Legal or Illegal

[tynimiller]

I recently passed up a shot at a buck 15 minutes prior to legal shooting light due to just that reason, it was before legal light. Well when disclosing the story with some, someone mentioned that I was illegal to even be in the woods with my bow before legal light...even more illegal to be sitting in my stand before legal light with my bow. Clarity on this please? Is it illegal to get on stand prior to light? Is it illegal to be on stand with my bow before legal light?

For years I've never thought anything about getting set and ready an hour before I can legally shoot. Love watching woods wake up or taking that pre-hunting nap haha! Clarity about this would be great as I have to have a clear conscious when I harvest a trophy buck, and wouldn't if I knew I was breaking a law.

[morrison]

There is nothing in statute or administrative rule that says when you can be in the woods or when you have to be out of the woods. The administrative rule states that you cannot hunt deer until a 1/2 hour before sunrise and 1/2 hour after sunset. I personally would not have an arrow nocked or the firearm loaded until legal shooting hours. I have posted the administrative rule below.


312 IAC 9-3-2 General requirements and licenses for hunting deer
(r) An individual must not hunt deer except from one-half (1/2) hour before sunrise to one-half (1/2) hour after sunset.