I am new at bow hunting Whitetail Deer. Second year. Really enjoy it but I can't get to understand the concept of placing your tree stand down wind, cross wind , etc.. I'm a pilot and the wind will blow different directions maybe each day at times. Can anyone explain this concept to me? Thanks. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Basically you want the wind to carry your scent away from where you expect the deer to be or come from. Think of the wind as being a stream. You stand in the stream dumping out paint (your scent). The stream carries the paint in its flow as it dissipates over time and distance. This is crude, but may help. This is a bad wind: --------------> or <------------- This is a good wind: <------------ or ----------------> Now, these are in ideal situations. The wind can shift directions or even be swirly all day. Swirls can be caused by terrain as well. The biggest trick is not only figuring our how to use the wind, but when to avoid using a bad one. Deer rely on their noses for survival and they trust that sense more than any other.
I love the animation Fitz. It's very original. That's a great and simple explanation though. The wind will shift unexpectedly now and again but for the sake of argument, it generally stays consistent for the time you'll be in stand. The curveball comes when you think you are hunting downwind and that deer comes from the opposite direction and busts you before you even see it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I like a steady wind 8-10 mph as slower winds shift a lot and I don't hunt when we have variable winds,in areas where deer smell human on a reg basis is a lot different deer then a deer that only gets a whiff of human all season long as the second may change his whole pattern after just one encounter with human scent.
