Morning Thermal Deer Hunting Advantage

It dosn't take a lot of imagination to believe that hills help to hide whitetails and create an older age class of bucks. In fact, the record books heavily favor the bluffs that flank the Mississippi River within several states, including the #1 record entry state of WI. However, hill country offers another great deer hunting advantage, because when you hunt within appreciable elevation changes, you can cheat the wind. And folks, there is no greater way to cheat the wind then by using the morning thermals. In fact, 75% of my top 25 bucks have been killed using those morning thermals to my advantage, and there are 3 reasons why. To read the rest of the article, please visit: www.whitetailhabitatsolutions...

[@randydunmire]

Just by watching this I believe I have a similar stand setup. Perfect. Thanks for all these great videos Jeff.

[@galenburns69]

Thanks for sharing great video be safe out there in the woods God Bless y'all hunters be safe good luck this year

[@TheAssOfBalaam]

Great video. A great point on using thermals for Appalachian area and hill country Whitetail hunting.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

TheAssOfBalaam Thank you! I love the hills...so many advantages for both hunter and deer...just need to know how to turn the advantages the deer take from hills, against them...

[@marcushennings9513]

I think we'd all save money if we skipped the pricey tricks, tactics, deer calls, etc and just make hunting blinds look like vehicles with motor sounds and the deer will jus stroll right in front of it all day and night.

[@jasoncurtis4938]

Huge fan of your content! Thanks for your effort. Any way of incorporating some graphics in your videos as a reference of exactly the setup. For example, a tree symbol to show where your stand is on the property and the funnel your referencing or bedding area? It would make your how/why more informative to halfwits like myself. 212 days to the WI opener!!!!!!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Jason Curtis thanks s lot Jason! I do for some, like the recent buck cruising scouting setup...but man, really wish I had the time to create the for all of them! I definitely plan on doing more though, especially because of comments like yours...will make sure I do a better job at it tho

[@scottsolinko1]

As an elk hunter, thermals are a godsend in the mountains. But, we are getting DOWNHILL thermals in the morning guaranteed until 9:15am and sometimes 11am. Then strong all day uphill until the change 45 minutes before dark. These are 1000-5000 vertical rise mountains. I'm surprised to see that you are getting uphill thermals at day break. Something I will have to keep an eye out in my whitetail woods.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

As long as the temps are going up...we have rising thermals. The coldest is right at day break and then as soon as the sun is above the horizon it begins the warming up. Often there are rising thermals until early afternoon. 500' changes hear... Then we only get falling thermals for the last 45 minutes to an hour at most...when the temps are falling.

[@dynamite479]

Thanks for all your great videos. I only started considering thermals a couple of years ago. I set a stand hoping it could work for both morning and evening. Its 30 yards next to a large creek. Im at the bottom of a hill that deer are bedding on. On the other side of the creek is a flat, swampy area the deer don't use. Is it right of me to to assume its a safe morning set since my scent is blowing up and over the creek into the swamp? I'm also hoping for an evening sit, my scent is carried low, and down the creek. The creek banks are 6 ft high. Thanks from Nova Scotia.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Nova Scotia...awesome to hear from there! I'd have to take a harder look, but a general rule is thumb is that if you are above the deer in the morning you are fine...and you really have to be careful in the evening because your thermals only travel down when the temperatures are falling. The temps typically only fall the last 1/2 hour to 45 minutes or daylight so you have to prepare for the constant wind direction prior to that. Hope that helps!

[@himesjb]

Your videos are awesome. You convinced me to set up a small watering hole to increase my odds. This video on thermals was especially helpful, as I have nothing but woods and slopes on my 70 acres. Basically, I have a creek bisecting it all (going diagonal from SW corner to NE corner), with slopes on either side of it, in a huge rectangle of woods. I am doing a modest amount of hinge cuts to give deer more cover and forage near my stands, but I am wondering how to play the wind since I access most of my property from the middle creek lowlands with slopes on either side. Will those thermals just swirl round and round since I am surrounded by slopes? Or will a Southwest wind blow down from the south mountains and rise with thermals and keep going up and over the northern slopes?

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Sorry so late! But yes the wind will swirl a lot when slope surrounded you. Hope you have a great season!

[@jesseschoonover365]

Are you waiting until after daylight to get in your stand then because of the thermals. Otherwise if you are there before daylight wouldn't your scent go down to the deer.

[@mattkontyko97]

What do you think of the thermal wind tunnel that forms on the leeward side of ridges? supposedly 1/3 of the way down where the bucks cruise? is this your experience? I know I see the trail cam video of the buck cruising right on top of a sharp ridge - which seems contrary to popular belief about buck behavior.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Matt, buck cruise at all levels...it is a function of where food and cover is. For example bucks will bed low when food is high...and high when food is low. Where they cruise often has to do with them getting above doe family groups. This can take place high, low, mid ridge....doesn't matter. For example if there is a huge valley of food below and ample cover, does will bed low. Bucks don't want to cruise 200 yards up the ridge if they can cruise through or 50 yards above doe family groups. If the does are bedded on top of a steep ridge, bucks will cruise right through the top of the ridge. Where hunters get into trouble is when they follow strict % guidelines, because there is much more to it than that...

[@kennypeterson2908]

What happens to your thermals if you are sitting at the top of a hill, and everywhere around you is either flat or going back downhill? Also, I'm really enjoying all the content! Spent the better part of my day trying to absorb it all. Thanks!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thanks Kenny, I will try to keep it coming! And great question. In the morning it will lift above in every direction, really keeping it away from deer below you elevation. The air lifts with the rise in temperatures. In the evening it will blow pretty dependable from the forecasted direction, and then fall in the last 1/2 hour to 45 minutes of light as the temperatures drop. I hope that helps you Kenny!

[@kennypeterson2908]

@@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751 So helpful! I was kinda watching it all play out with my breathe yesterday morning. Thanks again!

[@jmlochala]

I experienced this scenario this past week, so putting the stand close to where you expect him to j hook would be optimal? I was in the far (opposite) end of his hook. Maybe I should’ve waited him out to see how close to scrapes he would get. Thanks for the info..

[@thenomad4601]

Considering you are talking about thermals, how would you account for that in a situation where you can only approach from downhill, and therefore have to hunt from downhill in order to prevent crossing deer trails and spooking them with ground scent?

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Steven Crance, good question! On all 3 of my WI parcels that I hunt, I have to hunt from the bottom up - often climbing 400' in elevation and taking 45-50 minutes to get in a stand. What I have a lot of success with is accessing stand locations while crossing over trails that I will be hunting, and keeping deer from smelling my approach. Clean boots, pants and making sure there is little to no grass or branches in the way to collect your scent, is key. I have had very good success with mature bucks traveling over my scent line just a few minutes after I walked thru, without alerting them. Again though, clean boots and pants are key, and I alwasy spray down with a scent elimination spray. That location I am standing is just 1 example of many of mine, where I have to approach from below, cross deer trails and get into the tree. While I do not believe in any way I can fool a mature deer's nose if my scent is blowing right at them and within 100 yards...I do believe I can cover my tracks pretty effectively. I hope that helps...but that is a great question! Something I probably should have covered...

[@randlerichardson5826]

Hey brother I hadn’t seen this video.

[@melvinsacromentoe]

This is really great info, however, I still truly believe deer hunting is so damn random. People are busy. Get out and hunt when you can. Have fun with it

[@jordanwilson5555]

Whitetail habitat: How high do you hunt in a treestand? Looked like 20 ft in your vid. Same question to others? I'm around 12 to 15ft. Just taking a pole. Thanks!

[@it_is_finished]

I prefer around 20’. However cover is the key for me. If Im in a climber and have more cover at 12 or 15 then that’s where I hunt.

[@charrheel3659]

I look to be around 20 foot. Depends on circumstances.

[@scottsolinko1]

I like to be at 20'