We gutted out the assortment and spread the remains in the brush to make it more appealing to the varmits. Papa advised there was no telling what we might call up. He then started the calling. With all lights out, he would call for about five minutes, then sweep the light in a full circle, catching a few eyes looking our way from the brush. I did not like it much when the light was out because it was pitch black. Shot a coon and a ringtail that way. We did this for about an hour. It was around midnight.

Papa was an avid reader of Field and Stream and I always read it too. In 1972 there was not much electronic technology but Weem's (sp?) would advertise a varmit call that was a battery powered record player with a loud speaker that would play the "wounded rabbit " sounds. One of their magazine adds was a picture of a hunter with a cougar he had shot. At his feet was a destroyed Weem's record player. Printed in the add was a short letter he sent to Weems asking for another player because the cougar had pounced on his and broke it. I had informed Papa that we needed on of those players. He informed he we would be buying a call you blow through, ...that fancy stuff was for the rich folks. Anyway, all during those minutes when the lights were out and Papa was blowing the call, I kept thinking of that add with the broken record player and the cougar.

Well it happened! Papa turned the light on and began his sweep after calling. The light lit up a cedar bush about 20 feet away. I was holding my 22 rifle. The other two guns were on the ground at Papa's feet. Staring at me from behind the bush, with two glowing eyes space six inches apart, was a very startled cougar. I screamed! The cougar screamed! Papa yelled "shoot it!" In a blink the cougar was gone down the canyon. I never moved. Lot of good the 22 would have done anyway. I was through hunting varmits for the night. Papa later said the best he had hoped for was a shot at a bobcat. An educational night for the both of us!

Papa passed on in 1986. I will forever be gratefull for those wonderful times. Thanks Papa.
 
Good post, good memories, thanks for sharing.

It was around 0100 hours when I saw my first mountain lion in the middle of the desert. All I had was a 22 revolver because I was rabbit hunting by moonlight. There were no sounds made as we stood about 50' apart and looked at each other but a lot of sweating on my part. At least I hope it was sweat. Even my dog was very still, very quiet and made no effort to leave my side as we walked back to the car.

Last time I ever went out into the desert alone with just a 22. Never saw another out there but that one is forever engraved in the never to be forgotten portion of my brain.
 
We supposedly don't have mountain lions in our area (NW Louisiana), and game wardens will tell you- will swear up and down- that we don't. I believed them and dismissed others' claims of hearing/seeing them as drunks/idiots that probably saw/heard a bobcat or coyote and didn't know any better. Well, not anymore.
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My father-in-law grew up near Natchitoches, and he said there were mountain lions around there when he was a kid. He always said that screech owls make a noise similar to a mountain lion. When he was about seven, he left his shoes near a berry patch, and his mom sent him back out to get them. After dark. He said he came home empty handed because he didn't stick around to see which critter was making the noise as he got close to where his shoes were.

Regards,
Tom
 
I remember an interview awhile back with a professional hunter who trapped cougars. He spent many years hunting them, never saw one not in a trap or treed by dogs. I doubt there's a more skilled hunter in the lower 48, and yes, they are more widespread than lots of smart folks believe. I feel pretty sure there's at least one in the county south of me, bordering the D/FW area.
 
Hog huntin in Texas..middle of the night..pitch black..a hog come up behind me and gave that deep growl...wow...i thought lucifer had arrived !!!
 
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