This and just being at the right spot when it's in your favor. To me it's just a roll of the dice.

This^^

Read a book last year written by a guy who's a so-called "expert" hunting trophy whitetails, and he claims the deer like to travel downwind, believe it or not. This way they can catch the scent of any predators following from behind, while using their eyes and ears to detect trouble in front of them. Makes sense I guess.

From my experience, I've witnessed them moving downwind or x-wind more often than I've seen them moving into the wind. They go where they want...

If Deer always walked with the wind, all our deer would be in Canada. Try to pay attention to the wind when picking a stand, at that time they are going to be in close and have a higher probability of winding you. If your hunting a food source, or any spot. Try yo pick a stand down wind of it. That's about all you can do.

Not true on the Canada part, they go Northward till the wind changes from the South then they do a 180 and head back home. When ya don't see them for a while, just wait till the wind changes and they'll come home.

All jokes aside, your pretty much right on about choosing a stand with the wind in mind. I never understood the thought of if the wind chnges, get down and move right then. A feller would be on the move all the time, stinking up every stand he had. Just sit tight and the wind will change again!

Speaking of the wind, supposed to be 34 degree's with 20-22mph winds in the morning and blow all day. May be a good day to sleep in and watch fooseball. If it were gun season, and the rut was close it would be different. Swaying tree,swaying bow, and freezing arse, makes Johnny a miserable SOB. Not acclimated to sub 20 degree windchills, yet. In other words, i thinking of pansying out tomorrow. What say ya'll?

We have about 200 feet of elevation change on our lease. It would hard to find 20 acres of flat ground. On most any given day the wind will blow from every direction sometime during the day. Very hard to hunt sometimes. I will say this deer move better on a constant NW wind. We just don't get many days like that.

Something else to consider is thermals...in the morning, as the air warms, it rises taking your scent with it. And late afternoon as the air cools, it sinks.

My place it should only be about 12-15 mph but wind direction, not speed, is what I concern my self with. As for the temps I naturally want to hunt the colder it gets. Just something in my head that makes me think I have a better chance if the temps are lower.

I am gonna hunt a new spot at the family farm in the morning. Seems like a better idea than driving to east Alabama and getting snuffed. Gonna go out there tomorrow evening though.

That being said, my days have been numbered in the woods this year with my second kid being born 9 weeks ago. I have to take the calm days with the windy ones

EVERY time I hear someone say "just hunt the wind" I make a note NOT to listen to anything else they have to say. IN ALABAMA 90% of the time there will be winds from at least 2-3 different directions on any given sit in the woods.....

Best you can do is pick stand sites that will take advantage of multiple wind directions...like set up east of a saddle on a ridge..ALMOST foolproof. Stay the hell out of bottoms, esp those with multiple drainages coming together. Unless you LIKE scaring deer with yer scent......

My name is 2Dogs and I approve this ^^^^^ message. When the rut is rockin' those hub and spoke set ups can be a can get exciting. I love to hunt them on days deer are really moving and take note of how many different directions they come from.

x2
Best you can do is pick stand sites that will take advantage of multiple wind directions...like set up east of a saddle on a ridge..ALMOST foolproof. Stay the hell out of bottoms, esp those with multiple drainages coming together. Unless you LIKE scaring deer with yer scent......