Set up night before?

[jims]

I was wondering if it is wise to set up a blind plus decoys the night before...after a turkey roost has been located?  It makes sense that they may have less chance to spook rather than making a bunch of racket in the morning..especially if you set up close.  It would also be nice to get an additional 1/2 hr sleep!                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

[jblackburn]

I hardly ever hunt from a blind, but when I do I like to set up the night before.  Usually just leave decoys in the blind overnight

[J Hook Max]

Jblackburn said it perfectly.

[MKMGOBL]

I only hunt from a blind with my 8yr old son & I set it up a day or 2 before we plan on hunting. The set up is for my son so I need to have day light to make sure everthing is right for him. Plus I brush in my blind so that would be pretty tough at night even with a flashlight. 

It never happened to me but I know a guy that tried setting up at night for a morning hunt. Come morning he didn't hear a peep! Turns out he set pretty tight to hens that must of moved so some reason after he put them to bed. They never talked come morning & immediately pitched to the next town taking the gobbler with them.

[MKMGOBL]

Both of these setup were done the same day but we ended up hunting 3 days later in the blind he's posing in front of. We had 2 hens walking back and forth within a foot of the blind looking for me calling about 10 minutes before the gobbler had head trauma issues.



The before and after of another blind setup that as you can see, we did in the middle of the day.

[stinkpickle]

That would work.  I wouldn't bother brushing it in...turkeys don't seem to care like deer do.  Just leave yourself enough cover on the backside, so you can sneak out if the turkeys head in a different direction and you need to cut them off.

[alloutdoors]

I use a blind when I'm bow hunting or sometimes if I'm taking kids, and I've always set up the morning of the hunt. Mostly that's because the area I hunt is a 40 minute drive from home and my access is nonexclusive. I just get in when it's still completely dark and I've never had a problem, just be quiet. I try to not pop open the blind within 150 yards or so of the roost. Sometimes I will open the blind up while still at a distance and then get inside, lift it up off the ground a bit, and walk in closer. Exactly how careful you need to be and what you can get away with depends a bit on if you are dealing with birds that roost right on the edge of a field or if they are roosted back in the woods.

I popped open this blind in the dark right where it is sitting in the video. You will see where the birds are roosted. I wasn't expecting them to be quite so close, but it shows how close you can get if you are careful about being quiet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AttgxBlIYME

[30_06]

If I set up a blind the night before it would probably be stolen.

[Greenshed Longbeard]

I would set up midday the day before rather than at night. wind or storms could cause the birds to move as well as someone setting up a blind just after they have went to bed.

[Drthorn]

Had this same thought last night...depending on the farm I am hunting, I am probably going to set up the night before opening morning this year..saves me a bit of time in the morning to get decoys out and set up.

[matchbook454]

I prefer humting from a blind on the properties I hunt here in IL and WI.  I can set a blind the night before on some but not on others.  I prefer to but the ones I can't I get in there really early.  About an hour and a half before shooting time.  I usually am within 100 yards of a roost though.  Keep quiet and no flash lights.  If you snap a rwig or make ablittle noise just remember those bords are sleeping.  Deer, coons, coyotes, etc. all make noise too.  If you're early enough and not too noisy no problem.  I never put my decoys out the night before thoough.  I use 3 stuffers and don't want them torn apart by critters or stolen.  Bad enough if I loose my $400 double bull but another $1500 worth of decoys would turn me homocidal!!

[Huntnwork]

Sure set it up, get in, set silent alarm on phone, go to sleep.

Wake up, stretch.... Start hunt!