YorkPaBowhunter

Alright tomorrow I am going hunting but due to how late I will be getting in this evening I won' t have time to hang my stand. I am very eager to get out and hunt so is there any helpful hints you can give me about hunting on the ground without a ground blind???? Anything will be helpful! Thank you in advance.
Shane


Happy Trails

Rack-attack

You had all year to hang it

Get there early and hang it

JZarr

I' m assuming you know the area where you' ll be hunting so you have at least an idea of where you want to begin.

Personally, I' m a big fan of fallen down or broken trees as makeshift blinds. Especially ones with a lot of branches on them that provide adequate background cover. Nothing is worse than getting caught out in the open with nothing behind you. Even if you have to sacrifice foreground cover a bit, I believe background is the key.

If you can' t find a fallen down tree that works for you, try sitting at the base of a large tree. But instead of sitting in front of the tree and looking where the deer are going to be coming from, try getting to the side or behind the tree to cover yourself a little better.

Also, be sure to clear out a BIG area to sit in. Kick the leaves and twigs aside so if you have to move around you don' t make any noise. Personally, I like kneeling down when I' m hunting from the ground. Being lower leaves less for the deer to look at and still provides me with adequate mobility to turn and position myself for a shot.

Just like in a treestand you' ll want to watch the wind, that is a given.

And most importantly - HOLD STILL!

I shot my biggest buck from the ground at 15 yards a few years back and he never even knew I was there.

Good luck!

EDIT - Make sure you' ve got a set of hand clippers and maybe a small saw to cut out shooting lanes for yourself. Having to break off branches in the dark or at fist light is never a good thing.

jimib

Agree with JZARR. Natural blow downs are great, and the deer know they' re there.
Use one that takes advantage of the wind, and will break up your outline.

Handles

Same as the other two. 1. Find a blowdown, it can be a recent one or one that is almost decayed (sometimes the older ones are easier to shoot from), where a couple of trees have fallen ontop of eachother making an X works really well. 2. As jzarr said, clear away all the leaves and sticks in at least a 3foot area. This can make the difference. Don' t worry about the noise it makes while doing it, I' ve actually had deer come in while doing it, probably sounds like a buck making a scrape. 3. Try to sit on the log if is comfortable. This will allow you to stand and/or draw with much less difficulty than when you are sitting on the ground. 4. Against all common wisdom I sit facing down wind when on the ground. I figure that deer coming from behind me will eventually end up quartering away on either side and still not smell me. Deer coming in to me I will see sooner and hopefully be ready to shoot before they hit my scent. Good luck.

Rangeball

Keep a big tree between you and the deer. Clear out all the leaf litter around the tree for silent movement. When you see a deer you want to shoot, keep the tree between you and it, making sure you can see it' s rear end to track it' s movement. Once they commit to which side of your tree they might pass on, get ready, draw, and shoot when they step out.