What is the minimum amount of time you will set a blind up before hunting out of it ?
I have hunted out of a blind in the afternoon after setting it up at midday! Sometimes it works well, sometimes not so well. Just depends how wired the deer are.
Bisch
Same as Bisch, every now and then. Usually though, due to time constraints, I set it up one weekend and hunt it the next.
Right away. The last ground blind that I built was just a few days ago and it took me the better part of two hours. It was on my own property so what I used was not an issue but I cover the blind top to bottom with camo material then cover the cam material with branches of leaves and or pine bows.
It is just as important to cover the top/roof as it is the sides.
For pop up blinds I've set them up on day leases before and just got in them and hunted a couple hours later. I've been successful with it too, but I've always brushed them in to the point that nothing was showing other than a very small window to shoot out of. Here at home I normally set them out 3 or 4 weeks ahead of time and just brush them in enough to break up the outline a little.
As far as natural ground blinds if I find a downed tree or something where I don't have to disturb much I'll just get in and hunt anytime. I think pop ups are spookier to deer than a natural brush blind.
While I used a blind for turkey hunting (spring) all the time, I've rarely used one for deer.
I put one up one afternoon and within 45 minutes my son-in-law had his first deer (not a bow kill). The blind was tucked in some cedars and I told him the deer would come out into the field and he'd have to be ready to shoot because it would see the blind, which it did.
I've also see deer come out in corn fields at a buddy's place in Indiana and look right at blinds that were super concealed and had been in place for weeks.
I have an aversion to spiders. I don't like to crawl in blinds during warm weather. Spiders are waiting to drop on my poorly covered cabeza, a.ka. gourd.
Thanks for the advice guys