Another wind scent question.

[PossumSlayer]

Today I couldn't go exactly where I wanted to go because of the wind. I sat farther north which put me with the highway about 300 yards behind me. The wind did what it typically does there and blew from every direction but north and east. I got to thinking since I'm so close to the road with all the odors coming from the car and it's occupants does that mask a hunters odor or condition them that it's normal?

 

[backyardtndeer]

Doubt it. I think they can pinpoint pretty close to where the scent is coming from, and differentiate what it is they are smelling.

 

[cbhunter]

Have to agree with that. Now if it's a major highway with lots of fast traffic, I bet the wind does a lot of crazy stuff a little closer to the hwy

 

[catman529]

No. The smell of humans and cars from 300 yards away is not the same as the smell of a human sitting in a tree in the woods where people don't usually go.

 

[catman529]

Put it in terms of something we can smell really well. Let's say a skunk got ran over on the highway 300 yards away, and the wind blows just right. You might smell it, but if you do, you can tell it's a long ways off. But let's say a skunk sprayed 60 yards from your stand and the wind blows just right. You're gonna know that a skunk sprayed pretty dang close without a second thought.

Keep in mind I said "if the wind blows just right." You still might kill a deer on a funky wind as long as the deer doesn't catch the wrong breeze at the wrong time. Those unpredictable winds are frustrating, but don't always mean you aren't gonna see something you don't expect.

 

[DC219]

Put it in terms of something we can smell really well. Let's say a skunk got ran over on the highway 300 yards away, and the wind blows just right. You might smell it, but if you do, you can tell it's a long ways off. But let's say a skunk sprayed 60 yards from your stand and the wind blows just right. You're gonna know that a skunk sprayed pretty dang close without a second thought.

Keep in mind I said "if the wind blows just right." You still might kill a deer on a funky wind as long as the deer doesn't catch the wrong breeze at the wrong time. Those unpredictable winds are frustrating, but don't always mean you aren't gonna see something you don't expect.

Good analogy

 

[skipperbrown]

I do a lot of plot hunting where I can watch deer a long time. In my experience, any deer downwind of you can easily smell you 200 yds away if not much, much further. Now, how they react to smelling you depends on the deer. I've had young deer smell me and then continue on as if I wasn't there, some will wait for a second confirmation, but an old doe will get upset, maybe try to locate me by walking in my direction, and maybe stomp her hooves. In all cases, she will promptly leave the area after these antics usually with her tail waving goodbye.

My dog holds an AKC tracking dog title. I spent lots and lots of hours training him to track and what I learned is that my dog would wind scent me if he could. You could see this by him casting downwind of where I walked sometimes 10-20+ yards from my actual path with his nose in the air. As the wind blown scent dissolves (about 1/2 to 1 hr), I would watch him track closer to my actual path with his nose to the ground. How far he cast downwind of my path was based on the age of the track and other conditions such as temperature, whether he was mouth breathing, humidity, and other environmental factors. He was a terrier breed not known for their noses, but he rarely had trouble following a 2 hour trail. What I wore in regard to rubber vs. leather, or clothing made no difference to him whatsoever.

I'm sure deer noses are just as good as my dog's nose and my dog's nose can't be fooled by cover scents or even the scent of another person's cross scent. Finally, my dog can smell me a long, long way off so I know a deer can too. My recommendation is always hunt the wind first.

 

[Bone Collector]

Today I couldn't go exactly where I wanted to go because of the wind. I sat farther north which put me with the highway about 300 yards behind me. The wind did what it typically does there and blew from every direction but north and east. I got to thinking since I'm so close to the road with all the odors coming from the car and it's occupants does that mask a hunters odor or condition them that it's normal?

I hunt within 50 yds of a major highway in some of my set ups. Only thing the road does is mask your noise coming in and out. Still need to be quiet, even at that range, but it does help.

of course it works both ways... so they can sneak up on you pretty easily.

 

[Dennis]

I have gone into a spot to hunt based on the wind, only to have the wind switch direction after I got there. Usually I change spots, but sometimes I am too lazy and just stay put. Surprisingly I have killed several nice bucks by staying put when those bucks came from an unexpected direction. Also I have hunted some places where the deer would not be too concerned about my scent so long as I was about 100 yds away or more. With a gun this is a good situation.