Layout Blinds
One of the newest ways to go about hunting in a field is to use a layout blind. This is a coffin style blind that allows the hunting to conceal themselves in areas otherwise not possible and to "pop" out when necessary to take down birds. Layout blinds come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, ways of opening, ease of assembly, and durability.
Selecting the Right Blind
Layout blinds come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, patterns and colors, ways of opening, ease of assembly, and transportation, so how do you know what will work for you? One of the most important aspects to think about is comfort. If you are a taller hunter and need extra space, you may end up having to sacrafice some concealment (sillouette) for comfort. If you are going to be laying down for an extended period of time, you are going to want to be comfortable. Don't just let a viewing from a store suffice, get in the blind and stay for a few minutes. Along with any other gear, you are making an investment and don't want to regret any purchases.
One of the other options to consider when you are selecting a layout blind is how you want it to open. There are typically two types of ways that blinds open; with two doors opening sideways, or the upper body cover that flips up from behind your head. While there are goods and bad to each type, the consumer needs to decide which is more comfortable for them. The side opening doors typically offer more space and comfort but, the single flip door is lower to the ground eliminating a sillouette. Other factors for determining what opening style to choose from inlclude; room for calling, ease of getting in shooting position, vision, ease of getting in blind. Again, this is something that the hunter needs to figure out for themselves. The best way of doing this is to get into the the various blinds and test them out yourself. Looking at a blind on the wall does you no good. If a store is reluctant to let you test them out, go somewhere else.
There are a number of different camo patterns that blinds come in, many are the very same popular camo patterns that you wear on your back, others are flat colors. So what should you choose? Think about where you will personally be hunting and the terrain in which you hunt. Just because you wear a certain pattern or have a favorite pattern doesn't mean that is what will work the best. Before you ever hunt, you will need to "mud" your blind. By rubbing mud over every visible outside portion of the blind, you are eliminating the natural glare of the fabric that your blind is made of.
Ease of assembly includes the initial put together as well as right before a hunt, and the taking apart when the hunt is done. The inital time it takes to put together a blind isn't a big deal. The assembly in the field in order to hunt is another story. Hunting is a lot of work and tooling around with a blind is just less time you get sleeping. When a piece of equipment can easily be put together and be ready for use, you are always going to be satisfied. The disassembly is also important for hunters. If you can take down your blind and get going with your day, you will be in a better mood. The transportation of a blind that folds down nicely will allow for comfort and the ability to carry more things with you in and out of the field. This is important so you don't have a monstosity on your back during set up and take down.
Concealment
The whole purpose of the blind is so that you are able to blend in better with your surroundings. The typical statement is "use your surroundings to cover your blind." This is something that is often over emphasized and and understated. While you should use your surroundings to cover your blind you should think of all possible scenarios, like; I was hunting with some friends and found a field with enough birds to limit a hundred times over, a guranteed hunt. The morning of we gathered enough cover from same field so we could match our surroundings (trick #1). We took it from a ways off so our area wouldn't look disturbed (trick #2). We covered the blinds in their entirety so we could not be seen (trick #3). When all of the geese were flaring we knew something was wrong because our "guranteed" hunt was turning into a goose egg. We did everything right except one overseen detail. While we were checking our blinds we were looking from right above them, and the looked good. When you walked 50 yards away, there were three brown mounds in the middle of the field. The cover we had gotten was scraped up and disturbed making it wet, so it was not golden like the rest of the field and making us stand out like a fly in milk. The wet cover was overseen as an important detail and one that can easily be done when you are checking your blinds in the dark. Thinking these simple fixes through before a hunt can help improve your success rates instead of learning from failure.
People have different techniques in order to become successful and many of them are based on failures. A well seasoned duck hunter doesn't tell you what to do, but can tell you in great detail what not to do.
