A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

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RidgeGhost
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A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby RidgeGhost » Tue Oct 23, 2018 3:01 pm

Ok guys, here's something to think about. I've been contemplating it for a while, and I definitely experienced it on my hunt tonight.

When hunting a spot where you have a steep ridge rising above and behind your stand location on the leeward side, the wind tunnel is not only affected on the horizontal axis like we commonly think about, but also on the vertical axis. In the example, on a South wind, you would be cutting it extremely close to getting winded. But, if you're set up close to the steep ridge behind you, it will suck the wind right around you and send it off at an angle.

This is what happened to me tonight. I set up in a similar situation, steep ridge at my back, bedding point in front of me. I didn't push out further because I was afraid if the wind switched at all I'd be busted. But the wind kept swirling around the steep ridge behind me and sucking my wind off to the side, well away from the bedding point. I believe the wind out on the point was experiencing the predicted wind, while I was in a sort of vertical wind tunnel.

Call me crazy, or share some thoughts.

Image

Red dot is the bed for that wind, and red lines are buck travel leaving bed.
Yellow dot is stand location for that wind, and yellow line is access route.
Blue Lines are wind.


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Twenty Up
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby Twenty Up » Tue Oct 23, 2018 3:34 pm

I agree. I’ve experienced similar chasing a particular buck in some gnarly steep hills, very similar as to what you’ve got pictured there.

Something I’m noticing is that the wind swirl bounces off of the draw opposite of me then gets sucked back by the thermals on the steeper side (bedding side). So picture it like a tug of war but with wind and thermals, the steeper Southern facing slope has more Pull thus allowing a bedded buck to smells everything above and below them.

Have you noticed a threshold here? I noticed if I worked too far away from the steep draw creating that Pull, my wind would swirl towards the buck.
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby RidgeGhost » Tue Oct 23, 2018 11:44 pm

Twenty Up wrote:I agree. I’ve experienced similar chasing a particular buck in some gnarly steep hills, very similar as to what you’ve got pictured there.

Something I’m noticing is that the wind swirl bounces off of the draw opposite of me then gets sucked back by the thermals on the steeper side (bedding side). So picture it like a tug of war but with wind and thermals, the steeper Southern facing slope has more Pull thus allowing a bedded buck to smells everything above and below them.

Have you noticed a threshold here? I noticed if I worked too far away from the steep draw creating that Pull, my wind would swirl towards the buck.


I have not picked up on that one Twenty. But I will keep that in mind when I hunt a spot like that again. I don't doubt that it could happen. It's amazing how much of an area they can smell based on where they bed.

Where I was last night, I had a long gradual "flat" on my leeward side, so I didn't have normal thermal pull going on. It was mostly wind driven in that spot.
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headgear
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby headgear » Wed Oct 24, 2018 12:23 am

Every bed could have unique terrain features that can change the way the wind flows and how we need to setup, you will even find different things happening depending on the wind speed. Just have to keep pumping that milkweed to see what is happening so you have a better idea for the next hunt.
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby RidgeGhost » Thu Oct 25, 2018 3:18 am

Any other mountain or hill hunters have anything to add? This is a situation I run into quite often, so I'd really like to hear some other's input/observations.
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elk yinzer
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby elk yinzer » Thu Oct 25, 2018 4:21 am

The dynamics of wind is infinitely complicated. Wind tunnel is a good conceptualization but an oversimplification at the same time.

I've seen similar effects to your map. In that situation I think the wind is sucking down into falling thermals within that North facing drainage. I find those deep, dark North facing hollows a lot of times never heat up enough to have a consistent rising thermal. The thermals can fall all day in those. It creates a sort of vacuum and sucks in the air coming over the ridge. It is a really significant factor to a lot of elk bedding I've found out West.
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby RidgeGhost » Thu Oct 25, 2018 6:00 am

elk yinzer wrote:The dynamics of wind is infinitely complicated. Wind tunnel is a good conceptualization but an oversimplification at the same time.

I've seen similar effects to your map. In that situation I think the wind is sucking down into falling thermals within that North facing drainage. I find those deep, dark North facing hollows a lot of times never heat up enough to have a consistent rising thermal. The thermals can fall all day in those. It creates a sort of vacuum and sucks in the air coming over the ridge. It is a really significant factor to a lot of elk bedding I've found out West.


I agree, it is definitely an oversimplification, but a necessary one. I just want to air out the fact that the wind swirls on any axis, not just a horizontal one. Not acknowledging that can get you busted, or leave you scratching your head as to why the wind isn't doing what you thought it would based on the predominant wind.
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Re: A Second Dimension to Wind Tunnels?

Unread postby elk yinzer » Thu Oct 25, 2018 6:12 am

RidgeGhost wrote:I agree, it is definitely an oversimplification, but a necessary one. I just want to air out the fact that the wind swirls on any axis, not just a horizontal one. Not acknowledging that can get you busted, or leave you scratching your head as to why the wind isn't doing what you thought it would based on the predominant wind.


Oh heck yeah. I see where you're going with it. I tend to think of it the same as a stream of water; wind (air currents) eddies just the same. So a log or rock aligned perpindicular to the current and a log parallel to the current, both are going to eddy. In hill country there are so many swirls and eddies its just part of the challenge!
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