The Wind

If you ever wonder why you didn’t see any deer out of the stand on a certain day, it could be as simple as the wind. Deer rely on smell constantly to avoid trouble and they have no problem at all with investigating any smell they find out of the ordinary. That investigation brings apprehensiveness. Deer don’t have to go where you think they should. As much as any hunter wants to believe this, deer have the ability to turn around and walk the other way, and they will. If you want to beat them at this game, you have to eliminate their ability to smell you. The best way to do this is to know the wind. Where you position yourself for a hunt should be directly related with the wind direction. You need to position yourself so that you are downwind and that there is no chance the wind will circle back and blow toward them. I should mention though that every year, all over the country, people kill mature bucks without any regard for the wind direction. This does not make them poor hunters but it does limit their chances of have that kind of success again. One of the best ways to beat the wind is to do a little science experiment. During the late winter or spring, you can take a smoke bomb up to your tree stand and see how the wind is carrying the smoke or your scent through the woods. You will want to keep a record of what the weather circumstances were for that day such as wind direction, barometric pressure, and temperature. Try this on several different days and you may find out why the deer in your area are avoiding your tree stand.