The scout sniper student has been preparing for this moment throughout his training. It is the last test he must pass before officially earning the title of scout sniper. He has carefully prepared his equipment: a ghillie suit, a camouflage suit to conceal his body, as well as his weapon, painted to match the terrain and bound with burlap. He has been crawling on his hands and knees for hours to get to the best location that will allow him to “shoot” the instructors at him. Finally in position, he fires his round and waits to be assessed. The instructors search the woods in front of them for any sign of the sniper. A member of the assessment team, following the instructions of the observers, walks towards the sniper and stops. “Sniper at your feet!” is called and the student has been caught. But what gave him away? It was the black hole that the observers noticed, the black hole that created his viewfinder. Everything else was camouflaged but he forgot about the glass of his telescopic sight.

This can affect not only a scout sniper but also hunters. When you are hunting, your prey notices things that are out of place in the forest. Anything man-made will be easily detected. There are many ways to solve the “black hole” problem, but here we will discuss 3: the nylon sock, the bird’s nest, and the ghillie hat.

By wearing a nylon sock or stocking, you can easily eliminate the black hole effect. By stretching the nylon over the front of the visor and securing it with an elastic band, you’ve eliminated the black circle and created a flat, non-reflective surface that’s harder to see from a distance.

Another way to deal with the problem is to use the bird’s nest technique. What you have to do is fill a handful of grass and form a bird’s nest, but with a whole running through the center. Place this nest inside the scope ring at the end of the scope. Adjust the grass so that you can see through the viewfinder. This allows you to still use the viewfinder, but get rid of the “black” and break the circular outline of the viewfinder.

The last method uses a ghillie suit (GS) hat. Most GS hats have a veil which makes the hat longer in the back than in the front. Simply turn your hat around and place the veil over the visor. This will hide the scope and allow you to continue using it when hunting.

The best method to use is probably the nylon sock, as it is easy to acquire and put on the scope. The GS hat comes next for ease of use, but of course you have to wear a GS. The bird’s nest method comes last because although you can get the materials easily, it will take a bit of time to get the grass fibers to stay in range and also allow you to see out of it. Using these methods the next time you are hunting could drastically improve your concealment in the wild. You can learn more about additional skills related to survival in the wild.

These tips can be useful for any hunter or woodcutter who needs to hide from their prey. By using all three together, you can be totally concealed.