Ground hunters! What do you think?

jbogg said:

Lots of good options. Not sure if you use trekking poles when hunting in the mountains, but 8 - 10' of paracord tied between two trekking poles stuck in the ground allows you to hang some camo fabric material, or just lean branches against. The height of the poles can be adjusted for sitting on the ground, or up higher on a chair. The best thing about them is it's like having 4WD when climbing those mountains.

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I do use a trekking pole but just one and it doubles as a gun rest when in the seat. I've been meaning to get a second and may try using them together.

I think that is an excellent idea for shorter hunts. I have some places I hunt, some mid range hunts, and some real close in. I sat in one place last year coveted in bear sign, and could see cars pass by at the base of the ridge below me. Of course I didn't see anything, and those spots are rare, but hey, I was on fresh sign and that's all I needed to know. But anyway, I think it is a great idea. Concerning cutting limbs in the NF, northgasportsman is correct, although you can use dead limbs. No, they don't provide the same cover and concealment, but they do provide some. You could stuff the tubes with smaller branches, could use pine branches which provide decent cover, or old dead red or white oak branches that were broken off this year or year before last, and they will still have leaves on them. Also remember...it seems like something is killing off a lot of the red oaks in our area. Buckman pointed it out to me and I started noticing "you know, the reds seem to be dying off everywhere". It seems unusual. At any rate, lots and lots of those reds come down with leaves still on them, and those branches would be great for the blind as well, and they are seemingly everywhere. I personally don't use a blind although I probably should in some cases like during late deer season when the leaves are off. Great innovation and effort. I might be using something like that one of these years in the near future! Good job J!

Also, one point to consider is painting the tubes long, long before season. Maybe store them in a small tube filled with dirt or something like that. I'm not real crazy with scent control, but spray paint packs a strong and very noticeable odor.

Killer Kyle said:

Also, one point to consider is painting the tubes long, long before season. Maybe store them in a small tube filled with dirt or something like that. I'm not real crazy with scent control, but spray paint packs a strong and very noticeable odor.

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You are right about the paint smell Kyle. If I were to do it again I would use some heavy duty brown duct tape instead of the zip ties and paint.

I always like to back up to a tree that's as wide as I am. Like northga said, rake out leaves around the tree to keep quiet. I like to sit until I hear something coming then stand up to get ready. Us the tree as a rest also during rifle season.
Hey kyle about the reds dying, seems like on years when its real dry, for ever 10 trees that dies 9 will be reds, then the white pines will be next in line. Were cutting a lot of both reds and white pines now. There will be reds dying for several years from this dry spring and summer. There roots are very shallow and if there already a little sick this dry weather will finish them off.

Glad to hear that I'm not the only one that rakes the leaves away from my hunting tree. Makes standing or turning quiet!

Man I'm getting pumped for the opener...

jbogg said:

You are right about the paint smell Kyle. If I were to do it again I would use some heavy duty brown duct tape instead of the zip ties and paint.

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Hey, remember, you can get duct tape in camo patterns as well!!

This morning was my first time hunting from the ground using my ground blind stakes. Had a coyote at 5 yds that had no clue I was there until I stopped him. He got a pass since I had been hearing something moving just below my line of sight down the ridge. Total set up time for the blind was about 30 seconds.

jbogg said:

This morning was my first time hunting from the ground using my ground blind stakes. Had a coyote at 5 yds that had no clue I was there until I stopped him. He got a pass since I had been hearing something moving just below my line of sight down the ridge. Total set up time for the blind was about 30 seconds.

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Please do me a favor.
NEVER let a coyote walk. Ever. Especially up here in the mountains. Between the bears and the yotes, fawns ain't got a chance.

ddd-shooter said:

Please do me a favor.
NEVER let a coyote walk. Ever. Especially up here in the mountains. Between the bears and the yotes, fawns ain't got a chance.

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I appreciate your feelings on coyotes, but after walking in an hour and a half in the darkness to get to my spot I wasn't about to shoot this yote when I clearly heard what I hoped was a bear just down the hill from me.

I like it. I may try it some for coyotes. I think I'll go with black pvc for the holders......no paint or clanking.

JohnK said:

I like it. I may try it some for coyotes. I think I'll go with black pvc for the holders......no paint or clanking.

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Black pvc would be a good option. The aluminum I used weighs almost nothing which is a plus since I usually hike in a long way.

From my experience, it's very rare to "hear a bear" unless spooked or huffing at you. Just a thought....There are a few exceptions(feeding in a tree, etc..)