Posted: 12/18/2013 11:37:02 AM EDT
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Years ago I deer hunted with a API climber, but always struggled with the noise and time of getting in the tree. Several years ago I bought a ground blind and have never looked back. Well, at least only rarely looked back. I think I've only had my tree stand out a few times and only during the early bow season since then (snakes). Finding a suitable tree that isn't a pine can also be problematic in my specific location. Lot's of pines, but they sap you and everything you touch up. I can't honestly say whether my averages have increased or decreased using a ground blind as I didn't always use the tree stand and I don't always use a ground blind. Sometimes I wander aimlessly till I find a hot trail to watch over.
I'm curious to hear from those who have hunted or still hunt with both methods on which one they feel is the best and why. What advantages or disadvantages do you feel one has over the other? |
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Quoted:
Years ago I deer hunted with a API climber, but always struggled with the noise and time of getting in the tree. Several years ago I bought a ground blind and have never looked back. Well, at least only rarely looked back. I think I've only had my tree stand out a few times and only during the early bow season since then (snakes). Finding a suitable tree that isn't a pine can also be problematic in my specific location. Lot's of pines, but they sap you and everything you touch up. I can't honestly say whether my averages have increased or decreased using a ground blind as I didn't always use the tree stand and I don't always use a ground blind. Sometimes I wander aimlessly till I find a hot trail to watch over. I'm curious to hear from those who have hunted or still hunt with both methods on which one they feel is the best and why. What advantages or disadvantages do you feel one has over the other? I've done both. Fixed stands are pretty sweet - especially if you need the height to overlook a large field. Climbers are noisy, slow, and suck - they're only good if you're on public ground and even then aren't very good. Ground blinds need to be put up early to let the deer acclimate to it, but is otherwise awesome - especially if you take a kid with you. I've almost exclusively hunted out of blinds for the past 7 years. |
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Depends where you hunt... edge of a field, a blind would be excellent, stick in some of the woods I hunt and you wouldn't have enough visibility to max a bow out. I prefer stands or walking.
I use an early 2000s model aluminum Gorilla with (3) 3' alloy sticks.. Yes it does take more physical ability than a ladder or self climber but I can climb any type of tree and easily get 12-15ft up into a tree and can move from tree to tree with ease. If I'm not dicking around I go from on my back to sitting in the stand in under 10 minutes. I would HIGHLY recommend you spend the extra dollars and get an alloy stand... if you are carrying it for any distance it is nice having a stand with ladders that weighs 1/2 of a steel one. |
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I have both, fixed elevated and a few ground blinds.
Like anything , it's about placement. I used to think you had to put them out early but I have a nice sized guy on the wall that says you can toss them out the morning of. 
I think they both have their merit. When I take my daughter we sit in the big deer condo and run the heater. When I want to test a new spot I throw out the pop up. I've had pretty good results out of both. YMMV |
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I love my climber, especially for places I don't want to leave my stand. I have a summit brand which is fairly quiet, and easy to use but bulky to carry into the field like any climber is.
I prefer hanging, or ladder stands. They feel safer, good field of vision, and being up higher, scent is slightly less of an issue. The only thing I like about ground blinds is they generally offer a sturdier rest to shoot from. |
| My double bull dark horse is the only way I go for most Midwest game. This past weekend we had temps in the teens and lower 20's, wind gusts up to 23mph and frozen rain from last Fridays showers. Had the big buddy heater in the blind and even with a NNW wind with the blind facing north, was no problem staying warm. Plus, being blacked out, I'm able to move around in the blind even with a fist full of deer within 25 yards of the blind. Not something you're going to do in a stand with that many eyes around. |
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My double bull dark horse is the only way I go for most Midwest game. This past weekend we had temps in the teens and lower 20's, wind gusts up to 23mph and frozen rain from last Fridays showers. Had the big buddy heater in the blind and even with a NNW wind with the blind facing north, was no problem staying warm. Plus, being blacked out, I'm able to move around in the blind even with a fist full of deer within 25 yards of the blind. Not something you're going to do in a stand with that many eyes around. Same experience here. Love my double Bull Blind. I set it up at a higher spot in some corn fields and have a great 300+ yard range to shoot over. 
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I currently have an aluminum climber, a steel hang on & stick ladder, a one-person 15' Cabelas ladder, and a two-person "Big Dog" 16' ladder.... and none have left my pole-barn for 5 years or so, when I quit bowhunting. I now just hunt gun & muzzleloader seasons, and I've been using pop-up blinds exclusively. Why? Being up in a tree unprotected from the elements in northern WI during late November/early December is just too cold. The quicker you get cold, the quicker you give up. When it's 20 degrees, snowing, and the wind's blowing, & you're up in a treestand, deer hunting becomes more of an endurance test than a fun sport. I can sit all day in a pop-up with a Mr Buddy heater and swivel chair with backrest, but only a few hours up in a cold tree. A tree stand can limit your field of fire to what's in front of you, and make it very difficult to shoot in certain directions (like behind you, or on the "off" side) without standing up and turning... and movement is not a good thing when deer hunting. Being in a pop-up, with a seat that swivels 360 degrees, gives you more of an area to get good shots without detection.
The big disadvantage to a portable blind is less visibility through thicker woods when down on the ground. You gotta pick your spots more carefully, looking for not only higher ground to increase your visibilty, but find a fairly level area big enough for your blind (they don't work well on the side of a hill  ). That's why my deer hunting blinds are the fairly small and older Ameristep Doghouse type, easier to find a suitable spot to set it up. They're cheap too, I have several, so I can hunt several locations without moving a single blind from one to the other. I just have to carry my seat & heater (if cold enough to use a heater). I hunt on public land, and if one gets stolen when I'm hunting from another, I'm only out less than $50. I currently have 4... and I got 3 of them at garage sales for about $20ea, because their owners went to the bigger hub style blinds.
All of the above pertains to hunting with a firearm. Bow hunting is entirely differant. It's more necessary to be elevated as you must get the deer in much closer. Shooting a bow from a smaller pop-up is more difficult too. A bigger hub style, like the Double Bull, is OK for a bow, I suppose. But I won't leave an expensive $200 blind in the woods... it'd be gone in days. 
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I hate climbers. Just wanted to get that off my chest.
Ground blinds or a stand with sticks is the only way I hunt. The only time I use a GB is if the tree canopy is to thick for a tree stand. I use my GB in swampy areas sometimes. This year I will be using the GB for my wife so she can get her first bow kill. She has a real problem getting the bow back when in a tree and the deer always seem to bust her. GB are also good for taking kids hunting. My preferred method of hunting is a Millennium tree stand with sticks. I can get up almost any tree with that setup. Now for a quick setup I use my LW Alpha and sticks. |
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I think it is time for a better ground blind. I have had the same dog house style for about 10yrs now.
I hunt out of my Summit Openshot 85-90% of the time. Public land dictates climbers over the fixed stands. But it sure is nice to make a mid-hunt move with a climber. |
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Quoted:
I think it is time for a better ground blind. I have had the same dog house style for about 10yrs now. I hunt out of my Summit Openshot 85-90% of the time. Public land dictates climbers over the fixed stands. But it sure is nice to make a mid-hunt move with a climber. Yeah, I have the same model...Doghouse TSC. It sucks! Very poorly made. I usually only leave it out in the weather for a few days and it's disintegrating before my eyes. My poles have broken in a wind storm, the ferrels came off and the string holding them together broke before that. My zipper broke loose from the fabric recently and the GF had to attempt to sew it back. It's ripping again. The color has also faded drastically as well. Even if I didn't have any of these problems, I'd still complain about where the windows are located and overall build quality. This thing is a POS! I'm looking at the Primos "Double Bull" mentioned above and that's pretty nice. Kind of pricey as well. Can someone chime in who has owned both the Ameristep and Primos blinds on quality differences? |
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I like to build ground blinds out of sticks and stuff. Sometimes I just plop a stool in a bush and call it a blind.
Never saw the need to actually buy a fancy blind or tree stand. Just one more thing to get stolen and when I do it my way I can change locations without having to tear anything down. |
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Yeah, I have the same model...Doghouse TSC. It sucks! Very poorly made. I usually only leave it out in the weather for a few days and it's disintegrating before my eyes. My poles have broken in a wind storm, the ferrels came off and the string holding them together broke before that. My zipper broke loose from the fabric recently and the GF had to attempt to sew it back. It's ripping again. The color has also faded drastically as well. Even if I didn't have any of these problems, I'd still complain about where the windows are located and overall build quality. This thing is a POS! I'm looking at the Primos "Double Bull" mentioned above and that's pretty nice. Kind of pricey as well. Can someone chime in who has owned both the Ameristep and Primos blinds on quality differences? Quoted:
Quoted:
I think it is time for a better ground blind. I have had the same dog house style for about 10yrs now. I hunt out of my Summit Openshot 85-90% of the time. Public land dictates climbers over the fixed stands. But it sure is nice to make a mid-hunt move with a climber. Yeah, I have the same model...Doghouse TSC. It sucks! Very poorly made. I usually only leave it out in the weather for a few days and it's disintegrating before my eyes. My poles have broken in a wind storm, the ferrels came off and the string holding them together broke before that. My zipper broke loose from the fabric recently and the GF had to attempt to sew it back. It's ripping again. The color has also faded drastically as well. Even if I didn't have any of these problems, I'd still complain about where the windows are located and overall build quality. This thing is a POS! I'm looking at the Primos "Double Bull" mentioned above and that's pretty nice. Kind of pricey as well. Can someone chime in who has owned both the Ameristep and Primos blinds on quality differences? Mine is the double bull dark horse. It's the version previous to the double wide that is offered now. I felt the new double wide at cabelas this year and was not impressed with the type of fabric used compared to the old original double bulls. The fabric on my dark horse is very durable. Physically durable to the touch. The fabric on the double wide was considerably and noticeably thinner/smoother. The smoothness lead to a shiny reflection. I would encourage you to look for a good used dark horse before dropping $400 on the double wide. |
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I have hunted from hang on stands, ladder stands, ground blinds, climbers, and just the sitting on top of a rock method. Of all methods I prefer my climber the most and it sees the most use over all other methods. When I have it strapped together and on my back its almost silent walking in. My cables are wrapped in a plastic that makes set up pretty quiet as well. The main reason I prefer it is because I can go anywhere at anytime. I put up a trail cam, check my pictures, see something I like, and I can be in a tree in the area the next morning. Change my mind on that place? A new place the next morning. It just seems more convenient and less work/time than taking down a ladder or a peg stand. Of course you can set up a ground blind just as quick, but I prefer to be above the deer and looking down, I have more range, better scent control, and in most cases am less likely too be seen. My favorite tree is on a flat, right on the edge of a pine thicket, I usually climb about 30-35 feet in that tree and have never been busted too this day. In that particular spot there is just no good place too put a blind, In the flat you'd be too exposed, In the thicket they'd more than likely bust my blind because it just wouldn't blend in. You just have too look at the particular spot you're hunting and go from there. Different methods work better in different places. But my climber will always be something I can rely on IMO. |
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At most I will leave my stands or blinds out overnight. ( I have left $20 lock on stands out there for a month or more, but cable lock them on and take the sticks. )
Public land and all that. It has been hard for me to give up how small this doghouse blind packs up. It's also light, at 11bs. |
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<snip> In that particular spot there is just no good place too put a blind, In the flat you'd be too exposed, In the thicket they'd more than likely bust my blind because it just wouldn't blend in. You just have too look at the particular spot you're hunting and go from there. Why do feel it necessary to completely conceal your blind? Not being a smart ass, I've just never been that concerned with it. The blind does the concealing no matter where you put it. I've had deer walk within a few feet of my newly erected blind sitting out in the open woods. It didn't seem to bother them that there was someone "camping" in the woods. My goal is just to keep it directly off the trails and situate it for the best shooting lanes. |
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I hunt from stands mostly because of the limits where I live. I don't want to take a shot from a ground blind and have it travel 300 yards, because slightly more than 100 yards will be houses. It would only take one shot into the side of someone's house for the laws here to change like other states. The southern part of NH is densely populated and patches of woods 500ft X 500ft are prime deer locations as they feel safe going in these small patches as they are mostly not hunted. Except, I like to hunt the small patches I know deer go through. They let their guard down, they haven't been spooked much and they are used to hearing "common" noises because they are so close to homes. In some instances, I can see ground blinds being the perfect thing to use.
And I do know guys that go out to their ground blinds and just drink beer, no gun with them, just to sit there and not be at home. haha |
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I've plummeted out of TWO permanent (Hah!) stands. 1st time dislocated a shoulder
and broke an arm, 2nd time I got REALLY hurt. I dont hunt from fixed stands anymore. I have a Loggy Bayou climber that hasnt seen a tree in 5 years - although it is my preferred method of hunting. I hunt from a ladder stand on opening day and have a pop up that I spend time in. Honestly - the last 5 deer I've shot have all been from sitting on a stump or stalking still hunting. The last deer I shot I could have killed with a sword! |
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I hunt about 2 hours from my house, 95% of the time its by my self and the property has no cell phone coverage. If I fell out of a tree it would be about 2-3 days before my wife would come looking for me.
I have been experimenting using different types of ground blinds for bow. Gun hunting you don't really need anything but a tree to lean against or a lawn chair. |
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I hunt public land exclusively so whatever I use, I have to haul it in and haul it out every time I go hunting.
I love my climber. It's light, quick and quiet. It get's me up in the air for a good perspective, out of the line of sight of the deer, and it's comfortable to sit in for a few hours. I have yet to use a portable ground blind that's worth a damn. I'm thinking of giving the ghost blind a whirl next year, but for the most part I don't find hunting from the ground as convenient, comfortable, or as enjoyable as hunting from a tree stand. |