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5 Reasons To Use A Ground Blind When Deer Hunting

5 Reasons To Use A Ground Blind When Deer Hunting

By: Heath Wood

For deer hunters, ground blinds have become more prevalent in the last twenty years than any other product on the market. They are easy to put up and take down; they keep you, the hunter, hidden better than ever before, and let’s admit it, you can hunt more comfortably when there is room to move without being busted by a nearby deer.

Even though the popularity of ground blinds has increased over the years, there are still some who haven’t experienced for themselves how practical a ground blind can be. When used in certain situations, a ground blind can be the answer to keeping you out in the field long enough for that big trophy buck to show himself finally.

If you’re not entirely sold on the idea of using a blind, below are five reasons to use a ground blind that will make you a better deer hunter.

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  1. Youth Hunting 

As hunters, we must pass on the tradition of hunting to the next generation. If one has ever hunted with kids, they know that the time leading up to the harvest is critical when making a good impression on a first-time hunter. Children can get bored quickly; they want to move, they often can get cold, which cuts the hunt short. To make a more enjoyable experience for a first-time hunter, a ground blind can be the answer.

Using a blind such as the Muddy Prevue 3 blind is a great way to hunt with kids or first-time hunters. The Prevue 3 is a three-person blind, measuring 58” X 58” with a 66” standing height. The large area of the Prevue 3 allows youth to take a chair with them to sit comfortably and allow them to move their legs and body throughout the hunt without being seen by wildlife. Being comfortable is essential when wanting to spend more time outdoors hunting.

On colder days when staying warm is a factor, I have had kids bring along a blanket and even a small heater to help stay warm. If they are comfortable, they have more fun.

I also suggest bringing along a good pair of binoculars for youth to use while hunting. Using a set of optics keeps them involved in the hunt, gives them something to do, and makes the entire experience more enjoyable. The Prevue 3 blind features one-way see-through mesh, allowing them to see more of the action from the inside without being seen by wildlife looking in from the outside.

5 Reasons To Use A Ground Blind When Deer Hunting

 

  1. Rainy Days

There is a famous saying; “you can’t kill them from the couch.” Hunters do not like sitting in a stand getting soaked on rainy days. Some hunters even elect to stay inside and wait on more ideal conditions before hunting. The more serious hunters refuse to allow anything to keep them from their pursuit of a trophy whitetail. Especially during the rut when you never know when the big buck will appear, even in the pouring down rain.

Many hunters will keep a ground blind in place to ensure no missed opportunity, saving it for a rainy day. When a blind is in place near an open area such as a food plot or crop field, hunters can sit inside a dry ground blind, watching these open areas for deer movement.

Staying dry keeps the hunter warmer, more comfortable, and like hunting with a child, keeps the hunting time going longer.

  1. No Place For A Tree Stand

One of the best tips for finding the top stand location or blind set up is not looking for a place or a tree that looks good but finding a place where deer travel. I am guilty of finding an area with a large number of deer signs, then starting to find a good tree for my stand. The problem is that sometimes that best-looking tree may pull me from the specific area where deer travel. When there is no tree in the exact spot to be a good treestand set, I elect to use a ground blind instead.

When using a ground blind, hunters can place it where the deer sign is prominent. Better blind placement will provide more shot opportunities when deer travel through the area, especially when bowhunting. Unavailable trees for hanging a stand can also occur when hunting near a crop field; white-tailed deer often feed and travel along the edges of the crops. To ensure that you are in the right place to provide a shot opportunity, you must be set up near the edge where there are no trees. A ground blind tucked up next to standing crops allows excellent concealment to get close to the deer.

Another great location to use a ground blind is when hunting an area that has been logged or features a lot of brushy areas. I have hunted areas that have been logged and found that deer movement is still good, yet there are often no trees big enough to hang a treestand. When no trees are available, I find where deer are traveling, then set up my ground blind instead.

Muddy ground blinds

  1. Cold Weather

It is common for temperatures to start falling below freezing in the mornings and evenings during the late season. Late-season hunters usually sit on food sources to catch deer storing up on food to stay warm and prepare for the winter ahead. Long sits in broad open areas such as crop fields, or food plots can become challenging to sit for an extended time.

To catch mature bucks up on their feet during the late season, one may have to sit until the very last light of the day. To sit all day and stay warm, a ground blind can make the hunt more enjoyable. Inside a blind, the hunter can keep out of the bone-chilling wind, plus one can use a small heater or dress heavily in insulated late-season gear. When sitting in colder temperatures while in a ground blind, I take my Yeti tumbler with hot coffee to help keep my body warm. If in a treestand, I could not get by with the movement, compared to sitting inside a concealed blind.

 

  1. Scent Control 

Scent control is on the top of my priority list each time that I deer hunt. I am a true believer in using a complete scent elimination regimen. My system consists of using Scent-A-Way laundry detergent on my hunting garments, spraying down my clothes, boots, and gear with Scent-A-Way odorless spray, as well as spraying down the exterior of my Muddy Blind with Scent-A-Way. To further my scent control practices, when hunting in an area where many deer will be at one time, such as a food plot, I like sitting in a ground blind to help control my human odors.

Sitting inside an enclosed area such as a ground blind helps mask the human odor from drifting in the breeze throughout the area you are hunting. Even though I still pay attention to wind direction and the use of scent elimination products, being inside of a confined ground blind is one more step to gain an advantage against one of the best noses in the wild.

When sitting in a ground blind overlooking a food source with several deer, I determine which way the wind is blowing and then close the downwind side of the blind to help deflect human scent away from nearby deer. In doing this, I can draw deer within bow range without them ever knowing I’m in the area.

The ground blind can often mislead hunters into thinking it is only to be used for the lazy hunter who wants to sit in a chair and wait on deer to appear. Today’s ground blinds are lighter weight than ever before. They are easy to carry and set up, and as explained with the above tips, hunters have discovered that they can be used as an effective tool in a deer hunter’s arsenal to become a more successful hunter.

5 Reasons To Use A Ground Blind When Deer Hunting

Ground Blind Hunting Tips Photo Credit: Trophy Pursuit

Ground Blind Hunting Tips for the Late Season

 

Ground Blind Hunting Tips For Late Season Hunting

The 9th inning has arrived and while to many hunters that sounds like we are the bearer of bad news, it, in fact, is quite the opposite. Knowledge is power, and in this case, it is your only opportunity at scoring a 9th inning buck. For the past several weeks our blog topics have been diving into preparation for the late season. It now seems to be a fit time to dive straight into the actual hunting tactics. For the last weeks of deer season, a ground blind stands as one of best tools a hunter can possibly use. The characteristics of the late season intertwined with a ground blind’s effectiveness is unrivaled during this time period. Take these ground blind hunting tips for the late season and apply them to your hunting strategy. The time period, the tool, these tips, and the strategy all come together to give you a chance at that 9th inning buck you are so desperately seeking.

With state’s firearms seasons closing, bucks are finally starting to feel the effects of relentless hunting pressure lifting off of properties. This godsend goes hand in hand with the arrival of cold temperatures and the attraction of late season food sources. These ingredients spell out a recipe for one of the best times to kill you hit-list buck, even when it is the 9th inning! The reason for this is not just due in part to the biology and behavior of white-tailed deer, but what tools have been made available that are so extremely effective during these last weeks.

Trail Cameras Tell the Story

In the past weeks, the relentless preparation and work to establish intel on late season food sources have been put entirely on the shoulders of trail cameras. In recent weeks we have provided countless trail camera tips, and trail camera settings for the late season in order to help you discover a “patternable” mature buck on these food sources.

 

 

For all practical purposes, trail cameras have started and are currently telling the story of the late season. With the help of both trail cameras on time-lapse mode, and trail cameras in late season funnels a mature buck cannot go unseen when entering a late season food source. Now, with the season running out of pages so to speak, hunters look for a hunting tool and tactic to finish and close the book on a hit-list buck!

Blinds Finish It

During this time of year blinds, in general, take precedence over tree stands. Whether you favor box blinds, elevated ground blinds, mobile ground blinds, or bale blinds doesn’t matter, the simple fact is that they are the best tool for the job. Why?

Whitetail 101 Episode 17 from Muddy’s Trophy Pursuit on Vimeo.

Bill Winke, the host of Midwest Whitetail and Muddy’s Whitetail 101, explains why blinds are the only tool for the job in the late season. The very nature of deer and the late season support this reasoning…

  • It’s Cold –Temperatures dropping beneath 32 degrees packs quite a punch, especially with a 10 mph wind backing it. Blinds offer a hunter a windscreen and ultimately provides a hunter with a buffer from the weather and late season elements.
  • Deer are FED UP with Movement– By now deer are extremely wary of the slightest movements. This can make hunting from a tree stand nearly impossible. Rather, a ground blind or elevated box blind allows you to conceal your movements.
  • Food Source– In this period of deer season, with the deer so heavily focused on food, easily mobile ground blinds can easily be placed and moved in and around the food sources according to patterns and wind directions.

While blinds might be the best tool for the late season, no tool is without a flaw. The simple fact is that you are at the deer’s level. This requires extra precautions from both their sight and sense of smell. Ground blind hunting in the late season requires special attention in the placement according to both the deer and the food source.

Ground Blind Hunting and Placement Tips

Trail Cameras Weekly’s Weston Schrank walk you through how to determine the perfect spot for the blind on your late season food source. It will depend entirely on these 5 features. Take a good look at these features not only when you are setting up the blind, but every time you hunt as they are constantly changing.

 

  • Food Source – Identify and take a good look at the food source and all of the features and characteristics of the area.
  • Bedding Area – Figure out where the closest bedding area is, also consider where a mature buck might bed.
  • Funnels and Runs – You need to identify the main funnel or easiest travel route for the deer utilizing the food source.
  • Wind and Thermals– The wind direction and more importantly thermals are the most important consideration in relation to your blind setup location, the bedding area, and where the deer will be.
  • Hunter Access -Your entrance/exit route must be safe during the day and night, In order to keep the food source pressure free.

 

By looking at a map and scouting the food source and surrounding area, the above 5 features will easily suggest the best location for the blind.

Other Ground Blind Hunting Tips for the Late Season

Remember, late season hunting is nearly always afternoon hunting. It is ideal for the late season as deer work their way out of the bedding areas on very cold days to feed on the food source early to avoid the frigid temps of the early morning. This feeding will occur in daylight for the most part as they simply need more time to feed! This means thermals mid-hunt to the last hour of light will begin to drop off the hills and follow topography like water. The goal is to set the blind up where we can access it without walking across where we expect deer for scent purposes, or allow deer in the bedding area to see us, and also needing to consider our exit in relation to deer feeding in the field. At the same time, you must make sure the wind direction and/or the falling thermals are exiting the field in a way that for the most part deer will not catch your wind.

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By reading these ground blind hunting tips, you should walk away with three key take home points…One, the 9th inning is not the time to give up on deer season. Two, you should be hunting out of a ground blind during the late season. Finally three, there is a lot more to setting up a ground blind that simply placing it for the shot. With ideal blind setups for late season hunting, observations in place, and required prep work from trail cameras and scouting, you will be setting yourself up for success in either this week or the cold weeks to come!