Contributors to this thread:
was reading about this on AT and was one wondering what everyone here thought about it. i am more of a "try to be as scent free as possible and play the wind" type of hunter. anyone use this?
Craig
I've been trying it this year and have had very good results. Though I haven't taken a deer yet, I've had all encounters with deer in the very favorable category. Just tonight I called in 3 smaller bucks, one came in from up wind and two came from directly down wind. They should have smelled me but didn't show any signs of even lifting a nose or displaying caution. They all walked directly under my stand twice from two different directions and about 15 minutes apart. I use a beehive smoker and hickory chips to smoke all my outer wear including hat, gloves, face mask and my day pack. I also had two coyotes come in to me this season from down wind and I shot the second one,, they SURELY should have smelled me! I'm just waiting , more confidently than in the years past for a bigger buck. It's nice to know now that I don't have to worry so much about blindly calling in a smaller buck and have him circle down wind and bust me.
Give it a try because you don't have anything to loose, it won't ruin your clothes.
Walks: Were you on the ground or up in a tree stand? If in a tree, how high? Thx
Scent free is a farce, but this might have some merit
I too have read about this and it makes perfect sense. Will be giving it a try this year and will check in with results.
many swear by it could hurt to try.
You might get a headache if you smoke your facemask...
Im taged out this year, but will be trying it next year.
And it is just a beehive smoker, but the scent smoker guy deserves to make a few bucks as he was the one that sort of revived this old indian trick. So support him if possible.
txhunter58, I was in a tree stand about 17 feet up. This is my 42nd year bowhunting deer and I've been busted more that just a few times in my hunting carreer.. At times I've seen deer crossing downwind of my scent stream at more that 200 yards and could predict just where they would stop and put their nose up and scent me. These deer should have not missed my presence and there should have been snorting and fit throwing long before they came my way, in my experience.
It's funny that when I was a kid I read everything about bowhunting I could get my hands on and one of the first things I read was how the Indians would dance around the campfire in the smoke to cover their scent the night before a big hunt. Only took 41 years to try it for me... One reason is I hate the smell of smoke, especially on me. We had a house fire when I was 12 and this was a trailer house. My brother and I slept in bunk beds and I was on the top bunk. I have asthma and I woke up first because I couldn't breathe. It was so smokey in that room when my older brother jumped up and turned the light on, we could barely see the light bulb. It only took about 30 minutes for that trailer to completely burn up after we got out of it! I hate smoke and I was reluctant to try it for hunting.
I'm starting to be convinced. Here are pics of my cloths smoker. Made from a portable metal closet.... and using the bee smoker with pine needles or wood shavings. Bored hole at the bottom so I can place the smoker in it and go do something else to they're 'cooked'.
Just be careful....... It is possible to smoke your clothes too much. I've had negative reactions this year when my clothes smelled too strong.
I was using a portable clothes closet and would let the smoker go until it was done. The deer just didn't like it. After washing my clothes, I began going back to the original directions and would smoke them just before walking to the stand. Had much better results after that.
I just light a bundle of sticks before I hit the woods and throw some leaves on it and it seems to work. Haven't take a deer yet but. Had a doe come in downwind and she continued on her path toward me and unfortunately I sailed a arrow over her back.will keep smoking to see if it makes a difference.
