How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

With all the talk of not hunting a stand if the wind isn’t perfect, does no one hunt a stand where deer come from every direction? And say you have a stand that deer will come from 3 of 4 ways, do you only hunt that location when the wind blows that 4th way? The more I try to work the wind, the more pointless it becomes with swirling/changing wind directions, and the good odds that a deer will show up from almost any direction in most of my stands.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

At least in my stand sites deer can come from any direction. I've even had deer come up a river bank and shake the water off like a dog! I pick my stand sites according to the best opportunity for shooting opportunities and hunt for the wind according to which direction they usually come from.....general bedding areas, travel patterns, AND morning or evening hunts. For example: I have one stand site I will only hunt in the morning because I have jumped deer too many times while going in on afternoon hunts.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

Yes. I have spots like that.

Great question. What I try to do is NOT hunt if my scent would be blowing towards the bedding area. I'll take a chance if it might be blowing towrds "a" direction the could come from.....but I'm also trying to use the cool mornings and thermals to even negate that possibility. I had 4 deer come in this morning......from 3 different directions. NOT ONE of them came from the direction I expected. Not one of them winded me, either. If I'd been hunting where I thought a good buck was....I wouldn't have set up where I did. I had the worst wind (NW) I could get for a morning hunt, here. So I took a chance on thermals and a known "doe" haunt. I've hunted this woodlot 5 times in 3 seasons.

Giving that woodlot a rest......if we get that wind, tomorrow morning, I have ONE more spot I can hunt with that wind. I'll be there in the AM if we get what's forecast. I'm going somewhere this afternoon that I've never been.....but the wind direction is driving that, too. We're just too close to the best time to take too many chances (IMO). This afternoon....I have a better understanding of which direction they should be traveling.....or I wouldn't go there, either.

So....yeah....I have to take a chance, sometimes. What I won't do is hunt if I KNOW my scent's trveling towards where they bed. If they catch it coming in from a direction I haven't figured on......then they win.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

I know what your saying, I have a stand deer can come from 3 different directions...

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

The majority of my stands are like that. All these stands have a primary location where the deer come from, so i wont hunt the stand if the wind is blowing in that direction, but i have had deer come in from 360 degrees of most of my stands.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

I agree 100 percent. Alot of my stand are setup according to where their bedding areas are and the trails that come from there. I have had deer come from about every direction, including many from down wind, and not smell me. Thermals may be to credit for that some of the time, but I have had situations where I KNOW the wind was blowing toward them and they could definitely smell me. I think the key here depends on the property you hunt. Alot of the places I hunt are in city limits (i.e. 30-100 acres) where deer are used to human scent. In big woods, scent control and wind is more important of a factor.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

My favorite stand I have had deer come from 3 out of 4 directions. The 4th is basically a pond.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

I would say deer "could" come from any direction with all of my stand sites. However, good scouting should have told which direction the majority are going to come from and then you set the stand according to your normal wind direction. Knowing where the deer are coming from and going to helps a ton. However, there are always those odd ball deer that show up doing something totally off the wall. That is where good scent control comes into play.

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

I am in the same situation as njbuck, most all of my stands deer have come from 360 but "generally" come from one direction and thats when i don't hunt them.....

RE: How common are multi-directional stand locations?
 

Exactly!!