Turkey blinds conceal movement and keep you dry.

There’s more than one way to hunt turkeys. Ground blinds are just one more trick to keep up your sleeve. While some hunters prefer sitting out under the base of a tree or running-and-gunning, there’s a place for ground blinds when it comes to turkey hunting, too.

Hunting in cold or rainy weather and taking squirrelly kids or a first-time hunter along are just a few reasons why you might choose to use a ground blind for turkey hunting.

Setting Up a Ground Blind

A turkey blind can increase your chances of success, or it can stick out like a sore thumb—it all depends on how you camouflage the blind.

Set up your ground blind with a backdrop behind it (such as a grove of trees) to mask the blind’s silhouette. Setting up in the shadows will also draw less attention to your blind.

Concealing Your Movements

Keep a dark backdrop behind you when you’re inside the blind. An open window behind you will highlight your silhouette and spook the turkey when you move. Make sure the window shade is closed and not just the mesh screen.

Camouflaging the Blind

Some hunters say they have turkeys walk right up to their ground blind without any hesitation. Other hunters have seen turkeys spook at the sight. Although movement spooks turkeys more than anything else, it doesn’t hurt to take a few minutes to camouflage the blind, just in case your turkeys are blind-shy.

Use dead branches and natural grasses to brush in the blind. This breaks up the outline and camouflages your blind to blend in with its natural surroundings. Don’t count on the blind’s camouflage pattern alone to keep you hidden.

Setting Up in Advance

If possible, set up your ground blind in advance. Once the turkeys get used to it, they’ll walk past without a second glance. Plus you can slip silently into the blind the morning of the hunt without making a lot of noise setting it up and scaring off any turkeys within earshot.

A 3-sided turkey blind and ghillie suit will keep you concealed while on the move.

If you’re used to turkey hunting in the spring, there may be a few strategies that you need to change up for turkey hunting in the fall. Even though turkeys are turkeys, they respond differently in the fall, at a time when mating calls raise suspicion rather than excitement.

Set up your ground blind within 100 yards of where the birds are roosting early in the morning. Since turkeys have excellent sight and hearing, you’ll need to be extra careful not to make any noise or get too close. When the turkeys start calling, take your cue from the calls they choose. Mimic their calls. Hens are more vocal in the fall, while toms are more vocal in the spring.

Turkeys stick together when feeding, and if there are several groups of birds nearby, they may all flock up together. They generally use the same trails for moving from roosting to feeding areas, so take note of these trails during scouting trips and for subsequent hunting days, if you are hunting multiple days.

Staying mobile is part of the game. If you’re hunting from a ground blind, don’t be afraid to pull up stakes and move if you think you chose the wrong spot. A 3-sided Body Block Ground Blind is ideal for turkey hunting, since you can set it up and take it down in a matter of seconds. For stalking, consider a ghillie suit for full body camouflage on the move.

Mike Roux with his tom
(Photo by Luke Terstriep, Jr)

Nationally known hunter Mike Roux wrote a feature article in the May 2011 issue of River Country Outdoors for a turkey hunt using the KillZone 360 blind.

Roux was invited by Bigneck Outfitters for a spring turkey hunt that would be filmed in the Adams County, Illinois area. To get ready for the hunt, Roux said, “I spent some time scouting and placing a couple of blinds. The blinds I now use for both hunting and filming are KillZone blinds. I have never used such convenient and easy to use blinds in the field. Their 360 Blind is the one I used on this hunt. Filming was done from their Double Chair Blind.”

The first day of the turkey hunt was a cold one, which, along with wind gusts, made the day a bust. Roux observed, “I had no idea exactly how cold it was until we left the protection of our KillZone blinds. It was brutal walking back to the truck.”

The next day was a complete turnaround, according to Roux: “We were literally surrounded by turkeys. We had set our blinds in a horseshoe-shaped field circled by timbered ridges and skirting a flat creek bottom. Gobblers were sounding-off in almost every direction.” The turkeys hung just out of range, however. The following day produced the same results.

On the last day of the hunt, “Luke and I were tucked into our KillZone blind plenty early.” As the turkeys began stirring, Roux used a box call, then switched to a slate call. Two toms wandered within range, and in under a minute Roux tagged out for the year in Adams County.

Check out our website to learn more about the KillZone 360 hunting blind.

The following KillZone customer sent in a picture of his first kill from his new Turret XL ground blind. Here’s what he had to say:

“A few months ago I purchased my blind from you and on the first morning of our turkey season it was raining as we placed the blind at the end of a field. In less than one hour setting and calling from my nice and dry ground blind, we both killed a “double” at just 15yrds from the blind!

Great product…Can’t wait till deer season now!”

Thanks KillZone,
Spencer Judd

Turkey hunter Spencer Judd makes a kill from the Turret XL blind.

Dave Frank from Arenzille, Illinois earns the bragging rights for this 23.5 lb turkey shot from a KillZone Pop Up Blind. This was Dave’s first kill using his new hunting blind. He is pictured below next to his turkey and decoys.

The KillZone Turret Pop Up ground blind is available in Autumn Wooded Oak (as shown) and Zero-Detect camouflage.

23.5 lb turkey bagged by Dave Frank of Illinois

One of our hunting blind testers sent in a couple of trophy photos of a big gobbler he took while hunting from the KillZone Double Chair Blind. Hunter Mike Roux is a nationally known outdoorsman with over two decades of experience as a professional guide and game caller. He has hunted successfully from several of KillZone’s ground blinds, including the 360 blind and the 2 man chair blind.

Gobbler taken from the KillZone 2 Man Chair Blind

Turkey hunting with the KillZone 2 Man Chair Blind

The Body Block Ground Blind is extremely portable.

Want concealment without lugging a full ground blind into the woods? A 3-sided panel blind may be just the answer. A panel blind is one of the most portable blinds available. At only 10″ x 1″, it’s small enough to fit in the pocket of your turkey vest for hands-free carrying.

What can you use a panel ground blind for?

You can use a panel blind for almost any type of big game or small game hunting. Turkey hunting is one of the more popular uses for a panel blind, but is can also be used for deer hunting and other game.

How can I make it more comfortable?

One of the trade-offs for extreme portability is a loss of comfort and concealment. Since the blind is low to the ground, you will need to sit on the ground rather than on a hunting chair. Bring along a padded stadium chair or foam cushion for softer seating. Most hunters lean up against a tree trunk for a backrest. The tree trunk also provides concealment on a fourth side.

How do I set up the ground blind?

Carefully remove the ground blind from the bag. Hold one of the three rings and let the other two pop open and unfold. Stake the blind down to stabilize it in windy conditions. To fold the blind, remove the stakes and fold the panels over each other until you have one panel circle. Overlap the rings to form a single set of rings. Then twist the panel in a figure eight until it makes a smaller 3-ring panel. Pack the folded disc into the carrying bag, and you’re ready to go!

The Body Block ground blind is ultra lightweight
and extremely portable.

A new quick-setup ground blind is available from KillZone Hunting for solo hunters on the move. The three-panel Body Block ground blind sets up in seconds and surrounds the hunter on three sides. Most hunters lean up against a tree for backrest support and for concealment on the fourth side.

This small blind keeps the hunter concealed from deer, turkeys, and other game in areas where a full ground blind is not practical (for example, areas with dense or low-lying brush). At 29 inches tall with a 78 inch spread length, this blind provides full coverage for most hunters in a seated or crouched position.

At just over one pound, the Body Block hunting blind is ultra lightweight for extreme portability. A carry pouch with belt loop keeps your hands free for carrying other gear.

The Body Block is available in two camouflage patterns: Autumn Wooded Oak and Zero-Detect Camo. Now only $24.99 with Free Shipping to the lower 48 states!

360 Hunting Blind

Here’s a ground blind review on the 360 Hub Style from one of our customers, posted on the forum at USAHuntingPros.com:

Post Subject: KillZone 360 Hub Style Ground Blind

“Just got mine today and I can’t wait to try this thing out in the woods. I popped the blind up tonight inside and I couldn’t believe how easy it was.…

The size of this thing is awesome. From corner to corner 72”x72” and there is plenty of room for movement, seats, heaters, and two people can fit comfortably for those who like to film or hunt with another person.…

So far this thing looks awesome and I can’t wait to put it to the test come season to see how it holds up to the weather and outdoor climates. For the price, I don’t think you can beat it.”

In a follow-up post a few months later…

“Just an update on the blind. I used it all during turkey season and couldn’t of been more happy with my purchase. It withstood some nasty weather and high winds and did not once pull out from the ground or get any damage. The blind has plenty of room for two people and has quiet zippers and attachments to open and close the windows.

I rate this as the best blind I have purchased so far for its price.”

See the full forum post with pictures at USAHuntingPros.com! Or get a 360 Hub Blind for yourself!

Ultra light ghillie suits are lighter, cooler, and more comfortable.

• “Pack the ghillie suit in. Don’t wear it because it gets caught on EVERYTHING!”
• “Wear a camo hat under the hood because it keeps the extra netting or string out of your way when aiming down the sights.”
• “Dress light because those suits can get hot.”
• “Don’t put the gun wrap on a pump action shotgun. Just bad news all around.”
• “The string ones go well in swampy areas, the netting ones go well in leafy areas.”
• “For spring – go mostly green. Fall – mostly brown.”

KillZone has a large number of ghillie suits to choose from, all at affordable prices and FREE shipping to the lower 48 states. For a limited time only, you can save an extra $15 on any KillZone ghillie suit, camo poncho, or sniper suit!