5-Step Guide to Where You Should Put Your Duck Hunting Blind

You’re filled with that pre-dawn optimism that can only be found in a duck blind. But as the sun rises, flock after flock gives your spread a wide berth, flaring at 80 yards for reasons you just can’t pinpoint. Since the birds aren’t considerate enough to drop you a bullet-pointed list politely detailing why they passed on your setup, you start to question everything: the decoy spread, the too much motion, too little motion, the calling cadence, and the list goes on. But more often than not, the real problem isn’t the gear or the calling—it’s the one thing you decided on weeks ago and haven’t thought about since: your location.

Success is built on a foundation of smart, practical decisions. And when it comes to waterfowl hunting, there is no decision more foundational than where you choose to hide. Placing your blind in the right spot is more than half the battle; it’s the strategic choice that makes your decoys more believable, your calling more effective, and your shots more achievable. Forget guesswork. Follow this 5-step guide to analyze your hunting grounds like a seasoned pro and find the perfect spot to make this season your best yet.

Step 1: Start with a Bird’s-Eye View

Before you haul a single piece of equipment into the field, your scouting should begin from the one perspective that truly matters: the sky. Ducks and geese have the ultimate viewing advantage, and a blind that looks perfectly hidden from ground level can stick out like a sore thumb from 500 feet up. This is where modern technology gives you a key advantage over your grandfather, who always walked to school uphill both ways.

Using Satellite Maps to Identify Funnels, Coves, and Cover

Pull up your hunting area on a satellite map and start looking for three key elements that attract waterfowl. 

First, identify inlets; these small fingers of water not only provide cover for ducks, but they are also prime locations for the foliage and food sources that ducks are looking for.

Next, look for coves with natural cover. On bigger lakes, these small, sheltered areas are magnets for species like mallards and wood ducks looking for a safe place to hang out and rest.

Finally, trace the potential flyways. These are the natural funnels in the landscape—perhaps a narrow stretch of river or a gap between two large stands of trees—that birds use as travel corridors to get to their final destination. By identifying these features from above, you can create a highly accurate shortlist of potential blind locations before you ever put your boots on the ground.

Continue Your Virtual Scouting with Google Maps and OnX

Tools like Google Maps (in satellite view) and specialized hunting apps like OnX are valuable. OnX, in particular, allows you to see property lines, ensuring your potential spot is legal to hunt. You can drop pins on promising locations, measure distances, and get a feel for the entire ecosystem without burning a tank of gas. This virtual scouting doesn’t replace the need for getting your boots on the ground, but it allows you to create a highly effective shortlist of potential spots before you do so, potentially saving you a lot of time and effort.

Step 2: Use the Elements to Your Advantage

The sun and the wind are constant companions on a hunt. Too many hunters fight against them, enduring glare and watching birds struggle against a bad wind. The savvy waterfowler learns to make these elements work for them.

Positioning for the Prevailing Wind

It’s a fundamental truth of waterfowl hunting: ducks tend to land into the wind. It allows them to slow their speed, achieve maximum lift, and make a soft, controlled landing. This single fact should heavily influence your blind placement. Whenever possible, you want the wind at your back. This orientation encourages birds to approach your decoy spread exactly the way you planned. You could also set up for a crosswind, since it makes the birds’ final approach predictable (right in front of you) without having their attention right in the direction of your hide for the entire final descent. Check your local weather apps for prevailing wind directions during the season to make an educated guess for a permanent blind location.

Using the Sun to Blind the Birds, Not Yourself

Just as you don’t want to be staring into the sun, neither do the ducks. Positioning your blind with the rising sun at your back is a simple but incredibly effective strategy. For a typical morning hunt, this means orienting your blind so you are facing generally west (wind permitting). As birds make their final approach, they will be looking directly into the low morning sun. This light helps obscure the hard edges of your blind with more shadows and hides any slight movements or other imperfections in your concealment. It can give you a critical advantage before you take the shot.

Step 3: Read and Use the Natural Landscape

The most effective blind is one that looks like it grew there, so fight the urge to build a standalone fortress in the middle of nowhere. Instead, look for ways to make your hide a seamless extension of the existing environment.

Why a Good Backing is Your Best Friend

One of the easiest ways to get spotted is to be silhouetted against the bright, open sky. The solution is to get a good background behind you. Tuck your blind up against a dense tree line, a steep cut bank, a wall of thick cattails, or a cluster of willows. This backing breaks up your outline and keeps you from getting silhouetted, making your hide more difficult to detect.

Blending Your Blind into Hills, Sloughs, and Tree Lines

Take it further by using the natural contours of the land. Instead of placing a blind on the crest of a hill, tuck it just over the edge (hopefully on the shady side, though you may not have that choice). Don’t put it on the point of a slough; nestle it into the inside corner where you are more likely to have shadows. By integrating your blind with the natural shapes and shadows of the land, as far as the ducks are concerned, you’re becoming part of it. 

Step 4: Analyze Waterfowl Flight Patterns

A spot can have the best wind, sun, and cover, but if it’s not under a primary flight path, you’ll be hunting in a dead zone. This is where map-scouting ends and getting out there yourself becomes non-negotiable.

How to Identify a Lake or River’s Traffic Corridors

Ducks and geese often use predictable “traffic corridors” to navigate an area. On a river, they’ll often follow the main channel and cut across the inside of bends. On a large lake, they might fly from one prominent point of land to another. Your goal is to find these corridors and set up your blind to intercept them. You can have the most realistic decoy spread in the world, but it won’t work if the birds never see it.

The Importance of In-Person Observation

The only way to truly confirm these flight paths is to get out and watch, preferably during the exact time you plan to hunt. Spend a morning with binoculars and a notebook instead of a shotgun. Watch how different flocks approach the water. Where do they hang out? Where do they feed? Do they favor one side of the lake over another in a specific wind? This firsthand intelligence just can’t be gained except by in-person observation.

Step 5: Don’t Forget Your Point of View

Finally, after all the strategic analysis, you have to ensure the spot is practical from a hunter’s perspective. Your hide must balance perfect concealment with functional shootability and safety.

Balancing Concealment with Clear Shooting Lanes

It isn’t possible to be too well hidden, but it is possible to be obstructed by all your cover. Before you finalize your location, actually sit in the blind. Can you see the areas where you expect birds to land? Can you comfortably shoulder your shotgun without the barrel getting tangled in overhead branches or blind material? You need enough visibility to target approaching birds effectively and enough clearance to shoot. Trim small, strategic shooting lanes if necessary, but be careful not to create obvious geometric holes in your cover.

Ensuring a Safe Backdrop

Safety is the final and most important check. From your chosen position, look past your decoy spread and identify your backdrop. Where will your shot be falling? There must be absolutely no homes, buildings, roads, or areas with livestock in your line of fire. Be aware of other hunters in the area and give them a wide, respectful berth. 

Your Location is Set. Now, It’s Time to Hide.

Choosing your blind location is a challenging puzzle. By following these five steps (scouting from above, using the elements, integrating with the landscape, observing flight paths, and ensuring a functional view) you move from guessing to making an expert, strategic decision. You’ve now put your blind and yourself in a position to succeed.

But finding the perfect spot is only half the job. Next, you need to master the art of making your blind, your gear, and yourself disappear completely. In our next post, we’ll cover the 7 core principles of concealment.

Don’t Let Your Partner Give You Away

You’ve done everything right. Your blind is tucked into the shadows, perfectly brushed, and disappears into the landscape. But what about the other member of your team? An eager retriever shifting in the glint of the morning sun can undo all your hard work in an instant. Wary waterfowl will spot that movement and flare long before they’re in range.

Your dog is your most valuable partner; give them the same advantage you give yourself. The Cupped Hunting Dog Blind was designed by guides to solve this exact problem. Its lightweight, low-profile design is easy to carry in and sets up in seconds. With versatile front and back entrances, your dog can mark and retrieve your ducks. The exterior is covered in straps for brushing and stubble, allowing you to match your dog’s hide perfectly to your own blind and the surrounding cover.

Perfect concealment for you isn’t enough. Get your pup concealed too! Buy your dog blind today.