Ground blinds are an incredible tool to have at your disposal for hunting white-tailed deer, turkeys, antelope, and practically any other big game animal. Most are portable, easy to set up, and can provide cover in open areas. Additionally, if they are set up for extended periods animals can get used to them. Ground blinds are easy to use, but you do need to consider bringing a few items that you typically wouldn’t need in a treestand. Before we get started, here is a quick list of the gear you will see in this article!
- A Good Blind Chair
- Portable Heaters
- A Rifle or Bow Holder
- Accessory Holders
- A Few More Nice-to-Haves
How much gear someone brings with them for a ground blind varies wildly. I’ve used ground blinds with no additional gear and hunted while kneeling in the dirt. This is a very lightweight and quick way to get hunting and it works, but it certainly isn’t very comfortable.
I’ve been hunting out-of-ground blinds for years. Now, after some hard-learned and uncomfortable lessons, I’ve narrowed down which gear items I believe are really necessary for ground blinds. Keep reading to find out exactly which items I prefer to use to increase overall comfort and success!
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Ground Blind Seats
I consider a seat a necessity for hunting from ground blinds. You can go as basic as you want with one of those collapsible $5 chairs we bring to the fire, or spend hundreds on a chair specifically made for ground blind hunting. Either way, you need a chair.
If you are trying to stay lightweight, a simple light stool like the Rhino RC-378 Hunting Stool works well. Stools are lightweight and compact, but not always the most comfortable style of seat. You still get to swivel around in all directions, and if you have a long walk to your blind, the stool won’t weigh you down much.
Blind chairs are more comfortable than stools but they come with a weight and size penalty. That said, if you’re not walking very far to your blind the additional comfort is worth it. One thing that I like to look for in a good ground blind chair is the ability to swivel. This is extremely useful because you never really know which way the animal will come from and if your chair swivels you can position for a shot with minimum movement and noise.
You should consider the kind of weapon(s) you will be using when you set up your blind. Blind chairs are available with and without armrests. If you are an archery hunter, you should get a swiveling blind chair without armrests like the Rhino RC-4001 Textilene so that you don’t accidentally bump them when drawing your bow. If you are going to be gun hunting, a seat with armrests like the Muddy Outdoors Swivel-Ease Ground Seat can help steady your shot.
Gear for Staying Cool or Warm
One of the great things about hunting from ground blinds during cool temperatures is that they can hold in heat. On the flip side, during hot weather blinds can roast you. Some people might tell you that you can use a battery powered fan in your ground blind during the hotter parts of the season, but that is going to blow a ton of scent around, and make at least some noise. Plus, if it is hot enough that I need a fan to be outside, I ain’t hunting.
Although when it is especially cold out, a portable heater can change the game. Portable heaters that run off of 1lb propane tanks can turn a frigid ground blind into a sauna in a hurry. The Mr. Heater Portable Buddy Heater is the most popular for hunters, and it can warm up your blind in a hurry. There is also a bigger version available that is perfect for frigid temperatures, or larger than average-sized blinds.
Even though these heaters have built-in safety systems, such as a low oxygen sensor and a tip-over shutdown system, it’s best to use them with adequate ventilation and not place them near dry materials that could ignite. Most every blind will have a vent in the apex of the roof, and it is good to keep that open, but you might also want to open one of your windows while you run these heaters too.
One of the most useful tricks I’ve learned over the years to keep my feet warm is to keep them off of the ground and provide more insulation. This can easily be done by purchasing a foam sleeping pad and cutting off a section for your feet. You will be amazed at how much warmer your feet stay if you keep them off of the frozen ground. Not only will the pads provide more insulation for your feet but they will also make it quieter when shifting around in your blind.
Weapon Holders
If you’re like me on long sits, you will want a place to set down your gun or bow. While I am in a tree, screwing in a bow holder is no problem, but on the ground I usually end up holding it. My rifle also spends the day across my lap in a ground blind. You definitely don’t want to put it on the ground or lean it against the blind without support.
The HME Products Easy Aim Gun Rest is a neat rest placed between two support bars in your blind window. It provides a solid place to lean your gun against and doubles as a gun rest when the moment of truth finally arrives.
Another great option is to use a shooting tripod like the BOG DeathGrip. This tripod securely holds your gun for you and you can lock it in place to be ready to shoot. This is a great option if you know which direction the animal will come from, like when hunting over a field that deer are coming out to feed in every night.
If you are an archery hunter, a bow holder that can be staked into the ground is what you need. By placing it into the ground you can get the bow off the wall of your blind and eliminate the potential to make noise. The HME’s Archer’s Ground Stake is perfect for this.
The nice thing about this bow holder is that you can leave an arrow knocked while using it. It also contains an arrow ring that holds your arrows upright and ready to grab. That is more for target shooting than hunting, but options are always good.
Spotting Game
If you are hunting over wide open spaces, like a big corn field, then you might want to bring a pair of binos with you. Something that I picked up from MeatEater is that holding your binos up all day while you are glassing isn’t any fun, and you’re better off bringing a tripod for them. The same can be said in a ground blind. Not every ground blind needs a pair of binos, but if you do, bring a tripod to put them on. You can pick up just about any cheap tripod for the job, but you will need a Binocular Tripod Adapter to go with it.
All The Other Junk We Take Hunting
If you’re deer hunting you will likely have rattling antlers, grunt tubes, a headlamp, and plenty of other gear that you will want quick access to. Usually I keep these in or on my backpack, and in a ground blind you might have some extra room to spread this gear out. Although you don’t want it all over the place and have to fumble through your blind when you need something.
So I would either keep my gear close and organized with my backpack and on the ground, or pick up a simple accessory hook. The HME Products Ground Blind Accessory Hook locks into the pop-up blind supports and has two hooks for accessories and a drink holder. Having one or two of these in your blind can make you a lot more organized and quieter when you go to get a piece of gear.
Blaze Orange Requirements
In some states, during firearm seasons, hunters are legally required to have blaze orange on. If you get inside a camo blind wearing a blaze orange vest, other hunters aren’t going to know where you are. Therefore it’s a good idea, and in some places it’s a legal requirement, to have blaze orange on the outside of your blind.
This legal requirement is typically fulfilled by installing an affordable blaze orange cap like the Barronett Blinds AV180 Safety Cap Hub Blind Cover. These kinds of blind caps are easy to put on, and attach to your blind using elastic bands and velcro straps.
That’s It!
There is a lot of gear on the market for hunters and hopefully, this article helped you narrow down what is really necessary for hunting out of a ground blind. I hope you found a few new gear items that will make your ground blind more comfortable, keep you more organized, help you shoot straighter, and lead to more successful hunts!
Sister Post | Do Ground Blinds Help Scent Control?
A sister post is another post that I have written that follows along with the same topic as the one you just read. After reading this article, you will probably like this next one even more! Here is a little teaser…
Poor scent control has spooked millions of deer, and there’s a good chance you are responsible for a couple dozen of those. We have all spooked plenty of deer, but staying as stealthy as possible is the goal. Ground blinds are a great tool for that…Keep Reading
Start With the Blind Itself
If a ground blind is going to help you with scent control, it can not have a human odor. If you just got a shiny new ground blind from a big box store, or if you have been keeping it in your garage all off-season, it has a human odor…Keep Reading
You Can Avoid Some Wind, but Not Much Else
All they really are are thin sheets of polyester, so don’t depend on them too much. Plus, with all the windows they have…Keep Reading
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