How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

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Jdw
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby Jdw » Tue Jan 23, 2018 9:06 am

ghoasthunter wrote:
Lopedog699 wrote:I see this alot and must be missing somthing but what does one mean when they respond to somthing on forum whe they say. “ bump” ?

I too do not know what this means lol


They are putting an older topic back up for fresh discussion.


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Boogieman1
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Tue Jan 23, 2018 11:02 am

Don't see a whole lot of buck movement with a straight shot wind to back. A quartering wind eithier way is what I see 95% of the time. They wanna see what they can't smell and trust there nose more than vision. A quartering wind gives them 2 directions vs 1 then account for a thermal and what they can see its dang near bomb proof. Biggest bucks I have ever seen are referred to as slow walkers. In the late evening they moved through the lowest spot in the valley, thermal dropping down from right, left as well as dropping from the rear. They took afew steps and would wait for an occasional breeze to bring em a nose wind b4 proceeding. That's a tough hunt when u need Lady Luck in your corner.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby RidgeGhost » Tue Jan 23, 2018 11:17 am

Of the 4 mature bucks I encountered this year, 3 were walking dead into the wind one was quartering into the wind. I think what you see depends on how you set up. In these situations it made sense for them to be walking into the wind.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby JAK » Tue Jan 23, 2018 11:52 am

The bucks I saw early season we're mostly wind to back. One even bedded down 30 yards from me wind at back looking down wind. But in the rut the bucks I saw we're moving wind in there face but I was set up down wind of doe bedding. Rut aside I just feel it doesn't make much sense for a buck to travel wind in face and his back trail exposed just my opinion
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ghoasthunter
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby ghoasthunter » Tue Jan 23, 2018 11:59 am

Jdw wrote:
ghoasthunter wrote:
Lopedog699 wrote:I see this alot and must be missing somthing but what does one mean when they respond to somthing on forum whe they say. “ bump” ?

I too do not know what this means lol


They are putting an older topic back up for fresh discussion.
ah I see lol
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby Grizzlyadam » Tue Jan 23, 2018 12:24 pm

Great post, thanks for pulling it back up. A lot of really good info here that is spot on. This topic is the most important thing to understand about deer behavior IMO.

95% of the deer that I see are traveling with the wind to their back. Big bucks are the other 5%. They are all individuals, and use the wind according to their previous life lessons. They want to not die and get laid.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby wolverinebuckman » Tue Jan 23, 2018 12:28 pm

I had a sit where I seen 8 deer, all does and fawns. They all left beds with wind in face, traveling off either that direction or quartering to. Three fed in the corn field working wind to nose.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby Rob loper » Tue Jan 23, 2018 12:30 pm

Jdw wrote:
ghoasthunter wrote:
Lopedog699 wrote:I see this alot and must be missing somthing but what does one mean when they respond to somthing on forum whe they say. “ bump” ?

I too do not know what this means lol


They are putting an older topic back up for fresh discussion.


Ok thnks
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby d_rek » Wed Jan 24, 2018 2:34 am

The buck I killed this year came in with an off wind. I was facing east and it was NW/N wind. He came from the wind searching a bedding area. I first spotted him heading due W and he cut SW towards bedding to sniff around, but when I killed him he came from slightly SE traveling N/NW. I was actually very scared he was going to catch my scent because I did not expect him to be traveling headed due west but apparently the wind gods shined upon me. The previous day I he came from the N traveling S toward the bedding area, and when he hit the funnel I hunted he proceeded to travel W. That day I had a steady W/NW wind.

The doe I killed this year came in with 3 other does with wind to back. I clearly remember that because I wouldn't sit this stand without any other wind other than directly in my face. They came out onto the easement about 60 yards away traveling N to S with a steady N wind.

I am starting to wish I had payed more attention to wind these last few years. I'm starting to see how invaluable it is to understanding deer movement. Very interesting.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby hambone » Wed Jan 24, 2018 4:00 am

Around here, where most of the destination food sources are ag fields, older bucks like to enter a food source with the wind at their backs. The amount of distance traveled with the wind at their backs seems to be determined by how far ahead they can clearly see. I've yet to see this distance greater than 100 yds or so. Traveling in this manner, the buck can smell everthing behind him and see enough in front of him to feel safe. The bucks will pick their way, slowly, stopping ever few steps to look ahead, as they proceed to the destination food source. When the does enter the fields with the wind at their backs, they usually sprint a couple hundred yds into the open, before relaxing. Of course, the does aren't as picky on wind direction and field entry points, as the older bucks are.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby PK_ » Wed Jan 24, 2018 5:45 am

If you ever have a chance to hunt rutting bucks in wide open terrain you need to do it. You will learn so much from watching a buck cruise for miles at a time. How he does it, how he uses the wind to find does. How they loop around their bed. How they stand for 15 minutes waiting for the thermals to switch before going into a bed or other destination. It is really awesome to have their full circuit exposed for you to see. Generally in a wooded setting especially from a treestand you are just seeing a tiny snapshot of their movements and can really draw some false conclusions.

Snow tracking is another eye opening endeavor.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby brancher147 » Wed Jan 24, 2018 7:31 am

I see deer traveling wind to back about as often as I see them travel any other way. I do see wind to back or crosswind more than wind in their face, but that is probably just based on how I hunt.

Depending on how you hunt the wind, you are going to see deer traveling certain ways. If you set up based on wind to back that is probably what you will see most often, likewise if you setup for a crosswind.
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby Tim H » Wed Jan 24, 2018 11:40 am

The one mature buck I saw this season moved with a cross wind. He came from the east and it was a south south east wind. I was downwind of him the whole time. He’s a smart one!!
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby yungbuck » Wed Jan 24, 2018 12:46 pm

Saw 4 bucks with wind to back, 1 nice buck cross wind and multiple bucks with wind to nose... Imo especially in rut and evening bucks will go where they need to go regardless, still use terrain but will let wind slip a bit in rut and they have bedded properly all day to think they are safe moving where they want to in evening
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Re: How often do you actually see deer travel with wind to back?

Unread postby MrT » Sun Aug 25, 2019 10:41 am

This is one of my favorite older topics. Feel like it could use a good bump.


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