Sometimes, the best big buck ambush spots aren’t near trees, which makes the perfect place to post a ground blind. In most of the nation, farmers haven’t begun to harvest corn, which deer use as food and bedding cover. Bucks frequently travel the edge of a crop, and a ground blind is an ideal way to get a close shot at a broadside deer.
Timing is Important
Wild turkeys, despite their incredible eyesight, are stupid about ground blinds. You can put one up in the middle of a field, and they will walk right past it. Deer, on the other hand, will notice a ground blind immediately, so it’s essential to post a ground blind well before the season and brush it in, as my friend did in the lead photo. The camo pattern of the blind is not nearly as important as the silhouette, and a round dome or straight, vertical walls of a blind will be quickly noticed.
Overcoming Human Scent
If you are purchasing a new blind, the dies of the pattern will have an odor that may spook deer. Even if the blind has been stored in your garage over the winter, it probably smells musty and unnatural. Experienced blind users often recommend setting up a blind in a backyard or nearby woods to allow accumulated scent to dissipate before posting it. Do the same with your chair and wear rubber gloves when you deploy the blind. The goal is to make the blind as inconspicuous as possible.
Hard Shell Ground Blinds
A friend in West Virginia has been experimenting with Ram 650 box blinds and spent the past weekend making sure they are well camouflaged. Although deer will become used to permanent blinds in early season, a roaming, pre-rut buck may spook at its first sight. The Ram 650 blind is suitable for two people in its 84x84x84-inch format and assembles in two pieces so that it will nest inside itself for easy transport.
Getting There
Making a mock scrape or establishing a mineral site, where legal, near a blind is an excellent strategy. You will want to post a blind in the same way as a tree stand with a prevailing downwind direction from likely deer movement. Additionally, think about how you will enter the blind. For a morning hunt, can you get there without using a light or walking over ground where deer are likely to travel? Make sure that your blind is securely staked to the ground to withstand late summer storms and trim or weed-wack an entrance trail to avoid leaving scent and enhance a silent approach. Post a camera by the blind so that you can have an idea of the bucks you have in the area and whether they tend to move in the morning or the afternoon. Once you experience the comfort and concealment of a ground blind, you may not want to climb another tree.