The Answer is Blowing in the Wind

I have a friend who is a smoker. He doesn’t stow his hunting clothes in burlap bags with pine needles or bother with commercial de-scenters but he consistently gets his deer or elk.  How does he do it? He adheres to a basic fundamental of the hunt. He is always aware of the direction of the wind. He invariably hunts into a headwind or crosswind.

A Muley Buck would rather move so that the wind is always in his face.  When stalking him, choose a path that allows the wind to quarter away from the deer and cross your path at a sharp angle. This way he won’t pick up your scent and head for the next county.  OK, you’ve spotted a buck traveling east to west and the wind is from the southwest.  You need to get into position on the north side of the animal where your scent will be blown away from deer. 

Don’t forget about the wind even when you set up to glass an area.  In hilly terrain ridges can cause currents to swirl and change direction.  Look for a location where winds are more stable, like the top of a ridge or point. A good location for an ambush is on the downwind side of a natural funnel or a low gap of a ridge.

Hillsides wind currents are more fickle. Here your location should be determined by the air thermals. Generally set up downhill early and late in the day when cool air drifts down. From midmorning through mid-afternoon, when warming air rises, you should position yourself near the top of the hill. 

During the rut bucks will actually use the wind to help them locate a doe in heat.  A rutting buck will even travel downwind of areas where does feed, travel, and bed. Sometimes that means traveling with the wind at their rear.  They do this so that they can efficiently check large areas and quickly find does coming into estrus.

So, if you are like my hunting buddy or if you a fanatic about masking your scent it pays big dividends to keep the wind in your face. 

Robert G Willis

Team AZOD