The last few seasons my buddies have all only hunted the afternoons even on opening day. We've done OK, probably about par for the rest of the state, but I grew up hunting the a.m. Just curious as to what folks are doing for opening day this year....a.m., p.m., or both?

Probably both, assuming the bird numbers are close to what they have been the past few years - which isn't great where I spend my annual opening day hunts.

I've always had better luck in the mornings than evenings personally, but that is purely anecdotal on my experience. I know others that are the opposite.

I always have better success in the mornings, but it depends on where you are. I hunt about 5 miles outside of a decent sized town. Most of the birds I see are town birds, and there are a lot of them. The good thing is you can shoot 'em on the way out in the morning or on the way back in the evening. Bad news is they're mostly gone after the first weekend.

Grew up hunting w/my Grandfather & buddies - it was always an afternoon event. I've never bothered to hunt much in the morning... but I hunt South Zone.

If I was north or central & started Sep. 1, I'd definitely have to think about it 'cause it's hot as hell on opening day.

We always hunted over stock tanks since doves water before they roost. They also drink up first thing in the morning so the number of doves should be about the same.

both as well depends on the location as for when the hunt is better. Ive had good hunts at fields in the am and good hunts at water in the pm

this is like asking what the best tasting catfish is. ask 3 different people, get 3 different answers. I have a cousin that would head out to the field right after lunch when we were growing up and he did better than fair.

I go in the AM by myself unless I'm with buddies or my brother because my wife & kids are not morning people. I go back out in the evening with my wife & kids.

I'll piggy back on this thread.... have a field that was "natural" sunflowers and was recently plowed. Like last week recently thanks to the rain softening up the ground. Then there is one that is still all "natural" sunflowers that are head high. There's a clearing between water and tall sunflowers that i'd set up on. Both have close water sources. Which would you hunt? Recently plowed field seems to make access to seeds easier for the birds.

Jack County is the place. Not an over abundance of birds on Sunday but it was also 9 am before I got out there to look around.

The only way I'm not hunting the evening is if I limit in the morning.

Have had more luck on morning hunts than evenings but I'm sure there are others in places that are opposite. Like posted above, ask 5 guys and you'll get 5 different answers, best way is to know and be familiar with the location that you are hunting and have past experience on it.

Nonetheless, the correct answer is to hunt both, unless you limit out in the morning. Opening day and first few days after I always try to get out as much as possible, after that it's just whatever works with my schedule, usually mornings on weekends and afternoons on weekdays.

Limit in the evenings, drink and play cards, sleep in. Repeat. Go home.

Pm here. Don't know why?

South Texas thing maybe?

Just always went Pm

FiTxAg04 said:

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The only way I'm not hunting the evening is if I limit in the morning.

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Same here, except I'm always hunting the afternoon.

It also depends on what you're hunting. Fields and sunflowers? You may have more success in the morning. Tanks and trees - hunt the afternoon.

1. Morning = flyway between roosting area and seed fields

2. Afternoon = flyway between seed fields and water

3. Evening = flyway between water and roosting area

4. ???

5. Profit

Quote:

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Not an over abundance of birds on Sunday but it was also 9 am before I got out there to look around.

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You may have been too late to scout. The ag fields we hunt, birds are flying in from first light to about 8:30, then they sit and eat. They come out later, but 9am might have been that morning lull between going in to feed and out to roost.

lostboy said:

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Quote:

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Not an over abundance of birds on Sunday but it was also 9 am before I got out there to look around.

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You may have been too late to scout. The ag fields we hunt, birds are flying in from first light to about 8:30, then they sit and eat. They come out later, but 9am might have been that morning lull between going in to feed and out to roost.

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Mourning doves seem to fly earlier than the whitewings, with the mourning doves not in the large flocks like the whitewings often seem to be.

But I'm working off of memories of several years ago...when we actually had huntable numbers. 2018 has to have been the worst dove season for the our area (west Brazos county, east Burleson county). Anything this year has to be an improvement...

Monday evening about 7:45, I did see several large groups of whitewings flying into Bryan, from the west (Brazos bottom area).

Stagecoach said:

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1. Morning = flyway between roosting area and seed fields

2. Afternoon = flyway between seed fields and water

3. Evening = flyway between water and roosting area

4. ???

5. Profit

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Agree. In the morning, sit 30+ yards, with mojos, in the field and pop them as come from the trees. In the pm, sit in the shade of the trees facing the field and pop them on their way back to the trees.

And shooting white wings is not dove hunting. It's a form pigeon hunting.

I'm in the South Zone so starting the 14th I'll be
teal in the morning, doves in the afternoon/evening

Same here.

It depends on the day. We hunt the northern end of the south zone near Pleasanton. There have been some days that I've got a limit by 10~10:30. There are other days where I've gotten 2 or 3 in the morning and finished a limit in 30 minutes about an hour before sunset. There are other days were I shoot single digit shells because nothing is flying in range.

The only patterns I've ever seen on our place is that everything is random and they're most likely to come from the direction you're not looking.

Opening day, we will hunt both morning and evening and sometimes hang around the field in between, and hunt then too, when not limited out. We just can't get enough on opening day. We have water, and flyways, so each year, we use our successes in the first 48 hours of hunting to help us figure out if morning or evening would be better. I would rather hunt evenings, so I can sleep in, but it is definitely cooler in the morning.

Seems like it is taking forever for Sunday to get here....

South Texas (Karnes County): PM, period. If you're in the right location (near grain fields, tank, and heavy brush) those last five or ten minutes can sometimes give Argentina a run for its money... ...the number of shots taken are only limited by how fast I can reload and how soon I reach a limit of birds.

Is it Sunday yet? #CantWAIT!