The simple answer is to check the wind…..hunt there. For those who are new to hunting we will explain what is meant by this philosophy. But to begin, most if not all successful hunters, and especially hunters of trophy bucks will always, I mean always hunt the wind.
Hunting the wind may sound simple, but as we know seldom is anything as simple as it sounds. Hunting the wind is the starting point. But this begins when we are looking for stands to set up, during our scouting forays into the woods, we need to be aware of the wind directions for the time of year we are planning on hunting the location.
The best examples of all of this begins when we are scouting for potential locations for new stands. During the early season in South Carolina, it is common to have south west winds, or south winds. As the season progresses, these dominate winds shift to the North east or Northwest. This being the case, stands that are set up for early season will not work as the season lingers on into the fall and winter.
A personal method is that when setting up a new stand, I will sit in the stand and take a compass reading. By making a note of which direction the stand faces, I can determine which winds will be best suited for that particular stand. This information is entered into a log. That log will help me determine which stand I want to hunt and when.
While it all starts with the wind. There are still other factors to consider when deciding which stand to hunt on a particular day. Other factors include food sources, time of year, and access to water. For example, during the early season when the temperatures are soaring, it’s hard to beat water stands. Deer will feed and water on a regular basis. Setting a stand with good access to water is a great place to start. Same is true with food sources. Early season is full of soft mast plants, apples, pears and persimmons. As the season progresses, hard mast takes over with the acorn drop, stands in these feeding areas are the best bet.
Charles Ruth, Deer and turkey coordinator at the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources is an avid deer hunter and Ruth says “given an opportunity I will always hunt the food.” Knowing that the deer will always go to food every day, hunting food sources is a good bet for success during the mid-season. As the rut rolls around, look for the ladies.
Hunting the rut changes a lot of philosophies out there when it comes to stand placement and which stands to hunt. As the rut gets into full swing, the strategies need to adjust. During this time of year looking for the area where does congregate is a good bet for finding the big bucks we are looking for. Often times the does will congregate in and around food sources, so while it may seem like you are hunting food, in reality, you are hunting the does in hopes they will draw bucks into range. One example of this, is a stand we call “home place” this stand is one of those anomalies in that during the early season, deer are seldom seen at all. But when the rut rolls around, does flock to this mature pine plantation and seem to stay there for the duration. Post rut finds the stand empty again. Why the does flock there is still a mystery. But the does bring in the bucks and that is why we have a stand there and have had one for almost a decade. It is a sure fire stand during the last of October through Thanksgiving.
Deciding which stand to hunt is really a matter of planning well in advance and hanging stands or selecting trees to climb. This preparation will help you decide where to sit the morning of your hunt. Using weather information for wind direction and knowing how the wind reacts to your land will help you to provide the best maps available to decide on a hunt. When it is all said and done, I will use the wind direction and prediction, available food and the rut to determine where I wills sit. At any time there will be at least three stands to pick from for the situations that are prevalent.
Developing a pattern and a log to keep track of your stands will help make the decision easier. Successful hunters will tell you that not following a basic plan of hunting the wind all the time will spell disaster. Never alter the plan, take information when setting the stand and then always reference the wind and always, repeat always let the wind decide where you will hunt. Following that advise will help make the decision easier and make for a more successful hunt.
