ralphie250
Member
do you have any luck bowhunting from the ground? what are the secrets to it?
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From the ground
- Thread starter ralphie250
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sadler2
Senior Member
Hunting from a blind, If the inside of the blind is black, don't wear camo, wear black everything. Sit as far back from the windows as possible. Leave as many windows closed as you can. It can be done, and definitely a rewarding experience when executed. Good Luck!!
scooty006
Senior Member
^^this^^
I bow hunted a blind the first time ever this year and killed a doe at about 12 yards in a real thick area with nowhere to put a tree stand. Wore a black shirt with face paint and sat back in the shadows with only 2 windows open. I felt like I could reach out and touch her she was so close, it was crazy...
SWWTV
Senior Member
I have killed several on the ground with no Blind on video, i figured if i could fool a turkey a deer would be much easier. Hunting deer on the ground no blind wind is key and scent control. Dont ever set on the edge of a field always setup in a 3D setup, what I mean by that is dont ever stick out. I Always wear a leafy suit and nestle back so trees are between me and the deer. I killed a couple under 10 yards and usually try to keep me shots under 30 yards.
ralphie250
Member
do you draw on the ground or slowly stand up?
oldfella1962
Senior Member
good advice! I try to find a spot where I can tuck myself back in deep with brush on my right & left flanks, kind of like I'm shooting from inside a tunnel. That way deer approaching from the side won't see you until it's too late. Of course you can see them or at least their outline moving giving you a few seconds to get ready. I sit on and shoot from a 5 gallon bucket - old school but there are no moving parts to squeak. Most of my practice is from a bucket of course. Plus you can tote some of your gear in that bucket. And you can use the bucket edge to scoop out a spot in the dirt to level your bucket up - important if you are set up on a slope. I used to build natural ground blinds but quit because if you "overbuild them" they don't look natural to the deer. Better to take a few minutes to find a spot where you don't have to do too much altering to what's already there. I'll drag a broken off branch or two around to break up my outline better but that's about it. I use pruning shears to snip off any brush that I might hit with a bow limb. Then I do a "dry run" by drawing back and seeing if I have good limb clearance from all my shooting lanes, and trim some more of needed. Then I scoop out all the leaves and debris from around the bucket so my feet won't make any noise when I have to shift & shoot from any position, or just to stretch my legs. BTW don't worry about making noise scooping and scraping the ground - it doesn't scare the deer and often attracts them. Don't be surprised to see deer (especially bucks this time of year!)within five minutes of finally getting set down, arrow knocked and ready to rock - I can't prove it but a hunter scraping up leaves sounds an awful lot like a deer scraping up leaves!
If I could ever get some rain to dampen & quiet these crunchy leaves so I can still-hunt I want to try something - move to a likely spot, scrape some leaves for a few minutes (maybe break a small branch or two) then hunt that area for 1/2 hour. Nothing shows, move on along and try it again a couple of hundred yards away or so and keep repeating this. Of course I need the right still hunting conditions to prove this (come on rain!) but in the name of science I want to try this experiment. I might just try it anyway despite the dry conditions just for fun during an "all day" hunt, maybe Sunday .I hunt from a pit blind. Hole about waist deep , 4-5' across.Plenty of room for chair and bow . Some logs and brush about 16" tall around the outside. gaps in brush lets you see. To shoot I kneel down from my chair ,draw and stand up slowly. the deer will stand and look at you with amazement. Have never had one spook but wind is still the key.I have had deer walk 2' by the"hole" look at me with no reaction. I do wear leafy head net and jacket.
Best part is you can't fall out of this stand.I have dozed off and been woken by deer walking in the leaves. If you sit to still squirrels and hawks will scare the clean out of you boxers!
Best part is you can't fall out of this stand.I have dozed off and been woken by deer walking in the leaves. If you sit to still squirrels and hawks will scare the clean out of you boxers!
oldfella1962
Senior Member
Great idea. There is one spot I hunt next to a huge soft sandy bare area. The deer skirt the edge of it - there a few tiny islands of old stumps and brush in the bare area. It would be easy digging and I wouldn't have to add any brush since it's already there. When completely finished for the season I could fill it back in so I don't cause erosion.
