Hunting the windward side of a hill

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tbunao
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Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby tbunao » Mon Oct 16, 2017 12:44 pm

Every situation is different and this is different. I've known that this is the case for a while her but honestly I'm kind of unsure. I basically have my mind made up and am going for it when I get the chance. Failing is the best way to learn in my eyes but hearing different thoughts on situations always bring up ideas. So here it is.

South to North ridge, the top is flat at 1/4 mile wide at the widest. The eastern side is not as steep but does have some thick spots. At 1/2 way down the elevation is a major road and there is a little under 100 acres of private that gets some pressure.

The western side is 600 ft of steep hill side. Bottom is a small beaver swamp that is increasingly getting more water as the years go on due to the beavers. This is about 600 ft of elevation in a little under 1/2 mile with the steepest part the last 1/3. This hill is littered with oaks, some that still had a hand full at the bottoms.

The flat is an old clear cut, thick heavy briers, little trees, and a lot of left over trees hidden by the overgrown vegetation. It is separated almost in the middle by an old logging road but even that is not fun to cross. The thickest areas are along the westerns top where it seems the logging company pushed a lot of the left over trees.

Over the past 3 years the most encounters with deer in general have been on this western hillside. In my belief because of the "easier" access from the eastern side and the private land pressure these deer are taking refuge on the western hill side. The back cover to this hill side coming from say the middle logging road is so thick that even during winter little to no tracks are even present. With the large amount of oaks on this hill they don't have to travel far. By the way some areas I can almost touch the hill standing up.

East wind right!? Easy call, but they are not that common and after several scouts throughout the years it doesn't matter. They use it all the time.

North wind on the very evident 1/3 line trail sends your wind straight to a bedding point.
South wind the same.
West they bed on top spread out across the crest making it uneasy to get below one just because their exit is over top another.

Wait between the 2 bedding points? Sit above and to the side and wait for the thermals to change? It will take a chainsaw in the off season to make a reasonable path. The bottom would be, dare I say easy...

The bedding on this hillside vary in elevation as multiple little benches or mounds exist at all elevations.

How do I plan to crack this nut? Ozonics, ozonics wash, dead down wind, nose jammer, scent wafers, those pills, and chew on apple cores....jk

Whats your move? I'm hoping I'm overthinking


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elk yinzer
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Re: Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby elk yinzer » Tue Oct 17, 2017 1:21 am

I can never figure these scenarios too well without a visual, but I would find some hot rut sign where the bucks are checking does around or in the clearcut... sit it, throw lots of milkweed, and adjust from there. You know the bucks aren't bedding too far away if the does are there and human activity is minimal. I find leeward is a nice rule of thumb but not an absolute. I see this all the time, especially when cleacuts are in the picture and a lot of the time leeward ends up being junk open woods. The deer know hunters aren't sneaking in on them downwind through the cut...good luck stalking a buck in 5 years worth of jagger bushes. It's a basically a barrier, so they feel safer there.
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Boogieman1
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Re: Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Tue Oct 17, 2017 2:24 am

It sounds pretty squirley, I would prob hunt it like a valley wait for some high pressure to lift your scent straight up
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Findian
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Re: Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby Findian » Tue Oct 17, 2017 2:30 am

Beaver ponds. They are a deer magnet.
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Re: Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby tbunao » Tue Oct 17, 2017 2:32 am

Findian wrote:Beaver ponds. They are a deer magnet.


Agreed, but here not until pressure hits and that is basically non existent right now. Until these hunters get "cooler temps" the public has been empty as of late
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Re: Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby tbunao » Tue Oct 17, 2017 2:33 am

elk yinzer wrote:I can never figure these scenarios too well without a visual, but I would find some hot rut sign where the bucks are checking does around or in the clearcut... sit it, throw lots of milkweed, and adjust from there. You know the bucks aren't bedding too far away if the does are there and human activity is minimal. I find leeward is a nice rule of thumb but not an absolute. I see this all the time, especially when cleacuts are in the picture and a lot of the time leeward ends up being junk open woods. The deer know hunters aren't sneaking in on them downwind through the cut...good luck stalking a buck in 5 years worth of jagger bushes. It's a basically a barrier, so they feel safer there.


Absolutely a barrier. Even during winter scouting the deers other worry, the coyote, would never cross through these clear cuts. Tracks where they would zig zag in a little ways (rodents more likely) then go back out to the logging road and circle around.

The deer on the opposite side are still wind to back except are looking down the length of the ridge knowing nothing is coming through that mess on top and the thermals bringing up anything that touches the bottom of the hill.

I'm with you on the rut sign. Traditionally all the sign is along that logging road, cams last year only had those young ones on it. So where are the old boys? I believe they are using a faint trail on the crest utilizing thermals to check the hill side more than the inconsistency of the wind.


With the top being basically a fortress how would you access? From the bottom in the morning you'll cross trails that are used to reach the bedding. Morning from the top thermals drop to the bottom. Evening thermals rip up to them and with it being a crosswind on your way up you scent is being pushed across the whole hill. Wait for them to drop? I don't know if even myself is in shape enough to make the sprint up the hill to be in the game.

What I'm thinking is hoping for a light wind day and trust the thermals during cruise time.
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Re: Hunting the windward side of a hill

Unread postby pewpewpew » Tue Oct 17, 2017 5:15 am

On the topic of preferred slopes, I’ve heard some hunters claim that deer will prefer the slopes the get the least direct sunlight. This is two fold, #1 The idea that the sun is blinding to them, and the can see better on shaded slopes. #2 Rhododendron/Laurel grows in the shaded north facing slopes, which causes a dense jungle canopy for cover.

I’m planning to do a trail camera study on slope orientation and wind direction. As much as I’d love to do observation sits, low deer density would make for a lot of wasted time.


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