Anyone Else

SM270

Ten Pointer
Anyone besides me have trouble hunting out of ground blinds always thinking about what IF I or someone sitting with me misses where that bullet is going? I have some spots that I really would like to tuck a blind in on some edges but just second guess it. These are in woods so I know there a lot to stop bullets and really no houses anywhere in the direction we would shoot out of any of these blinds. I just keep talking to myself in my head about a bad situation. Any help?
 

JoeSam1975

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Anyone besides me have trouble hunting out of ground blinds always thinking about what IF I or someone sitting with me misses where that bullet is going? I have some spots that I really would like to tuck a blind in on some edges but just second guess it. These are in woods so I know there a lot to stop bullets and really no houses anywhere in the direction we would shoot out of any of these blinds. I just keep talking to myself in my head about a bad situation. Any help?

How far are your shots? Typically when I am in a blind, I use a slug gun.

Edited to say that 2 counties I hunt in require you to be at least 8 feet up with a rifle anyway.
 
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Moose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
Trajectory will take most rifle rounds into the ground in most situations in 4 to 500 yards. In the woods it's likely the trees will stop it even sooner. I would not set up a ground blind and shoot towards a house or other property. Making wise decisions on where and when to shoot are important. I don't believe being elevated necessarily means it's safer. A careless person is a careless person nomatter if they are on the ground or 15feet up in a tree.
 

stiab

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
I hunt almost exclusively from ground blinds, some manufactured but the best ones I made myself. If you hunt in steep/hilly territory like I do, it's not too hard to have a good backstop. Two of mine are on the edge of steep hills looking down just as if you were in a tree. In one pop-up I use bullets on the heavier side for the caliber, ex. 165 in .308 and 180 in .30-06, just to make sure. If you pay close attention, and know the surrounding area, it's pretty easy to hunt safely from them IMO unless the terrain is extremely flat.
 

buckshooter

Old Mossy Horns
I've always set a stand ( whether a tree stand or a ground blind) up with where I know there are no houses in a direct line of where a shot opportunity may cone from.

Knowing the surroundings is the biggest safety factor.
 

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
Gravity will take the bullet to the ground in a few hundred yards if you miss. A hit will make that distance shorter. Slugs make that distance shorter. Set up and shoot in a safe directions. Bullets/slugs can still ricochet when shooting from elevated platforms.
 

Tipmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
In short, no, I don't spend any time worrying about that. If I don't feel safe in an area, I don't hunt it. Having said that, almost all of my blinds are in the woods and I have no worries about being shot there or shooting someone else. I have more than enough things to worry about without adding more to it via 'what if'.
 

82ndAirborneVet

Four Pointer
Thanks for the input. Like other have said we are in the woods with both of these with no houses or other people hunting around us. It’s just always a thought in my head.
They also now make a blaze orange velcro piece that says "Hunter Up" that you can put on a tree entering the area where you are hunting to warn people there are hunters in the area.
 

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30/06

Twelve Pointer
If your that worried about it your probably hunting too open an area. Where I see a majority of deer I’m more worried about seeing 50-100 yards vs where my round will end up.
 

SM270

Ten Pointer
If your that worried about it your probably hunting too open an area. Where I see a majority of deer I’m more worried about seeing 50-100 yards vs where my round will end up.
Neither of the spots I am mentioning can you shoot more than 100 yards. I guess I should have been more in a hypothetical situation. More than asking a straight question.
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
Anyone besides me have trouble hunting out of ground blinds always thinking about what IF I or someone sitting with me misses where that bullet is going? I have some spots that I really would like to tuck a blind in on some edges but just second guess it. These are in woods so I know there a lot to stop bullets and really no houses anywhere in the direction we would shoot out of any of these blinds. I just keep talking to myself in my head about a bad situation. Any help?
my 'help' would be a suggestion to give that extremely unlikely scenario a rest in your head.
or stay in the woods.
All of us should probably be as thorough as you in picking our set ups but honestly I never consider missing in choosing a spot to sit. If the deer were in view against a dangerous background i wouldnt shoot at all.
 
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adkarcher

Six Pointer
I have hunted for 35 years from the ground, leaning against a tree. Never really thought about it other than having a tree behind me. But I don't typically hunt woods with the big orange army either.
 

41magfan

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
To be honest, the only shot that gives me real concern are "skyline" type shots. I've refrained from taking any shots where the shot angle presented no reasonable backstop for a bullet that either misses or penetrates.

Having said that, I'm familiar with a fatal accident involving buckshot where a single 00B pellet (all the rest hit the deer) traveled an unbelievable distance (through thick woods) beyond the deer being shot and struck the victim squarely in the heart - killing him.
 

Sharps40

Old Mossy Horns
Right to be concerned. After 32 years in Range operations I can assure you all that a forest is an awfully inefficient backstop.
 
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