Ground Blinds for Rut Hunting
Wisconsin
With another rotator cuff surgery done, 2 knee replacements, and 2 back fusions, I have decided to try staying on the ground this year. I hunt big woods and prepare stands well ahead of time. I have 2 original double bull blinds, the small 1 man ones. I am hoping to use them along with a couple "easy" tree stands this year.Was thinking of using natural vegetation, branches etc to set up a natural obstacle to front my blinds this spring. Any good ideas from some "ground hunters" ???
we could start a whole thread just on hunting big woods,,,,,,, I am fortunate, health wise, so that is not the reason I hunt from the ground, I just found that in a lot of situations, its just more effective....
for the most part, I hunt public,,, were talking about pressured deer, a whole different animal.... and since going to the ground, my scent control, is to the point of being insane, even though I know, scent is spread everywhere on public land, when they close and personal, I do not take chances.....
since my last DB BS-5 was stolen from private land, at my house, I have not bought a pop up blind,,,, they are nice for private, where you can leave them up, but not mobile enough for me.....
so we are talking about hunting the ground, lets get to it,,,,, first all, what are you going to sit on, because I think I have tried it all, but this is what I have been using....
my chair is a black out. It is made by redhead. it spins 360, is dead quiet. legs individually adjust, up to 19 inches... each leg has a goose foot, to adjust to terrain. the chair has a triangle seat, but it also has a back, and for me, that is important.
I can sit all day if I have to, comfort, and quiet. down size is weight, it is 6lbs, has a carrying case, because the seat folds up nicely, and the strap I carry across my back.... have not found anything that is lighter, that is useful for me....
one other thing, forget cheap camp stools, noisy buckets, etc etc,,,,, you need something that can hunt the crap with.... if anyone else has a chair they use, and I mean use, and travel with, I would like to see it, or hear about it, always looking for something just a little bit better,,,,,,
Razor. I could never find a good chair for hunting public land. I figure if I'm going to carry something on my back, it might as well be my lightest treestand. Sometimes I set it up at knee height and "ground" hunt that way. I have found 5 spots this spring where I made brush blinds and can use the stand as an elevated chair, yet still have excellent cover.
http://forums.bowsite.com/tf/regional/thread.cfm?threadid=227566&MESSAGES=40&state=WI
I think some of this info for predominantly turkey can be applied for deer. I hunt them mostly for turkey, but in inclement weather, they are very nice. One drawback is the inability to see and hear like you obviously can from a tree stand. I bow hunt from them with no problem. Once brushed in, not so portable, but these chairs are very comfortable, and Razor is correct. Comfort is what I look for.
Fred G Asbell wrote a very good book on ground hunting. I found it to be helpful and called Stalking and Still Hunting.
RutnStrut You and I always seem to be on the same wave length.... I also do the same, I call it simply an elevated ground blind, and using one lw stick, I get up about 6 feet, still tucked in the crap......
However, I do hunt areas, that really no trees exist, or are not in the right spot......
also do not forget about hunting in the water,,,, I have a great spot, I found last year, on the Brule River, and I sit, right in the water, near a blow down....
water covers scent and your approach,,,,,, I also found a beaver pond crossing once, so I set up, downstream in the water, the deer that crossed that dam, never knew I was there.... took a 5 point off that spot,,,,,
I have a Helinox Camp One chair that weighs less than 2 lb for going back in but need to test it for lengthy sits and shoot ability. That Redhead swivel chair seems like a great one. I I like the idea of placing my comfy Summit Climbers at the base of a tree and using natural around it for concealment. Anyone have some ideas on using Camo netting etc with this type set-up? I My main idea is to hunt as I have in the past, good funnels, travel areas near doe bedding,etc Just want to do it effectively from the ground with scent and visual detection being the big obstacles to try best to eliminate.
I have that Helinox chair also. It's great for set up and take down and to carry in. But you need ground hard as concrete not to sink in. I lost one of the rubber feet the first time used it. Depending how you shift your weight, one leg always sinks deeper. I weight 175, and I try to hunt swamps, so I limit to rifle hunting where I don't need a ton of movement.
I hunt only from ground blinds. I've never hunted up a tree for whitetails, which I suppose some people may find odd considering the sport and what is considered to be the preferred method for success.
I hunt public land almost 100% of the time. I maintain about 4-5 brush ground blinds in one section of woods, and it actually makes the area look like it is heavily populated by hunters during the regular gun season, when in fact it is just me. The brush blinds are large enough that I can setup the pop-up ground blind I have inside them. Gun season I just haul out a chair and sit in my primary blind. Bow season I carry in my pop-up blind and set it up well before dawn, and take it down at the end of the day. I never leave it out there when I am not in it. Deer don't seem to care if there is suddenly a pop-up blind there. I think the brush blinds already having been there helps with this perhaps.
I have good success using the ground blind. I maintain some scent control with sprays and deodorant, but mostly I don't go nuts about it and just try to hunt the wind. I tend to build my brush blinds with a tree or clump of trees at one side, usually downwind from where I like to look, so when I hunt in my pop-up I am really only able to hunt three sides around me, with my back to the tree or group of trees.
Another thing that seems to work well in keeping the deer distracted from my pop-up blind is the use of a decoy. I don't use it much in the early season, but come October I will use one, and it really works well. The deer see it and tend to focus on that. I set the decoy out about twenty five yards from my blind either broadside to me, or just slightly turned my direction from broadside (never ever facing directly at me). The deer tend to circle around behind it (doe decoy) and come up from behind, or quartering towards it from behind - this usually always allows me a broadside shot, or a slightly quartering away shot. It is important to spray scent blocker on the decoy, and then I also put a little doe urine down on the ground below.
The downside to all this is that I tend to carry a lot with me out in the woods when I bow hunt. My backpack is strapped on with food, calls, water, and misc gear, and then my ground blind in its case is secured to that on the back, which is about 5.5" square and weighs around 13 lbs. Then I carry my bow in one hand and a chair in the other. My chair is usually a light aluminum green folding chair that has a small back on it, I think it weighs about 5 lbs is all. It is not overly comfortable, but it is enough so that I can use it and not get annoyed at being to uncomfortable.
When using the deer decoy things get a bit tedious with all the gear I carry. But it can be done in one trip. I hunt about 200 yards off a narrow dirt road that I park along, so it is not too much of a walk to my brush blinds. I just make sure I give myself plenty of time to walk slowly in and setup me stuff.
Happy hunting-
Well Jim , having some bad body parts sure beats not being around to complain about it .
I was out Saturday setting up ground blinds with windfalls . Have a Bruiser located . Set up a ground blind for South & West winds . Next time it rains I'll setup another blind for North winds . On the ground is a great challenge in Public lands .
Last year I create a funnel by moving blowdowns around . Hard work but I did change the patterns .
I tried a DB blind 1 year . Felt enclosed & out of touch with nature . Could never find the right chair . I use a DB tripod that I added 3 inches to the legs & put 3 inch cookies on the bottom so it doesn't sink . Works fine . I though about making them for retail but hunting , fishing , gardening , & 12 grandkids leaves no time .
Take care Jim , give me a call the next time your in Merrill . Trout time .
TB Bauer - Nice post - I'm actually learning stuff again on Bowsite!
I use a Niff T Seat. Quite, light, and gets you off the ground.
I've been hunting out of home made ground blinds for couple of years now love it. Deer don't have a clue your in there. I like to set blind up by May so the deer get used to it. This pic is the 3rd one I've built just put it out. For bow hunting i make them 6x6 so you have plenty of room to draw your bow. I still love tree stand hunting though. No more hang on's all ladders for me.
By the way i put an office chair in mine. Lol
For those with hub style pop-ups on private land, how early do you guys put them out and any concerns with critters?
Ruger, I hear you. I much prefer to be in tree to see and hear much more going on around me. So my couple preferred stands will still be safely set tree stands with ladder type stick poles to climb. But planning making a couple brush blinds to set hub style blind up in or behind as backup if "body parts" giving me trouble.
"For those with hub style pop-ups on private land, how early do you guys put them out and any concerns with critters?"
I put mine up on our land the first or second week of August. I have not had any critter problems doing it this way for a while. Because I put them out early on our own land I haven't brushed them in much at all. I will be brushing them in heavily this year though. Reason being is last year I had a couple different cruiser bucks come through that didn't like them. My thinking is the local deer get use to them. But they are something the rut cruisers avoid. I am going to use Pete-pec's method and frame the blind in with cut branches and hold everything together with zipties.
Rut, I'd be glad to help if you have questions. I've had failure from these blinds, but I believe I've solved the issues, and could likely give some pointers that may prevent you from the same mishaps I had. I'm certainly a tree stand hunter, but in certain circumstances, blinds serve a real purpose.
Good thread with some good ideas for me. I'm in the same position as a lot of you who are transitioning to more ground blind hunting due to the toll of time and injuries. I need a hip replaced (should have done it a few years ago, but seem too young for such a major surgery) and will have to modify my hunting quite a bit I'm sure at least initially. Ground blinds and ladder stands instead of climbers and hang-ons 20 feet up I guess, My all-time favorite setup (when the right tree is available) is to put a hang-on in a spruce. Great cover and I often can just use the limbs to climb right on up and get high enough safely to avoid their noses.
I plan on settimg up a few blinds this week. I like the idea of making the parcel appear to hold lots of hunters to other humans.
Thing's I did wrong . Opened up all the windows when I got to blind . Wore camo cloth's in a dark blind . Wasn't in spots where it blended in well . Now I leave the narrowest shooting window open all the time . Wear black in blind . Hand's and face . Most importandly I smoke my cloth's before going hunting . I've had mature does stand right in front of my blind and never even look in . I'm talking a foot away . Hope some of this helps . They work real well in an area with a lot of blow downs . Hope you have a great season .
Ive thought about doing a ground blind. I cant find any private land around where I live. So I want to do public just don't know if I want to screw around with a climber stand all the time. I have public land behind my house, so I may try ground hunting this year!
Good info guys!
I use both popup blinds but don't like not being able to see around me and almost get claustrophobia. So I op for blinds made of natural vegetation. With that I can see 330 just like in a treestand.
Keeping movement limited is critical and I use face paint or camo head gear. I started using ground blinds when I got into bowhunting in the sixties and they work. I have had many deer within feet of me but prefer they not get too close since I want to be able to draw on them. Yes, been successful too.
A few years ago i bought a quick blind lade up of extendable legs and cam material that was only like walls around me with open top. Had a doe and fawn nearly run me over the first time I used it. I still use this when being mobile.
If your looking for a ground blind chair, that you do not have to move, than a millennium is awful nice, but not a run and gun seat,,,,,
Bass Pro Shop, under red head makes the Black Out,,, it comes in a case you can zipper close and put over the shoulder,,,,, its nice, but still heavy at 6lbs
It adjust up to 19 inches in height, it rotates 360, and is dead, dead quiet, it has goose feet, that can handle terrain issues,,,,,,, there have been some reviews, of parts breaking, but I have used this one very hard for 3 years, and never had an issue,,,,,
just wish it was lighter,,, they cost 79.00 it only has a back, and seat, no sides, I can easily shoot any style bow out of it
I like a good medium to higher back bag chair. Cut off the bow arm armrest though so you don't get your bow against it. Quiet, easy to carry and good for napping.
I have 3 of the chairs at the link. They've worked well for us in our blinds which are on private lands meaning the chairs are not lugged around each trip.
The webbed feat stop the chair from sinking too much.
As I noted, the chairs are already in our pop-ups because we're on private land. Don't think I'd use them trudging in on public land. They are nice chairs for blinds though.
I made me a couple of these. They are comfortable and work great. here is the link.
Nice redirect hnf43 - Dang RC, looks like you quit your diet and stopped working out. Bummer on that one. The pounds are coming back quickly. You might want to nip that one in the bud again.
Yeah, buckets are pretty old school. Looks nice on really flat surfaces, but they do not work so good when the ground is not so perfectly level.
Looks like you got to spend $50.00 and I did it with some scrap plywood and a old drywall bucket. Your last post had nothing to do with the thread, other than an un-healthy obsession for another guy. But hey if that's your thing go for it. Maybe you could start the Bowsite Rainbow Coalition.
You are right hnf43. I spent around $50 and will be very comfortable on long sits with a seat that swivels, a firm high back, and it will stay firm on uneven ground, like the mossy areas with roots my pop-ups are in. To each their own though.
Dude, you pointed us to his LOL-personal blog-LOL which almost made me vomit. You really need to warn people when doing that. I couldn't help but notice the difference in how he looks now compared to when he was dieting and working out. Seeing he still posts here, just figured I'd offer up what I saw just like you pointing us to his buckets. You and your buddy should think about doing some running after you build your bucket seats ;). Stay healthy buddy!
as usual, I found another sportsman rummage sale,,,, bought a seat for 15.00 19 inches high, spin seat, tubular frame that folds together,,,,, should be a good one, we will see,,,,,, no back though, but very light, and a bungee cord, puts it all together
RC you looked pretty good at deer fest, don't get down on yourself, my physical is this am,,,,,, we will see,,,,,,,,
"My business partner (son) has more time for such things. "
Yeah, Bow_Tech represents your company well here RC.
Good luck with the business and your health. I'm 55 and make time to work out and prioritize it. I block out time on my calendar and just do it. We come before work.
I must be the only one using a Ghost blind, the 4 paneled mirror blind. Works well for me, I try and set up with a tree or dead fall behind me. Perhaps some berlap to one side. a few branchs placed in front and you cant see it. I like no roof, and can see about 300 degrees around with tree behind me ,can all so hear way better. last year I got a second one but never set it up because I scored from the 1st one . I'm 60 this year, love my Ghost Blinds .
I was down at our land moving a few stands and setting up ground blinds for bow season. It's not quite Pete-pec brushing in. But I'm pretty happy with this one.
That looks great Rut! I'd be proud of that one! Be honest, it was fun wasn't it?!
Thanks for the inspiration,boys! I think I'll get busy with my Pop-up and brushing in really well! Its an exciting way to hunt,and the older I get the less I like climbing a tall tree stand.
I am really close to pulling the trigger on a ghost blind. Anyone ever use one? I think it would be great for areas where you can't use a climber.
I've been intrigued also with the Ghost Blind. Kinda pricey and bulky, but guys I've talked to said they're easy to pack and set up...and are effective.
Hmmmm....
I read some reviews on the Ghost Blind on Amazon and Sportsmans Guide. The negatives I read were is scratched easy and the blind had a smell to it. Way more positive reviews though over negative ones.
