RE: I always hear this story...
 

Well, one good thing about it. If you don't move when the wind changes, odds are that at least you'll have a nice, relaxing day in the woods and not be bothered at all by those pesky deer.:D

Tree stands are nice, but there is no way to get out of one quietly. This is one excellent point in favor of ground blinds. You can pick up and move when conditions change, without spooking every deer in the county.

Problem is, you do have to have reasonable amount of skill in the art of stealth because they have yet to put 'quiet' in a spray bottle. :eek:

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Speaking of deer smelling you: How does a deer know the difference between your smell when your in there shed hunting or deer hunting? Or the difference in your smell when your in there planting a food plot or in there hunting over the food plot? or the difference in your smell on a trail when your in there in the off-season scouting and when your in there during the season hunting? Or the difference in your smell when your hanging stands 1-2 months before the season and when your sitting in the stands during the season?

It seems to me that if your in there during the off-season doing all of the things I mentioned then a deer would not necessarily associate your smell with danger. And if you have private land and only bowhunt on it then how does a deer even know it is being hunted? Public land and firearms would certainly clue deer in but on private land that is only bowhunted what tips the deer off that your scent NOW means it is being hunted?

RE: I always hear this story...
 

How many deer do you think you might spook while doing this? How much extra scent are you leaving in the woods by now making TWO trips into them?

Who came up with this notion that deer know whether we're hunting, walking or crocheting? They just know we're there.

I also agree with this. But I'd also bet everybody has had deer come in from downwind and NEVER acknowledge our presence.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

. To a point. They pattern the humans go into a thicket that deer don't normally scent you and see if their reaction is different.

Totally disagree.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I have done this. They run about 25-30 yards and stop and look. If you don't chase them they eventually just walk off having learned once again that a human is not necessarily a threat.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Not nuch if you hang your stands right. In many cases you don't have to move that far to get the wind in your advantage.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

and in what situations would this be a good idea.

Because I have hunted my woods for fifteen years

Pay attention Grass Hopper it is called a sanctuary for a reason. I'm checking on what bucks made it thru the year. If I spook a buck in the spring he has all summer to come back . Never hunt a sanctuary never.

All I'm saying is you can do anything you want but if you think you will kill a mature buck without knowing how the wind affects his life you are mistaken.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Well when I'm out there I am a threat.:D

I have noticed they will change their bedding area's but eventually will come back to them

RE: I always hear this story...
 

After growing up on a farm, and seeing the animals react to me working in the field or whileon heavy machinery as compared to say me trying to be stealthy while in a tree on the edge of a bedding area and getting winded.........the deer do react differently. I do believe deer can be conditioned to react in different ways to different types of disturbances and pressure.

Perfect example............last year on opening day in NY I hunted the Albany County bow hunting only zone in a little 5 acre patch of property between a housing development and apartment complex. This is a very urban area that is well known for massive bucks because of a lack of gun hunters and pressure. That morning I watched a neighbor walking a dog that passed within 40 yards of bedded deer in some thick cover. I observed the deer watch this guy very intently and not move an inch. Later that same morning they got up and walked by me in a single file, I was hunting off the ground with no blind and got picked off attempting to draw on the lead doe and they hightailed it out of there faster than you can imagine.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I never said there was one.

And that qualifies you to know the thought processes going through a deer's mind? KUDOS!! Do you know if the 8=pointer bangin the split-eared doe is wishing he was with someone else?

I never said this. The only mature buck I've killed in 2 seasons didn't know I was there for a reason.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I see alot of people talking about swirling winds. I kept a diary on my hunting for a few years and you know what the best stand location was when the winds swirled?








































My fishing boat.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

LOL well I can't be until sept 15 but then..........;):D

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Matt.....this and the rest of your thread I can also attest to. But....you were talking about getting down from a stand in hunting season....crossing a piece of property .....and climbing back up. "I" just happen to think the deer there see you as a threat no matter how you're walking.

Thats all I meant. I see deer around humans all the time. They're "fairly" tolerant UNTIL something out of the ordinary happens. Then...they're wilder than the farm deer/tractor scenario I can assure you......even though they're association with humans would lead many to think they're "acclaimated".

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I had the same type question. What situation other the sitting your buddy on the other side of the thicket would this be a good idea?

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Well I sure as hell didn't mean to over step your two years experience.
As I have stated repeatedly hunt as you want>>>>>>>>>>>.
Hunt in pink and use old spice for an attractant.I don't care How you hunt.
What I am sayingisthe wind is a deers best defense if you foil it you win if you don't , well who knows with your remarkable sense of reasoning maybe making loud noises will help you over come their sense of hearing also.

Good luck .Jim

RE: I always hear this story...
 

You can accomplish this in as little as 20 -40 yards especially if using a climber.

If I'm hunting a trail and the wind changes I could easily move to the other side of trial.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Thats usually what it resorts to with you, Jim.:eek:

I agree.

ALL I'm saying is you don't know, either way. If you've ever shot a deer that came in from downwind of your stand....you make my case.

How many buck growls, buck roars, cans, grunt tubes, etc.. are sold every year?

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Charlie I know this.....and I hunta climber almost exclusively. I try my darndest to not only play the wind.....but in 46 hunts....I hunted the same tree, only twice, last year. I subscribe to the practice to a certain point......but then I figure I've done all I can do. If the wind shifts ....I ride it out. I know I've killed deer this way, too. My first was killed this way. He was with 20 or more that came from downwind of me.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I shot a deer downwind one time.......[:-]. Seriously though, I have and I believe everybody has shot a deer that traveled to a downwind position or came in from downwind. This is MADNESS!!!.....THIS...IS....SPARTAAAAAAAAA!

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Must be because you wear one of those fancy suits that let you forget the wind and just hunt and I don't.;)[8D]

RE: I always hear this story...
 

LOL, Charlie....

I wear it sometimes....and sometimes I don't. But I never rely on that. I'm a scent-control subscriber.....not a fanatic. I'm a somewhat dedicated whitetail hunter...but I don't subscribe to EVERY touted regimen and belief that's out there.

That was the point of my dissenting (somewhat) view(s) re: this thread.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

The more I've played the wind and scent game over the years, the more success I've had.

Just a few observations from the years
If I am in a tree on flat ground, I'd rather have a deer at 15 yds than 40 yds so as not to be winded.
If you reduce your scent as much as possible, you cansometimes buy yourself some leeway,on deer that are downwind of you and have smelled you.
Older deer are bothered much more by scent than younger ones.
Calm, damp, rainy days are the worst for getting winded.
Over hunting stands & playing the wind go hand in hand.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

If you hunted the wind strictly you would never hunt the stands I have in my honey hole. It's flat/ in a valley and the wind changes almost on the hour so do you move every hour...hell no you don't because the deer and I've hunted this area for all of my 26 seasons, come from any and every direction. They don't just come from the east or the north, they come from anywhere at any given time so going in under any other circumstance other than as scentless as possible and using all the gimmicks on the shelves, trusting your instinct, knowledge and smarts.....you'd never hunt the stands. Obviously I've been successful on these stands and more successful since I've utilized the more "advanced" scent control knowledge that exists today.....I've virtually never been scented in later years, at least that I know of. No deer blows and goes for years. Sure I've been detected but the deer stop, study and slowly move out or circle, no blows and goes and I'll take that every time.....IMO.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

So if you ALWAYS played the wind, Rob....you couldn't hunt a spot that's produced 3ea 3.5 yr olds and 2ea 2.5 yr olds in the last 6 years, right (all bucks in a one tag area)?

RE: I always hear this story...
 

So you a lawyer now asking questions you already know the answer too?

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Correct, if I did nothing for scent control I'd lay money down that I would not have tagged all of those deer. One in particular all but walked 360 degrees around my stand and came in from the start about 60 yards downwind when I first saw him. That's the 3.5 year old I turned in for the first contest with the broken rack, would have been a 130" deer.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Just informing the jury of the mitigatingfactors (the fact that actual deer have been taken).

Icould have stated it......I guess.....but you objected, anyway.:)

RE: I always hear this story...
 

[quote]ORIGINAL: GMMAT

In certain situations...I can see this.

This is true.

HOW can you POSSIBLY know this???

I've seen this in person on more than one occasion. A buck can remember a location where he's sensed danger for more than a couple of weeks, sometimes the rest of the season. It depends on how alarming and how often the occurance was.



So you'll go through an area shed hunting......but you won't take a chance to actually HUNT the stand for years???????? Where is the logic, here???? A deer don't know what season it is.....OR whether you're hunting, shed hunting or playing the game boy in the woods....nor does he CARE! You're there....and that's all that matters, to him. If I'm going in there....I figure I might as well hunt it!

Deer can sense predatory behavior vs farming behavior, out for a casual stroll behavior. Again, I've witnessed it.

These observations that I've had make forgreat hunting experiences and iswhat molds my hunting methods.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

So he DON'T smell you.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

This statement is gospel. Respect!

RE: I always hear this story...
 

OK...(and once again I trust your judgement)....but the original premise was "possibly" being winded. Nothing more. Are you saying that's "alarming" enough or that this "occurrence" might rememebr this location for a season? Just curious.

I fyou mean strolling through the woods vs. combining, I agree. If you mean strolling through a field edge with a bow vs. strolling through a field edge with a backpack sprayer.....I'm not sure I'm with ya.

Kudos. But I'd ask....have you ever killed a deer that emerged from downwind? If so.....and you get down and move when the wind shifts out of your favor......how do you know what you've potentially walked off and left?

I've gotten down and moved on a whim.....a "feeling" that something wasn't right. I put just as much credence in those situations as I would moving due to a wind shift.

Good stuff, though, GregH. I see lots of deer and lots of deer activity. I just can't tell what they're thinking, smelling, seeing (most times). I'll keep watching, though.;)

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Thanks Greg , but some refuse to see the forest for the trees. :eek:

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Sorry, Jim. I took your statement at face value.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I don't think anyone has indicated that it is impossible to kill a deer that has come in from downwind. It has been done, I have done it. That doesn't mean that I'm going to disregard the many other instances I have personally observed of deer catching my wind and blowing out, or in the case of older deer, slinking away.Swirling winds are one thing, we can't control that, but if a wind isdead wrong and you hunt the stand anyway that is justasking for trouble. The bottom line is why take a chance at ruining a good spot if the wind is wrong. If you know your property you should be able to quickly change to a back up location without going into core areas.

It isn't gospel, but if you want to be successful you've got to tip the odds in your favor, and playing the wind is just common sense for improving those odds.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I agree.....and no one is advocating that, here.

Again.....no one is advocating this.

I agree to an extent...but I'm not fanatical about it (meaning I won't move if I'm already there). That's ALL I'm saying.....

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I know this is hard for you but some of us place stands where it is very difficult for a deer to approach us from down wind.This is done by using roads, creeks ,pondsor even man made obstacles ,such as dirty tee shirts strategically placed to prevent deer from approaching from down wind.
I am in North West PA ,the predominant wind is off of lake Erie. So I place and approach stands accordingly. Then comes along a low pressure front with winds spinning counter clock wise and you experience south ,south east winds . If this occurs it places bedding grounds that are usually down wind from the predominant West .north west winds susceptible to stands that are other wise useless, When all the pieces allfall together and this happens during the first two weeks of November during the pre rut then those stands that have been abandoned for years are worth there weight in gold.
This all probably seems beyond your realm of bow hunting ,but to some of us buck hunting is very important and doing it right is even more important.
Every year some kid with a borrowed bow kills a monster buck it happens ,I would rather not count on luck as the determining factorif I'm going to be successful or not.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

Jeff, my post was kept general because there is too much personal interest here. It's not all about you. No offense.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

I'd like to hear more about the smelly shirts. I might learn something.

First deer I ever took....I'd been watching them emerge from their sanctuary for a week or better. I sat two days waiting on a good wind to go a little deeper towards where I saw them coming from. Third day arrives and I get my wind. I'm there.....set up.....and what happens? TWENTY+ deer come from behind me.

I'll play it to my favor every chance I get. I don't doubt the conventional wisdom...but I won't base my entire season or even SOME hunts on it. Difference of opinion.

Just like the "One shot Practice" thread and the "Pick a hair when Aiming posts".....I just think there's more ways to skin a deer. I don't walk lock-step with conventional thinking at every turn. Heck...we're even shooting does, now.

Anyone can call what someone else does "luck". I plan on being lucky multiple times, this year.

RE: I always hear this story...
 

none taken