Prevailing Wind Direction

[BizCT]

I am trying to figure out the prevailing wind direction on the new hunting land, so that I point my ground blinds in the right spots. I looked up the historical data from the closest local airport (Danbury) and found the below stats from November last year. Since there isn't much consistency, what do I do?

Date	Wind Direction
11/1/2015	SW
11/2/2015	SW
11/3/2015	WSW
11/4/2015	SSE
11/5/2015	SW
11/6/2015	SW
11/7/2015	WNW
11/8/2015	WNW
11/9/2015	SW
11/10/2015	ENE
11/11/2015	N
11/12/2015	SSE
11/13/2015	W
11/14/2015	WNW
11/15/2015	SW
11/16/2015	NW

[turkeyfeathers]

I know where I hunt wind is in consistent as well and changes throughout the day as well. And thermals to boot.  IMO place the 2 new blinds where you can at least hunt one of them if the wind is wonking up the other. Do you have a wind AP like Primos or similar ? You can check the winds and hunt the appropriate one that day and switch if you have to.

[grampy]

Put multiple stands in place for the wind on a given day. On one of my "go to" spots, I have a stand set for a NW wind AND a South-SE wind.

[moog5050]

I bet the majority of days will be W or SW - set up for those and if you have an extra, set of for a N-NW wind.  East winds are more rare (at least here) but it would be nice to have a spot for that rare day if needed.

[BizCT]

Thx guys. Usually I carry this tiny bottle of white powder that I squeeze and judge wind by that and what my phone says. Works well.


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[dbHunterNY]

don't mean to be the bearer of bad news but you really have to go check out locations knowing what the weather man or say airport wind is reading.  early or late in the evening thermals can shift a breeze.  most likely topography or a mature tree line will steer the wind in a different direction unless your flat and open country.

also equal time on stand, you'll see the least activity with a prevailing wind.  it's generally when you have the odd ball winds like northeast that weather and fronts get deer on their feet for various reasons.  also rebar pounded into the ground with welded wire can be brushed in for alternate locations.  won't keep you dry but don't need tons of blinds.  scent concerns are no different than if you were out of the blind unless you're in say a sealed up box blind with gasketed windows.  point your blind for different wind direction then the next blind.  set each up to work for the location with were think the deer will be/go.  also try not to set it up in a direction so the sun is blasting directly into your scope/sight/eyes early and late in the day.  even if you just have a single tree to block the sun you're ok.

[dbHunterNY]

I've tried to do what your doing in the past and it never seems to work out.

[BizCT]

Maybe this hand drawn map helps.



The food plot area is flat. One whole side is bordered by steep rock cliffs. The other side is woods sloping away from plot. I walk main trail mostly in and then cut off main trail to dotted line to get to the plot. I'm thinking of putting blind against the rocks since there would be no shots that way anyway.


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[phade]

You need to get to know thermals as they will at times override the prevailing wind direction given for a day.

With a 450 elevation change...its going to take some serious thought and experience to get it right.

If the rocky side is a hard break, meaning deer cannot transgress it - then it is a very helpful bit of knowledge if they are moving to your plot in daytime hours.

[growalot]

Biz that's why you have heard me mention the numerous stands and blinds I have set up...I group my stands/towers in 4's to catch what ever ma nature throws at me and yes even a 16-20 foot height can be different than on the ground for thermals...especially on ridge lines and hilly/gully country...so I have ground blinds set up near all those groupings........brush blinds built right are as good as a pop up...just not weather resistant ..unless you cut some poles nail a frame and add a camo tarp...cost time and 10-15 bucks...

Edited August 4, 2016 by growalot

[BizCT]

2 minutes ago, growalot said:

Biz that's why you have heard me mention the numerous stands and blinds I have set up...I group my stands/towers in 4's to catch what ever ma nature throws at me and yes even a 16-20 foot height can be different than on the ground for thermals...especially on ridge lines and hilly/gully country...so I have ground blinds set up near all those groupings........brush blinds built right are as good as a pop up...just not weather resistant ..unless you cut some poles nail a frame and add a camo tarp...cost time and 10-15 bucks...

Yea definitely. I have never had an issue sitting against a tree and seeing deer. I'm not married to the idea of trying to sit in the same spot all the time. It will depend on wind each day.

[BizCT]

Here's the real map.




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[dbHunterNY]

I'd setup on the far back corner back against to cliffs.  if there's any cover between them and the plot there might be a perimeter trail the deer take.  as long as all the deer aren't coming in from that corner you'll be alright with many winds anything west.  what gets tricky is cliff edges or steep ridges have tumbling winds directly below that spread scent everywhere.  you might have this with anything from the south or in the evenings.

[BizCT]

white are the trails. there's an outer loop and inner loop since previous owner ran traplines. Everything the owner has said so far has been correct. The deer always seem to move in the morning from left to right, heading to the "G" which is the start of a golf course. Some deer stay up top along top white trail or telephone pole cut, while other deer stay down lower on the property on the lower trails in heavier cover. The green C is the flat area between rock cliffs and sloping land where I am planting clover. Also in the area of the food plot is the only area where there are acorns.

The Purple X is where my cell camera (thx Phade) is currently at, and that's where all my pics have come from. Sunday I added 2 more cams. 1 on the lower trail and 1 on the left side trail.

Again, I appreciate all your help and enjoy learning as this will be out first year hunting this property that my parents bought earlier this year.

Edited August 4, 2016 by Biz-R-OWorld

[turkeyfeathers]

19 minutes ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

Thx guys. Usually I carry this tiny bottle of white powder that I squeeze and judge wind by that and what my phone says. Works well.


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Dustin Johnson for awhile was also carrying a tiny bottle of white powder to "check the wind '  

Phade or could have been Moog made mention of drying milkweed pods the other day, them things will float forever.

Play the wind as best as you can IMO. Without scentlock daughter and I had an almost shooter 7 point directly downwind of us at close to 25 feet last year on opening day. He stayed around for a good 10-15 minutes. I also had a hot doe and soon after a buck directly downwind of me while I was in ladder stand. The buck went home with me that day. Probably less than 50 feet on him. So play it the best you can, some deer may shy away if they wind you but not all.

[philoshop]

I'll give you another line of thought on this. Since you're new to the property, you really don't know for sure yet where the deer will be coming from or where they'll be going to once the season rolls around. In the places I hunt the travel routes are well defined, but the directions of travel change dramatically depending on the time of year, especially during daylight.  

[BizCT]

1 minute ago, turkeyfeathers said:

Dustin Johnson for awhile was also carrying a tiny bottle of white powder to "check the wind '  

Phade or could have been Moog made mention of drying milkweed pods the other day, them things will float forever.

Play the wind as best as you can IMO. Without scentlock daughter and I had an almost shooter 7 point directly downwind of us at close to 25 feet last year on opening day. He stayed around for a good 10-15 minutes. I also had a hot doe and soon after a buck directly downwind of me while I was in ladder stand. The buck went home with me that day. Probably less than 50 feet on him. So play it the best you can, some deer may shy away if they wind you but not all.

haha, Tony Yayo!

Yea I am a scent free freak when it comes to hunting. Have had many close encounters with deer and other animals over the years and that's with me sitting on ground with no blind. Had deer eating the same bush I was sitting against many times. Had a red fox last year within arm's distance.

[BizCT]

I'll give you another line of thought on this. Since you're new to the property, you really don't know for sure yet where the deer will be coming from or where they'll be going to once the season rolls around. In the places I hunt the travel routes are well defined, but the directions of travel change dramatically depending on the time of year, especially during daylight.  

It's true. I can only go by what the previous owner told us. So far it's been true based on trail cam activity. But it all changes come the fall.

Haven't gotten a buck on my cell cam in a few weeks but Sunday saw a nice buck at 12 noon about 60 yards from the camera. They are still there just not walking on main trail of course

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[philoshop]

I didn't realize you had info from the previous owner. That's a BIG deal, and you should absolutely use it.

You might consider putting some flagging material like pieces of surveyor's tape or VHS tape on a stake somewhere in view of your cam shots as we get close to the season. Set them far enough away to not trigger the cam, but still be visible in the photo. Knowing the wind direction at the precise time a deer triggers the cam from a specific direction is valuable.

[BizCT]

I didn't realize you had info from the previous owner. That's a BIG deal, and you should absolutely use it.

You might consider putting some flagging material like pieces of surveyor's tape or VHS tape on a stake somewhere in view of your cam shots as we get close to the season. Set them far enough away to not trigger the cam, but still be visible in the photo. Knowing the wind direction at the precise time a deer triggers the cam from a specific direction is valuable.

That's a good idea. Never thought of something like that. Though I must say, where the food plot is going always seems to be stagnant I guess because it's protected by steep rock cliffs.


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[WNYBuckHunter]

My advice, buy a crap load of smoke bombs and go to the property on days with different conditions and wind map it.

[philoshop]

Keep in mind that everything changes in October and early November. Wind patterns, thermals, deer movement, preferred foods, water sources, bedding locations... And they can change almost over night.

[BizCT]

Keep in mind that everything changes in October and early November. Wind patterns, thermals, deer movement, preferred foods, water sources, bedding locations... And they can change almost over night.

Yup, Of course


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[Doc]

Wind direction will be the most frustrating parts of any hunt. Nothing can irritate you like watching the wind switch 180 degrees  a few times while you sit there using plans based on a weatherman's predictions. I hunt in narrow valley areas with high steep hills, and they definitely will do some weird things. I have one blind next to a 150' deep rock walled ravine that twists its way up the hill, Anywhere around that ravine will have constantly changing winds. And some of the biggest bucks in that area use that for a bedding area because there is no approach to that area that will not give them a scent warning before you get within shooting range. The good old milkweed seed test wil show you what you are up against and it can be a very frustrating story.

There are also areas where the wind can be in one direction all day long and then late in the afternoon, the thermals take over. I don't know about flat land. There is none down out way ..... lol.

[DirtTime]

Seems from your first post Biz you have a SW mainly. I agree when the climate changes for winter all that might ( most likely will ) change.

It's always good to have at least 5 or 6 places picked out ( which might have to be changed as well ) to try and keep the wind from being a big issue. The private land I hunt in 5J I have about 10 different spots to sit depending on the wind. Some I have made blinds for and others have natural cover to sit behind.

You can plan around the weather all you want, but when it's said and done, Ole Ma Nature can be cruel. If it was easy we wouldn't do it.