A Natural Deer Blind

[Mohawk]

  Do any of ya'll use a natural deer blind? It worked for me last year, I was just standing behind a brush pile, and my deer came in at 6 yds. Would like to hear some honest war stories that did not involve a tree stand or constructed ground blind. Thanks.

[mattmillerrx]

I almost always do this.  I have used tumble weeds, round bales of hay, thick brush, even a big tree just to get some cover.  It gets a little trickier if you are using a bow but just have to make sure that can't see you when you draw ( either looking away or blocked by some natural cover).  I think it adds a higher level of difficulty to hunting.

[Mohawk]

  Thanks, Matt. What are your experiences as to how the deer behave? The deer I killed last year "over shot" me so they never saw me. They came in from behind me and to the left in a trot. I did use the brief moment when there was brush between us to raise my shotgun, and yes, that was crucial.

[Graybeard]

Back in the days when I was still able to roam the mountains I used to do that often. I had all sorts of natural and/or slightly altered natural blinds in the woods I hunted. One of the best was in a large pile of rocks where I found a convenient flat one to sit on and another standing almost upright to lean my back against. It was a fairly comfortable natural blind in the big jumble of rocks over looking a hill side. I never actually shot a deer from it but spent a fair bit of time there when that far back in.

I've used blown down trees to hide in and behind many times over the years and at times have even found areas with a lot of downed but smaller trees and limbs and piled them together to form a more or less natural yet man made blind of them.

Just this last season I hunted only two days but spent one of them sitting at a huge downed oak in a hollow I've seen and killed several deer in over the years and then moved up the hill a bit to sit on the ground leaning my back against a vertical rock formation for yet another natural blind. Didn't see a deer either morning but spent a couple of pleasant mornings in the woods at least.

So yes over the years I've taken advantage of such on many many occasions.

[mattmillerrx]

I have had them do nothing and act normal, had one bed down about fifty yds from me, I have been busted a few times and those reactions of been everything from dart immediately to giving me  the stare down for what seemed like hrs but was probably more lie 10 min and then went on moving away from me.  The one that bed down, I set up in an open wheat field with two or three very large tumble weeds and a large branch laying over them to keep them from blowing away.  The deer was small so did not take him right off but then the sun was setting and could not see him through the scope when I had decided to take him.  I tried a head shot when the sun got behind some trees and missed, the deer ran towards us and was able to reload my #1 .270 single shot and dropped the little guy.  One of my favorite hunting experiences,  it was the first time I had been hunting since I started in a professional college program (it had been 2-3 yrs) and the first time my wife went hunting with me.  I had not hunted there before and did not get to do any preseason work like normal so between my wife making all kinds of noise and are make shift blind and lack of preseason work, I did not even expect to see anything.  She has been hooked ever since

[Mohawk]

  Thanks for the replies. I was standing behind a brush pile near a feeder. I wasn't really prepared, so to speak. No cover scent, was still wearing my work issue black BDU pants, and black polo shirt. Had borrowed a 18 1/2 barrel patrol shotgun from work loaded with 9 pellet 00 buck.....Really unprepared. It was a last minute decision to go the the ranch. BUT, the one thing I had was a strong north wind. The usual stand for this feeder was across from me which is favorable with a south wind only. A north wind would blow directly into the feeder. So, I just stood there, behind about a 4 ft tall cedar brush pile that was created when we had the flood several months earlier( 17" of rain in 2 hrs ), this brush pile literally moved 30yds just from rain water on its own. The deer blew past me at a trot and circled in front of me like I was hoping at 6yds, which is ideal for buckshot.  I almost got busted, the doe I killed already did that front hoof "stomp" to try to get me to move. Thankfully, I already had the gun shouldered by then. The reason I posted this topic is that, with the exception of the normal walking up on a deer, I have always hunted in a ground box blind or tree stand. I never really before this year purposely posted myself  on the ground behind natural cover, especially standing up. It was a very rewarding experience though.

[DCRthe3rd]

I was gutting a squirrel one time , wearing blaze orange , knife in one hand, squirrel in the other with a marlboro sticking out of my mouth and a small buck came wandering along and I almost got stepped on , he knew something "me" was in its path but wasn't real sure what, No need to hide , just don't move

[torpedoman]

deer see movement real good as long as you are still they will pay no attention to you. their eyes are set like a horses so they cant see but a limited area while they are grazing. if you are patient you can walk right up to one move toward them while their head is down and stop before they look up just freeze when the head is up move forward when the head goes back down. Gets tricky when there is more than one

[GRIMJIM]

I don't go up in the trees for many reasons. So I always look for a spot that has some kind of natural cover, blowdowns, or vines. The best spot I've found so far was a wash out right at the edge of a 20' cliff that was the perfect size for my hunting seat. I was in a hole just up to my chest and the tree that was rooted there was a perfect rest.

[Mohawk]

  Thanks, Grimjim. Going to our ranch in the morning to scout things out and to let my 7 yr old play on this dirt pile. Austistic kids love to count and organize rocks...it is just one of their things. I will look a little closer at ground cover for movement blinds. It worked too well this year to overlook. Thanks again.

[rifleman]

I rarely use a tree stand, whether gun or bow hunting. I hunt a fair amount of public land and permanent stands or even portables left overnight are forbidden. Never really felt handicapped greatly. Yes, I've been busted a few times but that's going to happen some no matter what.

Dave

[alleyyooper]

Many years ago they had just passed the blaze orange rule for the next year here in Michigan. My folks bought my brother and I totaly blaze orange suits to hunt in. I had a girl friend and didn't get much scouting in the woods done. Opening morning as we ate breakfast I decided I was going to just step in the woods from an open field and sit by a huge beech tree. It was on top of a little ridge over looking a long flat valley with a oak covered hill side on the other side about 125 yards away.
I shot my buck that morning 30 minutes after I had sat down and leaned againest that tree. The buck was 8 paces away. Latter that day a cousin also shot a buck from that tree. It had perfect fit between two roots for a young fellows but to fit. I got 9 bucks in 9 years from that tree.
Figured out that the neighbours drove their tractor and trailer with the hunters along the cat tail swamp and spooked the deer into coming down that revine to a cedar swamp farther back.
Had my brother take a picture of me by that tree, he had black and white film. You could hardly make out my body. just trhe face and hands showed good.

  Al

[hillbill]

one of my best "natural" deer stands was a white and yellow lawn chair that some one left out in the woods where i hunt. wasn't behind or hidden by anything. actually had 3 deer come up, among others, within a few yards, i was sitting reading a book with my bow on the ground, while a doe was looking at me stampin her front hoof i laid down my book and picked up my bow and shot her, mind yu now this took me about 15 min cuz i moved so slow, this with 2 other deer watchin me too.i was amazed, she did flatten a lil when the arrow went off but was a perfect spine shot, dropped in her tracks.craked me up. lol