Digital Scouting Tools

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jnwalsh
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Joined: Sat Nov 24, 2018 3:33 pm
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Digital Scouting Tools

Unread postby jnwalsh » Thu Sep 10, 2020 5:27 am

With the Wisconsin season set to take off in a few days, I thought I'd share the mix of digital scouting/weather tools I use to help keep all the data I accumulate each season organized. This system has worked well for me, but is also flexible enough to be catered to individual needs. OnX, Google Earth, Weather Underground, etc are all staples, but here are a few that might be lesser known and equally as useful.

Trail Camera Photos:
I organize all of my trail camera photos in Google Photos. It's free and I can access the photos from anywhere with cell service once they are uploaded. I make a new folder for each season, and just upload my keeper photos directly into that folder whenever I clear a card or receive a cell cam photo. If i'm tracking a specific buck over multiple seasons, that buck will also get his own folder. The most useful feature (in my opinion) is that Google Photos automatically sorts the photos based on date taken (assuming your camera's date settings are set correctly). This is extremely helpful in patterning deer activity across multiple seasons, and allows me to quickly check past years buck patterns (when they start showing up/activity peaks/etc). I also use this to keep track of photos i take during scouting sessions.

Weather forecasts/historical patterns:
- darksky.net - my go-to full-featured weather app on my phone, and the one I use primarily on my computer when looking at forecasts. Offers wind direction, speed, pressure, sunrise/sunset, with easy to read graphs.
- windy.com - probably my most visited website during hunting season. Really awesome for visualizing current prevailing wind direction on a property overlaid onto a satellite base layer. obviously doesn't take into account topography, and will never beat the precision of milkweed, but a good tool nonetheless.
- weatherspark.com - great for seeing historical weather trends for a given area
- https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/sites ... rk=WI_ASOS - this is a tool i found a few years ago. If anyone is familiar with a 'wind rose' (basically a circular graph that shows wind speed/direction over a given time period) - this site will allow you to generate a custom wind rose for a given area down to the minute. Just use the search/filter functions to see if your geographic area is included.

Hunt journal:
- Microsoft OneNote - free for anyone to use, and allows you to attach pictures or screenshots to each entry. I start a new digital notebook every season and log every scouting entry or sit. This is largely depends on personal preference. I tried the physical journal/written entry method, but kept running into scenarios where something noteworthy would happen and I just wouldn't have the journal along, and would forget to write it down later. This method allows me to keep track on my phone and always have access. I would prefer to take physical notes, but this has just proven to be easier and more time effective for capturing real-time information.


Dillon.S
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu May 28, 2020 2:42 am
Location: Minnesota
Status: Offline

Re: Digital Scouting Tools

Unread postby Dillon.S » Sat Sep 12, 2020 12:09 am

I really like the idea of using one note for logging info. I am going to try that this year. I have used a journal but also end up forgetting info or wanting to add pictures etc. Also have just used OnX but then the map gets so full it bugs me plus then I get lazy and don't record enough data.


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