In the last few months, several western states have voted on ending the biannual time change and remaining in Daylight Saving Time (DST) for perpetuity. This essentially means there will be no more “fall back” and “spring forward” time changes each year. Washington and California have already approved bills to remain in DST, and it appears that Oregon will soon be following suit. Idaho, which has the the northern half of its territory in the Pacific Time Zone, has been resistant to recent bills to make the permanent switch. Even if a state votes to secede from Standard Time, Congressional approval is still required before the change can take effect. So the change to permanent DST is not yet guaranteed, but it does look to have strong support from the west coast states. Congress is more likely to allow the states to turn permanently to DST if there is solidarity with all states in the time zone. Nevada (also in the Pacific Time Zone) actually asked Congress to allow individual states to be granted the right to decide whether or not they will stay in Daylight Saving Time back in 2015.
So, what will permanent Daylight Saving Time mean to hunters? Well, let’s start by looking at what will not change:
Hunters will not lose hunting hours. Bear with me, I just want to clear this one up right away as it may seem obvious to some. With permanent DST, the hours of legal light will be shifted forward one hour to reflect DST after the first weekend in November. It will result in legal light arriving one hour later in the morning and ending one hour later in the evening, so the total hunting time will not be changed.
There will be no change for hunting in early March through October. Since the “fall back” time change occurs the first weekend in November each year, the hunting opportunities in September and October will not be affected. So this would typically be archery season for elk, as well as archery and modern firearm seasons for deer. On the spring side of the calendar, there will be no significant change either. The most popular spring hunting seasons (spring bear and turkey) typically kick off around April 15, which is within the current DST period of early March through early November. Most of the change to hunting hours will be for late season big game hunting opportunities, and later bird seasons.
Here are some of the changes that could potentially affect your hunting if DST were to become permanent in your state:
More late sleepers crashing the primo hunting hours. If there is no time shift back one hour in November, this is effectively changing dawn (or the time of legal light) forward one hour. If day break had normally come at 7:15am on November 15, it will now be arriving at 8:15am under permanent DST. Some folks may appreciate that extra hour of rest, but I would prefer an earlier sunrise. Lowering the barrier to entry for the golden hunting hours of dawn twilight is not something I generally support, but it may be a benefit to some.
Shorter mornings and longer evenings. When you lose an hour in the morning, you get it back in the evening. If you have other obligations like family or work that you have been juggling with hunting, permanent DST make create a new challenge (or opportunity) for you. If you had been getting up early to get a half day of hunting in on the weekends, you will be losing one of those hunting hours in the morning. On the other hand, if you had been trying to sneak in a little bird hunting after work every now and then, you will be getting the benefit of an extra hour of legal light in the evenings.
Changes in human activity and animal response. Not everyone hikes miles away from all roads and civilization to get to their favorite haunts. If you hunt an area near roads that see commuter traffic or other human activity, there may be an affect on wildlife and how they respond. Recall that this will be mostly in November and December during later big game seasons and bird seasons. Human activity such as slamming doors, letting the dog out, starting the car, or turning on lights can influence the habits of wildlife. If you give this some consideration before heading out, it may give you an edge to help your success.
Hunt Harder 