This is my first season bowhunting & i have spent 25 or so days in my stand this year. I have learned a ton but was just wondering how some of you "serious" bowhunters handle scent control. i spray myself down with scent eliminator every time i head to my stand but have been getting "winded" alot lately and am wondering if all the shampoo/soap, laundry detergent ect. really work? Any info is greatly appreciated.
you can reduce your scent, but to a deer you can't eliminate it. You need to plan your stand position so that the deer are upwind of your position. This means trying to predict from which direction the deer will most likely approach. Scout, read the sign and play the wind.
I assumed that's covered under the heading wind, but thermals are important especially in hilly terrain, or very light winds. Don't you hate it when the weather conditions for wind are "light and variable". I hate that!
Make sure you shower before each hunt. I use the Hunters Specialties products to keep my scent down. They have triclosan in their soaps and that is the ingredient that is a bacterial killer. I also wear Scentlok. I don't think you can totally eliminate your scent but what I think happens is the deer think you are farther away than you really are because your odor is barely detectable. I know that since I have started using these products I have deer come alot closer to me. I don't mean to sound like a infomercial but this is what has worked for me.
Wind, wind, wind, wind. It does not matter what precautions you take, if you don't pay attention to this one then you might as well stay home.
Im also in the learning process, but i do know that this year i took every precaution possible to eliminate my oder.. showers with deodrant, shampoo, lotion, clothing in a scentlok toat, boots, spray down before going in the woods. checking wind...and tree stand location.. Somedays this year i got busted, and other times deer walked up down wind of me, and didnt matter much... Its weird how it works...best stand i got this year...very well camoflage, up 20-25 feet, wind in my favor, and 2 doe and a buck walk up on me, about 25 yards away ..and all the sudden... They look right at me....i didnt move or even pick my bow up yet...and they jet..spooked by me or something else...
They have simply become "hip" to that strange blob that has given them trouble (other hunters) from above in the past! I had a BIG doe do the exact thing to me a couple of weeks ago. I had perfect wind as well.
It's amazing...those old does in my experience are far harder to kill than any buck is. As for scent control. Like others have said, all the soaps, sprays and magic clothing in the world won't help you if you don't play the wind. I shower each morning, dress at my truck in the woods and spray down with scent killers. I do not use scent lok type clothing as I think its the biggest fraud in the hunting industry. If you're not getting winded once in a while, you either aren't seeing deer, or not hunting enough. Not to hijack the thread, but has anyone tried "smoking" their clothing? I've been intrigued by this.
One aspect overlooked often is Breath. If you don't use products to eliminate or reduce your breath you might as well crap in your clothes and hunt anyway. Check out some of the gums and mouth sprays here on the site.
This is right on the money. This is the first year that I have used scent "eliminating" products like soap and detergent. This is also the first year I have worn scent "eliminating" clothing. I have never been winded so many times as I have this year.....if a deer comes into your set up from the unexpected down wind direction.....it's over 85% of the time.
I Deinitely hate Light & Variable winds!! Scent control really is an All or nothing deal. There are many, many things you can do that helps. On short hunts when I'm out of State I am more likely to go the extra mile. Regardless of what you do or don't do for Scent control you had better pay attention to the wind :-) Dan
i only use scent free shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. i also wash my clothes in scent free detergent. i do this year round, as said above knowing the wind and thermals is very important. due to this i haven't been winded or busted in my stands in over 3 years. much of it is gaining more experience outdoors but i also give some of the credit to my attention to my scent and my clothes scent, good luck
I know, I have spent hundreds of dollars on the best Scent Blocker clothing and boots and hats and gloves, and the one thing a guy can do is hunt the wind. I am done with scent eliminating clothing. I'd rather have good layering for the varying temps and a great pattern than scent protection. I wash my clothes in scent free soap and let them hang dry for as long as possible. Then I store them in a tote with either leaves or acorns. If I am hunting up north I will store with a small pine branch. I also try to pay attention to the wind direction for my entry and exit from the stand. Once while I was on stand I had a little fork horn come in right to where I was sitting. On the trail there was a small twig that I had moved with my hand. When he got to that spot he could smell that and he backed right out, and I touched it with scent blocker gloves that were washed and stored to their recommendations. Point is, deer live or die by their nose. No matter how clean or how much money you spend, deer are hard to fool.
in variable winds just stay home or hunt a spot you dont care about, all you will do is spoil your spot fast. you cant hide all human odor,cant be done.. if you look at drug sniffing dogs they can find drugs hidden in gasoline trucks and deer have a larger nose and better sense of smell.so you can try and hide and cover your scent but when a deer gets down wind and he is alert -your done. here is a trick another hunter taught me,weather i see deer from a stand or not the next hunt i move to another spot on the other side of the place i am hunting, that may mean 200 yards or 1/4 mile or more but by jumping spots you will see a lot more deer just by not overhunting or overscenting your spot. keep them deer guessing.
Killing your scent Being a newbie I have read quite a bit on this subject and talked to a lot of guys who have been hunting for years. Here are some suggestions: Wash clothes with rain water Store clothes with pine limbs or similar item Do not wear "any" of your gear for normal wear. I found these to be very good points. Hope I have given you some good ideas.
"So there I was, Nov 12th 1996, flying down the highway, smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee, windows down for scent control." See bold text for my complete scent routine. However, I will not hunt a stand or walk to it if the wind is not in my favor.
I just keep my clothing boots and backpack in a plastic bin. Then spray down with scent killer before I walk out. Works since I had 15 deer come from down wind of me this year.
Scent Control Another tip is to minimize scent even when out scouting and putting up your tree stand. Once you have your stand up stay the heck out until you are going to hunt.
