Ethics of blind hunting?

[Woodcarver]

This has been an interesting thread. And good to see a consensus of accepting different hunting methods, especially as some won't appeal to all of us.
Until I hunted in Texas the first time, the idea of sitting in a blind over a baited sendaro and feeder really didn't seem like it would be much of a challenge. What I learned was, it was, just of a different nature than the spot and stalk I was used to. I also found it an excellent method to start a young hunter with. Never would have learned this without the willingness to try a new, to me, style of hunting. I still prefer spot and stalk, as I get rather fidgety sitting. But sitting in a blind absolutely qualifies as hunting.
As others have pointed out, I see the biggest threat to our way of life being the infighting amongst ourselves. When one group derides another as somehow less of a hunter simply because they hunt in a different way, the antis gain leverage. Is using a crossbow less of a skill than a compound bow? Ask a longbowman if a recurve is "cheating", let alone a compound bow. And heaven forbid one uses a gun! Lol! But seriously, what's going through the mind of those guys jumping on hogs with a big 'ol Bowie knife?!?
Keep it safe. Keep it legal. Viva la difference!

 

[mark-hunter]

I also found it an excellent method to start a young hunter with

Now that you mentioned.
This is really good point.
The first duty of a hunter is clean ethical kill which can be well accomplished by shooting from the rest from blind.

So, this, definetly is one advantage, or THE advantage for all the ages of hunters, when hunting from blind.
But also when you consider, a newbie getting to his first hunt - for example - my son was 14, when he hunted wartghog from a blind - getting the youngsters to make that criticial first shoot in an unconfortable field shooting positions from stick, or standing, plus all exitiment they feel in their first hunt, this can easly lead to missing or wounding the animal. And this should be avoided.

So, especially for first time hunters, hunting from blind, this should be a good starting way to hunt, till they get more experience.

This way of hunting also gives more opprtunities to judge the animal and detremine is it a shooter or not, estimate the size of trophy, etc.

 

[sureshot375]

No apology needed mate; I fully knew the moment I hit the reply button that some would laugh and others would take the bait...

I remain firm in my convictions that the blind should not be hunting. If that’s unpopular; so be it. LOL...

As for the subject of hunting from blinds. I have no problem with it. It’s a valuable tool that leads to ethical harvests.

Truth be told, I’ve never heard an anti-Hunter discuss the use of blinds. I worked with academics for two decades. Rubbed elbows with antis on a daily basis.

The antis are opposed to all forms of hunting and don’t deal in moral platitudes. It’s all wrong to them. They don’t care about blinds.

In fact, as I remember it the blind versus no blind argument arose from bowhunters themselves. Who was the superior hunter? The spot and stalk hunter or the blind hunter? It was a dick measuring contest then and remains so today.

Which really highlights an issue plaguing hunting in general which is the fight from within. I’m on very few forums any more because of it.

“Them antlers look cool; but, I actually eat my game that’s why I took this here doe”

“I only archery hunt; rifle hunting isn’t sporting”

“Using them TSS shells is only for people who can’t call a Turkey in”

“Yep, that’s a fine trophy. Probably paid $10,000 for it. I’ll take this raghorn I got. I don’t need a guide to kill an elk”

“Shot that deer at 600 yards with your 6.5 Creed? Thats not hunting, I’d of belly crawled in and popped him at 10 paces with my 30-30”

The antis are certainly a problem; but, at least here in the States much of the problems inside the hunting community would be solved by 1) minding your own business and 2) accepting that if the behavior is legal from a regulatory standpoint that someone in a position of authority has thus deemed it ethical.

One of the key reasons I enjoy this site is seeing people genuinely happy to see others hunting. Even offering sincere congratulations to the happy hunter. It’s become so toxic on many other forums.

I have actually been hunting with a dude that was totally blind. I can’t remember how I met him, but I took him out hunting several times when I was in school. The guy loved to hunt. He just needed someone to sit with him and point him in the right direction.

We hunted at the property behind his house. The first morning I got there it was in the middle of a full blown thunderstorm. He told me to hop in the drivers seat of his truck so I did and he started navigating me back to where we would hunt. It was totally dark. I couldn’t see anything because of the rain, but somehow he knew how to give me directions. It was the damndest thing I’d ever seen.

We finally get to the hunting stand and he’s got one of those hydraulic trailer stands that lifts the box blind up with the air.

he had a rifle set up with a video scope and a feed to a monitor so I could see where he was aiming. My job was to spot the deer and direct his crosshairs into the deers shoulder for the shot. We practiced several times aiming at trees and rocks. Did not see any deer when I was out with him, but the guy hunted a lot and killed deer every year.