RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Those are wise words. There are also many ways to success.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Yes, my hunt is done if that happens. I will not rely on ANY magic pixie dust to completely mask my oder in unfavorible conditions. To me, it's not worth the risk.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

If I smoked, farted, ate garlic sandwichesor DIDN'T practice a religious scent control regimen (which includes spraying down).....I'd be a helluva lot more worried about it than I currently am.;) If I'm already there.....I'm staying. I might not stay al long as I normally would......but I'm confident enough in my regimen to keep me in the tree for (__________) long.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Just as it gives some of you confidence ,I feel it gives you a sense of false confidence.
I have stated before I have no problem getting out of the woods if the wind changes or is swirling wrong.
It just might be a better day for fishing.;)

If I could have my choice in winds I want 20 to 30 mph. Every thing in the woods is in motion and your scent trail is swept out of your area. High winds are a deers worst enemy and great days to hunt.[:-]

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I agree with the high winds helping with motion and scent but I hate hunting those days because the deer seem to hole upquite a bitonce it starts blowing 20+ and if you do see some they look like they don't know wheter they are coming or going half the time.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I agree with this. I like moderately windy days and they always seem to produce sightings.

As far as the false sense of confidence goes, I think that depends. Ifthey giveyou the confidence that in addition to playing the wind the best that you can you are keeping your scent further under control thansprays aregood and being used properly. If they make you feel like you can "cheat" a little with the wind and push some situations that you wouldn't otherwise hunt, then yes, that is a false sense of confidence and could cost you a current or future opportunity.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I won't discount playing the wind......but for every time I hear something like this.....I hear 3 stories of guys who shot deer that came from 180deg of where they were expecting them to come from.

It makes sense to be careful......granted. But if it's "iffy"........I've never killed one on an "iffy" day from my sofa. I've killed probably 1/2 of my deer in places I had no idea which way they might come from....but KNEW I was in a good spot. Sometimes you just have to decide......"Am I gonna hunt this spot, or not?". The best spot I have......I could not tell you which way a deer might come from on any given day. Actually.....MOST of my spots are like that.

The ONLY wind I won't hunt.....is when i know it's blowing towards their bedding area.....and it's really warm. If I relied on all thes rules and held steadfastly to them......I'd hunt very little.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Guys I have to say that it's not false at all. It actually does cut out some human odors. I use the acorn or earth scent, I don't know about the nuetralizer I don't use it, but I do use the earth mask. It's the same as rubbing pine needls on your body before you go in if you are hunting in and around some pines, it works. Im not saying totally makes you invisible to the nose, but it does help cover scent. I mean smell it, it does have an earth odor.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

You guys that want to take the chance that a scent killing product is going to prevent a deer from scenting you in unfavorable conditions, go right ahead.

I personally do not take any chances with a whitetails nose, it's not worth the risk to me. If the wind is not perfect for me, I'm outta there!

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I think part of the issue is also we are not talking about the same things. As Jeff likes to say, there are no absolutes.

We all know the caliber of bucks that Greg is pursuing, so when he gets out of his stand it is so he does not blow out a mature deer that has a very low tolerance for human presence of any kind.

An area that has "deer coming from any direction" is likely one that is used by a lot of does and immature deer. You may be able to get away with a little more when dealing with the young critters.

Also, I know when I'm hunting my suburban spots I have a lot more leeway with scent because human scent is all around them all the time. So if I can get my scent to the point where I smell like I'm 100 yards away in someone's back yard, I've got a fighting chance. However, if the wind is blowing my stinky breath and other scent directly to an older deer, it doesn't matter how much scent killer I've used the jig is up. I've seen it happen. On more rural properties I can't even get away with what I do in the suburbs, so the wind becomes even more critical.

There are also varying degrees, literally, of how much you play the wind. In the Marsh Bucks video they said that they will hunt most winds at a critical time as long as it is not blowing directly to where the deer is coming from. Now, these guys know exactly where that buck is bedded and exactly where he will be coming from, so that makes it much easier, but it also makes what would be a seemingly unfavorable wind still huntable.

So, it's all about the deer in question, the location (sorry Greg) the deer are in, and the situation you are hunting. There are times when you are better off not being out there if you want to get an older deer. At the same time, you are not going to shoot them from the couch.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I'll take my chanceson the couch before I try to fool myself into believing anything but a fawn will not bust your smelly butt sitting up wind.[:o]

Maybe some of those petting zoo escapee's like humans & their hand outs but the deer I hunt ,don't like me much.[:-]

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I just think you stink more than some of us Jim and hey, hunt where the deer are right? ;)

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Nah, you're just jealous that those petting zoo escapees get so much bigger than your "mountain deer."

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Everyhthing I do is hard.

Everything you do is luck or easy.

Let's break this down.......lol.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I prefer the term "aroma"as "stink" is such a dirty word.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I figured that. You've posted a lot of info on the places you hunt. You've also put in a lot of time. Figuring a place out is the key and that takes time. Most want the glory without putting in the time. Playing the wind without putting in the time is just dumb luck.

Your not saying you owe it all to playing the wind are you?:D

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

No, playing the wind is just one of the key pieces of the puzzle.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I certainly take wind into account but I try not to hunt below 25 feet up in a tree. With my scent control, carbon clothing and how high I am up the tree I do not think wind has much of an eefect. I take my advice from the older guys that didn't have technology to help them. One of the farmers that hunts the area in Wisconsin I hunt ONLY hunts in bluejeans and his lucky red-plaid jacket. He never got spotted or scented beause he was damn high up in the trees.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

So how do you have any personal experience if you've never used it?

That's an interesting idea, but I'm curious as to how you translate your actual angles in the field to the correct angles on paper. That seems like it would be a significant amount of work with a GPS (unless you take the total station)in the field. Plotting points around each stand, figuring out which "tree" or "rock" is the wind break point as to whether or not you hunt that stand. I mean spending time... spreading scent in the woods. Then after all thatyou have to figure it at a certainradius from thestand location, bust out the compass and protractor and go to work. Do you literally not hunt that standif the Nautical Weatherman says the wind will be at 259 degrees when 260 is acceptable?;)

Jaegerbombs. I'm impressed, that's dedication.

I agree, hunting the wind is important... but let's face it... it's all about Location!:D:D:D

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Dubbya,
Good try there bud, but common sense tells me that you can't elininate 100% of your human odor no matter what you do. Besides, you are assuming that I have neverused any of the products.:eek:

Secondly, while out hunting I don't get quite as anal-litical as you suggest. I use a compass. [:-]

If the wind starts to get a little "iffy", in reference to your one degree off comment, I usually error on the side of caution and look for a better option. ;)


OK guys,
WTF!! When I write something about hunting for big bucks, the best thing you can do is read what I have to say then see if you can apply any or all of it to your own situation. If not, go on to the next thread and try to find something that you can use.

Is it any wonder why we have lost some good people on here, such as Don Higgens?

For all those who choose to pick apart what I have said rather than say something useful......... you may get in line to wait your turn to plant tulips on the Buck Guru's behind! That's Gospel.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Don't let the underlings get to you guru ;) I thought it was very insightful.....

Youhave to keep in mind that some of these guys make Doogie Howser look like Cool Hand Luke.... Take it with a grain of salt.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Greg, guru,

Don't think of it as nit picking your advice, rather think of it as trying to get ever little detail.

You know the old saying, teach them everything they know but not everything you know. ;)

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

If Don Higgins is above being asked questions......I'm glad he's gone.

LOTS of people learn through being taught.....instead of being told. If someone tells you the sun comes up every morning....rising from the East......you know that. When you ask them "why" it does it that way....and they teach you......you've learned something. When someone asks you.....you can teach them.

I have an analytical mind that needs to know "why" things are so......and not just that they "are". How else can we take things in and apply them to our lives/situations/woods?

As far as I know....this forum isn't a FAQ format.....but rather, interactive.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I wish the people who drove him away were gone.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

How Ironic.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I like the coke can wind hunting video:D

People like Don don't go to any forums for very good reason;)

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Here is some real GOSPEL:

GregH smokes on stand AND gets the results he does, which I know many on here, including myself, are a bit jealous of. I think he knows how to hunt the wind. I am not kissing his arse, I am just stating fact.

Here is how I hunt the wind... I have over 25 stand sites on my family's farms and my lease. I have a stand for any wind direction or even if the wind is swirling. Sometimes you can get over/abovea deer's nose. I walk out my door, feel where the wind is coming from, and go to a stand that is set up for that wind direction. Every stand I make is designed for specific wind directions. They have to be no matter what if you want consistent, positive, results.

As far as using scent control products I do not. My reason is simply because I want to try to beat their senses; all of them. I don't want to take one or all away from them. TO ME it is kind of like fighting someone you blindfolded first. I don't doubt that they help, but I don't like the thought of them and don't like people telling me I should try them. I don't want to.

I didn't mean for this post to sound negative or authoratative. I am neither and that is again GOSPEL:D

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

That is a great point .... He also knows how to hunt the calm ... the thermals ... the rain .... I believe most of the guys realize that Greg has ALOT to give when it comes to hunting big bucks ...... except for maybe his camo choice [8D]

Keep it coming, Greg! :)

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Damn you must have allot of acres to have that many stand sites.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

If you are refering to me, grand total I hunt 825 acres, but about half (12) of my sites are on 175 of that. I like having A LOT of options:D

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I have seen Jim's place from the Hwy[8D] I almost got to hunt there twice:(

Jim Sunday will take a walk on the perserve of our farm, and head to Cabelas

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

The wind is fickle. It shifts, dies, blows, &swirls all the time. It's a real pain in my arse most days. I like the idea of breaking down the direction to very precise increments and the method I use while similiar is probably not quiteas accurate. On the main two farms I hunt we have a fllag pole and my dad and I super impose a degreedcompass on a zoomed in aerial photo of the farms precisely where the flagpoles are. It makes it easy to look at the flag and then the map and geta good idea of the precise line the wind is on (at that moment any way) and you can then correlate that to the rest of the farm with a scale (straight edge). The flag works when it is nice and windy but we rigged up super light mono we put wind catchers on for when wind is light.

Then I pick a stand and go get set up and later the wind shifts 180 and messes me all up.;)

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Thats cool Jim! I don't have that many options on the 130 acres I hunt. I usually have about 7 different stands set up through deer hunting that I jump around to for different winds. Them 7 or so stand setups is plenty though for my brother and I.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Very true, I didn't realize that I had stated that it was possible to eliminate 100% of odor... but then again, this game is all about the odds. Correct?


To me, there isn't really anything scientific about "hunting the wind," there are too many variables. You stated that if the wind gets a little "iffy" then you look for a better option. Isn't that what everyone would do? I'm trying to find the significant difference between your way of hunting th wind and the majority.


I was referring to when you check the wind in the morning, at which point do you decide it's a no go? It's very possible that your meteorologists are much more accurate up there than down here, and for your sake I hope so. I'm not sure how they can get the wind narrowed down to exact geometry when they struggle hitting 30 degree increments. JMHO.


Easy, "Guru"... I've read all your stuff and tried to apply it to several situations, however, I don't think mother nature is predicatable enough to get scientific with "hunting the wind." So if you can't get down to the degree, then you're not doing anything any different than hunting the general wind direction. I don't mean that as an attack, there's just no difference.

On the other hand, I really do like the idea of being able to visualize the wind direction on an aerial photo. That I will apply.

As for Don Higgens... we got along great. But I'll take the blame if that's what you're trying to imply.:D;)

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

In allot of cases I don't think so Dubbya. It seems that some of the hunters who use scent killer products and also some that don't use it are willing to take that chance instead of playing it safe. I believe its more common with the hunters who use the products. Some though don't have a choice if the wind is bad or iffy (lack of land to hunt).

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

You may be correct schultzy, but I don't think Greg was making a connection between using the scent elim products and changing setups when the wind gets iffy as that was in a subsequent post.

Greg, how much land do you hunt?

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Boy, you can tell the guys on HNI that have a "history" with each other .....[&:]

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I hunt alot of farm country deer here in PA and in IL and I try to use every scent elimination product for one main reason........wind swirls. These areas are generally populated by farmers working the fields, joggers, dog walkers, other hunters, duck blind builders in IL:eek:, you name it so the deer are used to smelling humans. What I want to try to duplicate if a wind swirls or a deer gets downwind unexpectedly is as LITTLE human scent as possible.

Why would I want to just SLAM him in the nose with human scent when I can MAYBE create the illusion of a person at a distance or a quick faint scent stream that was faint enough to just make that buck stop and think about it rather than turning inside out the second my BO fills his nostrils?

In my mind I'm planning with my scent control for the unexpected, wind swirlsor deer coming from a goofy direction, and I know if they get downwind they're gonna smell me if the wind currents are travelling downward. I'm just hoping that I can send as little as possible his way.

Deer would never stop running where I hunt if they flat out spooked everytime they smelled a human being. I just don't in a worse case scenario want to paint the picture that a big stinky hunter is about to jump on his back.

Hunting the wind smart is pretty much a given but it still doesn't change the fact that brief wind changes and swirls happen all the time and deer do get downwind.......I sat a stand last year in IL on a perfect hard west wind. Sat there all evening untilabout 1/2hr beforebefore sunset when the wind unexpectedly switched in a big gust or 2 from the east blowing straight into the area I expected to see a buck. :eek:Then a couple minutes later as I was contemplating getting down it turned right back around hard west again.
Not 5 minutes later here came a nice 135ish" 8pt from the exact area the wind switched to.

Is it proof that being as scent free as possible helped? Not sure, but I do know that an east wind there is going to carry the farmer's scent that direction as well as anyone else out on the working part of the farm. So MAYBE my scent was ignored because if it was smelled it was faint enough to not be percieved as a threat.

If I went in there without showering that day and smelling like a turd [:'(].........maybe I don't see that buck?

Until we can see deer we don't know are there AND read their minds at the same time I'm going to personally try to stay as scent free as I possibly can.

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

Unfortunately sometimes anal-lytical means PITA in a "normal" persons world.
You can define "normal" however you choose?
However, I personaly define "normal" as "common-sense", which some people have and others don't.[>:]
Or...
Some people have a hard time expressing themselves "correctly" when they write questions, which can equal PITA.
I interpret "correctly" as "common-sense".

FYI - I came onto this forum after Dan Higgens or some of the others that were "good for the forum" (I see Atlas Man's name occasionaly)
and can see why some people would say F.I., as I have "reeled-in" my interaction due to the PITA's in the neighborhood.
I am now in the habit of stopping to look at who posts before I select a topic to read.

No wonder I'm such a "Sarcastic Bastard" when I reply to a topic???!!![X(] I suppose it just gets me bye!;)

Lastly, I will use the info. in this post to better my knowledge for hunting the Elusive Whitetail Buck! That's what I take from posts.:D

RE: How I hunt the wind
 

I was the one who stated "100%". I also stated that I take ZERO chances with a whitetails nose. So for me, it is not all about the odds.

1) A lot of people say this isn't rocket science and you don't think that hunting the wind is scientific. Did you hear me say that it was?? :eek:

2) I would think that most people would but all one has to do is read GMMATs post on "Forget the wind, just hunt" to see that this is not what everyone would. So the answer is ....No.

3) The weather web site has been practically spot on for the areas that I hunt "up here".

1) I never claimed any of this to be scientific.... those are your words. :eek:

2) I didn't imply that you were soley ( or remotely)responsible for Higgens departure. :eek::eek:

3) You seem to be putting words into my mouth and making a lot of assumptions about what I've said and for that sir, you may take your place at the end of the line.

Finally, the things that I post on here are to help others get an idea that they can expound on and help to achieve their goals. These are the very things that have helped me achieve success in hunting mature bucks. I believe that it's working. Why pick it apart and say it's not very scientific? I never said it was.

How successful have you been? Why not share some of your techniques? I'd be very interested to hear them, especially the scientific ones.