New deer hunting blind

[NYDAN]

As I have gotten older I have been paying more attention to wind direction when hunting. One of my favorite hunting stands was great for all wind directions except a south wind. The last few years it seems we have as many days with a south wind as any other. So, I decided to construct a new stand to take advantage of a south wind.

I had aluminum windows, an aluminum door, and steel roofing left over from last year's home renovation projects so that is what we used to make the blind.

Yesterday was the final installation day. We had a four man crew consisting of Roland (Rol_P), Caleb (Captain Cook), Robert, my Brother-in-Law, and yours truly.

Under taking a project such as this with a group of friends, the comradery we enjoyed, and the sense of accomplishment we achieved are as much are as much a part of the hunting experience as the hunt itself. At the end, before Robert left he said, "Oh, I had a great time doing this." Robert doesn't even hunt...

The installation went as planned. :grin:

I am sorry but I don't know how to fix the rotated photos.

Here is the crew except for Caleb who took the photo.



With two panels up.



Fourth panel ready to go up.



Before the windows were in.



Roland doing the final inspection.

 

[DrMike]

Very neat, Dan. You are absolutely correct in your assessment that the camaraderie should be, certainly can be, a major part of the hunting experience.

 

[truck driver]

Hey Dan looks good but why do you have that scare crow standing on the platform holding the door? Wait that's no scare crow that's Roland. :roll: :lol: :lol: :lol: :grin:

 

[Guy Miner]

That looks pretty cool. Did you or your buddies come up with the design, or is that something that can be purchased as a kit? The base looks very sturdy.

I'm pretty ignorant re blinds. I've hunted deer from a small pop-up/tent-type blind a few times, and a tree stand a couple of times, but never from anything like this...

So, you have several of them, sited at different places?

Looks like a lot of fun to build it, particularly with a crew of good guys working together!

Guy

 

[Rol_P]

Dan and I have been friends for about 4 or 5 years now and as we were traveling to a diner for lunch
(which was delicious and He bought) after the build Wednesday I remarked that when we met I knew he was a serious deer hunter, but this project puts him WAY over the top in dedication to the sport.

I will let Dan describe his property, approximately 260 acres, and his setup, reserving the right to chime in if I feel he omits any vital or interesting info. :grin:
An enjoyable time was had by all during the final placement of the blind.

 

[NYDAN]

Guy,

I am sorry that it has taken me so long to respond to you. At first I was very busy and not checking the forum and then I couldn't access the forum on the Nosler website for a few days.

The steel tower is a purchased item. I bought it from Sportsman's Guide. Here is a link for the product: https://www.huntriversedge.com/Product/ ... k-10-tower. I am very happy with the tower. It goes together easily, is very sturdy, and is cost competitive with trying to build one out of wood.

The blind itself is my design using left over aluminum windows and door. I used aluminum angle for the inside corners to achieve a full 48" x 48" interior with standard size 4'x8' pressure treated plywood. I had left over metal roofing from a barn project last year. Weight was an issue as the tower has a weight limit of 800 pounds and I wanted to be able to have two men and the blind on the tower. The blind came it at 427 pounds. We have two men and the blind on the tower with no problem.

Yes, I have several permenant blinds located in strategic places around my property. I also have three mobile blinds on trailers/wagons that I can move whereber I want them.

There is very high hunting pressure in this area of the country with many small parcels of land. The original dairy farms in this area were in the 100 to 150 acre range. Farmers milked 9 to 50 cows. My grandfather milked 9 cows, the farmer I worked for milked 29 cows. The farmer that owned one 120 parcel of mine bought raised seven children on his farm.

Many farms were broken up among the childern and most of road frontage has been broken up for building lots. This left many 20 and 40 acre parcels that individuals buy for hunting property. Literally, all of the private land in this area is posted. There was one 50 acre parcel adjacent to me that went on the market but it was completely land locked. Another neighboring land owner bought it. Through the years I have been able to put together 267 acres of contiguous deeds.

The net result of all of these small parcels is that a hunter can't hunt by spoting and stalking or by tracking. Hunters can drive woodlots, still hunt there own property, or patiently wait for the deer to come to them.

If you move around too much on your own property you just inadverdently drive the deer to your neighbors. So, the most patient hunters are the most successful. Once your neigbhor gets cold, or hunger or impatient and starts moving around he pushs the deer on his property over to you.

So, I find that comfortable blinds, backpacks with warm drinks and food, and blinds with good visibility lead to success. Of course I also exercise habitat managment and have food plots which also improve my odds. Most of my blinds are set up for 200 yard and further shooting. It works very well.

Dan

 

[DrMike]

Thorough explanation, Dan. Thank you for giving us a peek inside of hunting in your AO.

 

[Thankful Otter]

Thorough explanation, Dan. Thank you for giving us a peek inside of hunting in your AO.

+1

I enjoyed reading your posts Dan and to understand the hunting restrictions of other hunters. Although 267 acres seems very small to me, I bet it is a large hunk of land for someone to own in your area, congratulations on that!

We use waterways a lot, for transportation, hunting, fishing and trapping. does your property have a river or pond and if so do you hunt geese and ducks on those waterways on your property. Was also curious about upland hunting on your property --thank you

 

[NYDAN]

Thankful Otter,

Yes, we have a creek that runs through my property, and it forms a 15-20 acre pond right in the middle of it. We do hunt geese and ducks. Geese, mallards, wood ducks, and black ducks are common and the geese and the wood ducks nest here. The pond also supports muskrats, beaver, and mink. Otters were here for a while this late winter.

There is a pair of bald eagles that perch on select trees around the pond. They produced a couple of off spring a couple of years ago but the young eagles seemed to have left now. We were watching the two parents this evening.

We have black bear, bobcats, fisher, coyotes, rabbits, grey squirrels, red squirrels, and flying squirrels. There have been sightings of mountains lions here although DEC claims there is "no resident population" of mountain lions.

There are turkeys, ruffed grouse, and various hawks. We see Ospery migrate through about once a year. However, there are no longer any wild pheasants. The hawks follow me around when I brush hog the hill top fields. When I mow the fieids, mice and snakes get flushed out and the hawks are waiting for them. It is surprising how close I can get to the hawks when I am brush hogging.

I work hard to maintain a varied habitat on my property that will support a variety of wild life. There are mature forests, partially logged forests with new growth, open fields, brushy fields, areas of inpenetrable brush, park-like areas of mixed trees and fields, crop land, and swamp land. There are areas on my land that I go years without disturbing.

When I was younger I hunted all legal game, but now I tend to spring hunt for turkeys, fall hunt for geese, and bow and gun hunt for deer. Now I only hunt my own property and I allow a few select hunters such as Roland and Caleb to join me. These guys have earned their priviledges from helping with the work.

Myself, and some of my closest land owning neighbors try to practice "Quality Deer Management" and it is paying off for us now. Decades ago we all basically shot 1-1/2 year old bucks. Now we pass on the smaller and younger bucks and are routinely taking larger and older deer, most large enough to have mounted.

My deer hunting today is radically different from a few decades ago and much more successful and satisfying. However, I get more joy now from seeing my friends having fun, such as Caleb shooting his first buck last year. Or, seeing the big nine point walk up close to Roland.

As good as the whitetail deer hunting is here now, I yearn to hunt the Rocky mountains again. I wish to see the wide open spaces, to spot and stalk, to walk as far as you can walk without seeing a posted sign. To hunt elk and mule deer one more time is now my dream. My goal is to make it out west in 2019.

 

[Thankful Otter]

Dan,

What a delightful post, thank you sir.

It sounds like paradise, congratulations on owning such a nice piece of mother earth. And how nice it is for you to share your good fortune with your friends.

I have never hunted turkeys and possibly never will but in certain places and at certain times, the ducks and geese in the air here can block out the sun.

I hope you make it out west next year.

 

[Guy Miner]

Dan, thank you for that explanation re your land, and how it's hunted.

I've done a little hunting on private property, as a guest, or on property that was leased for hunting. It is interesting! Only a couple of times have I shot deer from a blind, but it worked well. In each case I was able to steady the rifle very well, and make a good, modest range shot. I've helped a couple of new hunters do the same.

Yes, it's an interesting "game" if you will. Positioning the blind in the right area, then being patient and still for what could be a very long time. I did enjoy the way that I simply "vanished" into the forest while inside that blind, becoming just a part of the landscape and unnoticed by the deer. It was fascinating to see the deer and other wildlife, unalarmed, and often at rather close ranges.

Regards, Guy