Different scent control methods on hunting clothes

[Lonnie]

What do you guys do to control clothing/body scent in the field when bow hunting for elk. Normally I wash my clothes in that 3D non scent and hang them out on the line to dry. I also use no scent body wash everyday in the field. And I do still use wind to my advantage. I also take a couple of pairs of camouflage clothes to change out fresh ones due to sweat. Another thing that I have herd of that I have not done. I had some friends who say they carry a bottle to pee in. I always thought that was a funny joke.

[olympushunt]

As sooooon as I get out to camp I hang my clothes on some branches away from camp a ways. Even after washing my clothes in scent free detergents I can still smell "something". If I can, the elk sure can. After my clothes have been hanging on some fir bows for a day or so I can't smell anything at all. That's what I am going for. I keep my clothes away from everything human even knowing the elk can still smell me. I have in the past put my clothes in plastic bags with fir bows.

[Beendare]

On an elk hunt?
I'm sweating 400 yds out of camp in the mtns...there isn't any product that will keep you or your clothes scent free in the mtns....you have to play the wind bro.

Anyone telling you different doesn't have much experience on these hunts.....

[WapitiTalk1]

I normally wash all hunt clothes before heading out for an extended stay hunt in some sort of scent free stuff, use scent free deodorant while out, spray down with the scent free spray when I think about it, and try to avoid cooking/lounging at camp in hunting clothes. All this said, a guy could put on a fresh pair of scent free washed clothes each day, shower in scent free liquid, use scent free deodorant, brush with scent free T paste, and have a fresh pine bow under each arm but it won't change the fact that if you end up moving through the upwind direction of an elk's snout, he's gone and you're busted. I've found over the years that nothing disguises human scent, period. We just plain stink to them for some reason

[Swede]

I try to minimize my scent. I use scent free Arm & Hammer with no ultra violet brighteners. I use Ivory bar soap and scent free deodorant. I do not use a pee jar, so don't stand too long under my tree stand. I am totally convinced deer and elk pay no attention to urine scent. I have had bears walk right over the spot I urinated on from the stand. Deer and elk will forage on bushes I peed on too. They have never reacted to that. They do react if they catch direct human scent.
Lonnie: Think of minimizing your scent in this way. Will you smell a soup can or a garbage dump the farthest and over the widest area?

[>>>---WW---->]

I try to be as scent free as possible. And I usually feel pretty good about myself for 30 minutes or so. After that it is all about the wind.

At camp I never wash my clothes. What's a little dirt? Camo is dirt tone colors anyhow. Right? So I take a bucket of water and a cup of baking soda. Put my clothes in and stir it with a stick and let it soak over night. You may have to put a rock in to keep everything submerged. Then the next morning I hang the clothes on the line to dry while I'm hunting. When dry, they will be stiff. Just give them a shake and put them on. You'll have baking soda impregnated clothes as well as all over your body.

The whole idea isn't to clean so much as it is to get rid of the human stinch.

[Swede]

That is a good idea WW. Baking soda works in the fridge, so why not on sweaty clothes? Like Oly, I often hang my clothes outside in the fresh air to rid them of trailer or tent smell. I have rubbed sage, juniper and pine on my clothes a little, but I have no faith it really helps.

[Lonnie]

You guys have some great post. I have had friends say they rub their feet in elk poo or pee. I have thought about this one. I do spray my boots with non scent. I had one friend say his dad picks up elk poo and puts it in his pockets. My luck is I would forget about it when I washed my clothes. Lol

[Swede]

I have not found attractants or cover scents to be worth much, but if someone likes manure or urine on their boots, it is ok. It won't hurt. Personally I don't want it on me.
Another thing you will hear is about the "Scent of death in the air". Several times I have heard persons say there is a scent of death and it ruins a place for hunting for who knows how long. Don't believe it. I have sat in my stand and watched as elk passed by unfazed by the dead elk I shot laying on the ground near them. I have had them come around when I was butchering. They came around while Stringunner was butchering his elk. I just wish I had more to show for it that pictures on a trail cam. Also Oly and I got two bulls from the same area he and his friend had packed one out of a few hours earlier.
Reasonable scent control I believe is good. That said I also believe watching the wind is crucial.

[WapitiTalk1]

Another thing you will hear is about the "Scent of death in the air". Several times I have heard persons say there is a scent of death and it ruins a place for hunting for who knows how long. Don't believe it. I have sat in my stand and watched as elk passed by unfazed by the dead elk I shot laying on the ground near them. I have had them come around when I was butchering. They came around while Stringunner was butchering his elk. I just wish I had more to show for it that pictures on a trail cam. Also Oly and I got two bulls from the same area he and his friend had packed one out of a few hours earlier.
Reasonable scent control I believe is good. That said I also believe watching the wind is crucial.

Yep, agree 100% Swede. But, throw some human scent in a wapitis' direction in the same situation/area and the beasts will be gone before you can say oh cripes, ......... they're a bit dumb during the rut, but, not so dumb when it comes to whiffing out predators including us. There are few things more threatening to an elk's sense of preservation and human scent.

[BrentLaBere]

Another thing you will hear is about the "Scent of death in the air". Several times I have heard persons say there is a scent of death and it ruins a place for hunting for who knows how long. Don't believe it. I have sat in my stand and watched as elk passed by unfazed by the dead elk I shot laying on the ground near them. I have had them come around when I was butchering. They came around while Stringunner was butchering his elk. I just wish I had more to show for it that pictures on a trail cam. Also Oly and I got two bulls from the same area he and his friend had packed one out of a few hours earlier.
Reasonable scent control I believe is good. That said I also believe watching the wind is crucial.

Yep, agree 100% Swede. But, throw some human scent in a wapitis' direction in the same situation/area and the beasts will be gone before you can say oh cripes, ......... they're a bit dumb during the rut, but, not so dumb when it comes to whiffing out predators including us. There are few things more threatening to an elk's sense of preservation and human scent.

x2
Ive watched elk graze a couple hundred yards away from a carcass, while a bear was feeding on it. I dont think the "death in the air" has any affect on wild game. They would be running around constantly if that was the case. If you feel better about keeping clean then have at it. If you play the wind it doesnt matter what you smell like.

[ElkNut1]

With 40 years of elk hunting & trying various things it all comes down to Beedares thoughts for me too, PLAY THE WIND! I'm a big Runner & Gunner so so playing the wind is doable. Treestand hunters have it a hair tougher but playing the wind staying undetected is still of primary concern! No special scent stuff for me!

ElkNut1

[Lefty]

I mostly have single day hunts. So starting out "cleaner" is easy. I do pack my clothes in sage brush . Some of my clothing stays stores for years on end, the smell isnt washing out.

I start by having a good shower as the last thing I do before I head out on a hunt.

Once in the habit scent reduction can be easy,.. and can also be done very inexpensive, think baking soda, borax, and hydrogen peroxide.

Ive had a lot of big elk elk too often down wind, some alerted, yet didnt bust.
the reference of the soup can and garbage dump is a good one.


Next week all my non spring bear hunting clothes gets the once over and repacked for season. My other gear: sleeping bag, pads, tent, pack all gets washed and clean before camp.
Ive finally convinced my wife she needs to use practical scent reduction

[saddlesore]

I use to do all that scent control. I stopped about 15 years ago with no reduction in hunting success. My clothes are laundered normally and clean ones are kept in the truck. Hunting coats etc. are either in the camper or tent. I keep clean in regards to body and don't wear one set of clothes all week.

Swede says ,play the wind. It doesn't matter if you stink a little or a whole bunch.If they smell you,they are gone. I also agree with what he said about "Scent of Death". I have killed quite a few elk and if you don' t go jumping around,high fiving and all that nonsense, the elk stay around.Sometimes going over and sniffing the dead elk.I have also killed or taken other hunters and they have killed elk with 10-15 yards or where I killed one the day before.

Although I am a center fir e rifle or ML shooter, most of my elk are killed at arrow shooting distances.

[Lefty]

If they smell you,they are gone..

saddlesore Im sure you have spent more time chasing and killing elk than I have.
But I have had a lot of down wind encounters with bulls that would have been easy opportunities for a rifle hunter. My first year archery hunting sitting in a box blind at water 1 bull 4 cows and 4 calves walked into the water I was sitting on. They milled around for over 20 minutes between me and the water tank. I bounced an arrow of the bulls G4 while he was glunking 11 yards away. I had cows and calves rubbing on the box. I really regret not reaching and touching one. Some time later that bull came back,.. did he smell , heck yeah, what a rush his nose 5, 6 inches from the side of my face. He blew snot on me then smacked the blind but they hung around.

Following year another water tank first night out 8 bachelor bulls . 6 bulls stayed on the up/ side wind the two biggest pasted under 14 yards from the blind, the one bull tossed his head back "if that is when he smelled me but still walked past.
Next week a herd was bumped by other hunters. 3/4 mile away over 50 elk, , with bulls of all sizes They all passed 40-55 yards Some stopped and looked as they passed .

The following week same herd, I felt the breeze switch and blow across my neck I m on my belly and a cow smelled and spotted me. Yet they bedded less than a mile away .

dogged a herd of 30, Two cows and a calf worked their way past me 13-17 yards, the rest of the herd a bit over 50. A few old cows seemed to smell me but they stuck around and grazed

Two years ago, a spike and a big 6x6 came in definitely down wind,.. the bull continued on his way but I played with that spike for 10 minutes, I reported that was the spike that roared .

Believe me I know Ive been busted too. the first bull I ever called , charged into a locate bugle, and quickly circled down wind. In the thick and nasty under 30 yards. ,.. but he sounded like a herd of elephants traveling at the speed of sound to get out of there.

[Swede]

Lefty, you make a great point. If you smell like you are a long way off having very little scent, you may get a pass. I have seen elk cross or walk down the trail a hunter just walked on, and the elk behave as if they smelled nothing. I have seen a bear nearly turn itself inside out just coming to a hunter's path. The difference is the amount of scent being left.

[Lefty]

,.... I have seen a bear nearly turn itself inside out just coming to a hunter's path. The difference is the amount of scent being left.

I think often it is the individual animal.

With lots of buddies some animals feel too comfortable in big numbers . Heck I put the sneak the last day of goose season , stuck my head over the snow drift and had a handful move out of my way just a few yards off. One hunt I had 1500 geese demanding to land . ( less than a dozen decoys ) My dog was out 14 yards with our last goose under her, I was standing in the pit with the cover off. In big spreads often geese will land and you can get up and need to flush them out of the spread
Then there are animals blinded by the rut.
I one time was in the middle of a tight herd of over 120 deer for nearly an hour, I even had to move my legs I thought a doe was going to step on me. Just so many deer I dont think they cared about the smell because they felt safe

Now coyotes,, they turn inside out getting away. Some of my best misses are with coyotes that were under 10 feet

Speaking of being in a crowd Ive had coyotes in the goose spread ,.. they knew I wasnt a goose and I should have been winded and ignored .
Had a coyote work a turkey decoy, down wind,.. she couldn't get over the decoy,. The she coyote hit the ground hard with a load of 2's at 20 yards
And tent camping in the desert coyotes challenge barking down wind at a tent 10-50 yards out

And the bull with 4 cows and calves they walked on the same two track I had. I was parked around a lave dome on a cattle trail,.. The herd walked right past my truck , knocking my mirror out of position

While certainly not the rule there are enough exceptions to warrant the effort

[Heartwood]

The wind is the only thing that works 100% period. Scent control may at times buy a few seconds of time at close range but I place very little value on anything other than showers and baths when you can and maybe non scented deodorant. Elk hunting in the mountains is not anything like deer hunting in the woods where scent control and tree stands work very well.
Even then, the wind is the great equalizer. It is very hard to stay scent free when you are busting your hump on 3000 foot climbs. Just sayin.

[Scorpyd shooter]

does scent control actually help? if I walk a couple miles I'm still gonna stink right? I know scent control doesn't help on coyotes, except staying down wind

[Swede]

I personally think scent control can and does help. The benefit is lost if you hike for three miles, climbing 2,000 feet in the hot sun. That unscented deodorant you put on last night has definitely lost its affect.

[adamds22]

I know this has been discussed before but what about campfires and scent. I have always made an effort to bring some camp clothes with so I could hand my camo away from any camp fire but have heard that it acts as almost a cover scent. As for scent control, I try to control it as much as possible but I'm not a tree stand elk hunter so we are always moving, working up a sweat but I do try to bring extra base layers, hang my clothes while I sleep in most cases and use unscented deodorant etc.

[Swede]

I have not found that cover scent helps and I do not like the smell of stale campfire smoke. Years ago, I tried skunk scent in a Kodak film container filled with cotton balls, and had a deer and a small bull follow me along a trail. They seemed to be following the skunk scent that lingered in the air.

[olympushunt]

Scent control absolutely helps. Those that think it doesn't matter and do NOTHING to prevent human scent, well that is just plain nonsense. I'm glad my hunting buddies take care to reduce it as much as possible if nothing else for MY nose. lol
It is nice when we hunt in a sealed system with wind directions doing what you are telling it to do but how often does that happen! Sure wind is predictable....for the MOST part. Those who have never been in fickle winds haven't hunted much. And if you leave a large "footprint" of scent that lingers you are begging for being busted. I play the wind for sure and if it is swirly I back out BUTT, and I do meant BUTT, there are lots of times when the wind is behaving like I am telling Mother Nature to behave and I will get an errant draft shift. I'm not talking about hunting borderline wind shifts in the morning and evening either. It happens. So I do the best I can to leave a small scent print. Small odors dissipate faster. It's just the plain truth.

[olympushunt]

I also think cover scents are not super helpful. Swede just smelled like a stinky human that wrestled a skunk....and lost.

[>>>---WW---->]

Oly: Speaking of skunks, you may not remember this stuff, but I'll bet Swede does. Back in the 70s-early 80s there was a product called Tex Isabell's Skunk Screen. It came in two bottles. You took a couple drops out of one bottle and activated it with a couple drops out of the other bottle. (CAUTION) only do this down wind of your position. Potent stuff! Do you remember it Swede??

[olympushunt]

Oly: Speaking of skunks, you may not remember this stuff, but I'll bet Swede does. Back in the 70s-early 80s there was a product called Tex Isabell's Skunk Screen. It came in two bottles. You took a couple drops out of one bottle and activated it with a couple drops out of the other bottle. (CAUTION) only do this down wind of your position. Potent stuff! Do you remember it Swede??

I don't but maybe dad does. All I remember is that time (I think it was 1991) he put on that skunk cover scent on his pant leg cuffs. AWFUL. I almost rode in the back of the truck. Yikes....I still remember the headache I got. lol. I think the reason that deer and elk followed him is that they where tracking him down. Anything that stunk that bad needed to be killed! HA!

[Beendare]

OMG, we used to put that skunk scent on these wafers we hung on the back of our hats....what a bunch of dumbasses we were falling for that.

Stop me if you've heard this- grin- back when I was hog hunting behind dogs at night; those dogs would kill a skunk and just be wreaking to high heaven.....then find a hog 20 minutes later. WTF?
I just think its Silly to believe we can fool a good nose like that.

I do think there is an easy concoction that helps with your scent that a guy can use when whitetail hunting; the doggie skunk bath.

Qt of peroxide, 1/2 cup baking soda and a tablespoon of detergent. My one buddy used to swear by Rubbing alcohol mixed with baking soda on whitetail hunts. Last thing i need on an elk hunt under my arms or between my legs is a fine abrasive.....oh and throw a little alcohol on that chafe for good measure.

[Swede]

2017 Oly: Speaking of skunks, you may not remember this stuff, but I'll bet Swede does. Back in the 70s-early 80s there was a product called Tex Isabell's Skunk Screen. It came in two bottles. You took a couple drops out of one bottle and activated it with a couple drops out of the other bottle. (CAUTION) only do this down wind of your position. Potent stuff! Do you remember it Swede??

I don't remember that stuff. I don't think I have ever heard of it before. I still have 90% of the bottle of skunk scent I have had since before Oly put some on his pants back in 1991. I remember almost throwing up just getting a slight whiff of that scent. It is powerful.

[WapitiTalk1]

Skunk scent, what is wrong with you people? You haven't lived until you've doused you and your buddy with cow in estrus stench, it doesn't work either .

[Swede]

Skunk scent, what is wrong with you people? You haven't lived until you've doused you and your buddy with cow in estrus stench, it doesn't work either .

The image that conjures up is great. I can just see some bull coming in to your cow call with eyes glazed over and drooling. "Hey Joe; I think we are going to have to shoot him in self defense."

[adamds22]

My grandpa used to swear to use a spray bottle of vanilla and water as a cover scent in whitetail country, seemed to work as I had many decent size bucks come within 15 or so yards without winding me. Obviously a whitetail is not an elk but interesting none the less.

[>>>---WW---->]

From Beendare's post: ((I do think there is an easy concoction that helps with your scent that a guy can use when whitetail hunting; the doggie skunk bath.

Qt of peroxide, 1/2 cup baking soda and a tablespoon of detergent.))

Yep. it does work! Or at least it tones down your scent some what. I remember well, a little cocker spaniel mix dog I once had that got sprayed by a polecat. I mixed up a double strength batch of the anti skunk solution and scrubbed him gown with it . It got rid of the skunk odor instantly! But there was a problem. When I started, my little doggie was black and white. When I got through, he was brown and white. Guess I shouldn't have mixed up a double batch.

[jmez]

I use wind checker bottles, and a lot of them. Usually go through 2-3 of them in 12-14 days in the mountains. If the wind isn't perfect I back out. I've learned the hard way that you aren't going to beat the wind. I spend a lot of my down time checking wind, thermals and how the two interact in my hunting area. I've come to find that those places that just always seem to hold elk are extremely hard to access without being winded. If the wind is right then the thermals are wrong. If the thermals are right then the wind is wrong. Wonder why those elk always seem to be in those places, especially when pressure starts.

Since I've started hunting the mountains and really learned to pay attention to wind, thermals, how they interact and how terrain features affect all of them I've gotten much better at stand placement for WT's. My deer success has improved and I'm to the point now that I no longer take scent control measures to hunt them.

I went through the gamut deer hunting. Washing clothes after every hunt. Only line drying them. Keeping them in rubber totes. Shower in am, use a towell that was washed with hunting clothes and hung dry. Spraying down with scent killer after the shower. Put on clothes at the house that were washed scent free and hung dry. Get to hunting area, remove clothes, spray down again and change into hunting clothes. Walk to stand and climb in. Spray down once settled in the stand. Spray down occasionally in the stand. With all that I used to get winded a lot. I also had deer come in from directly downwind and walk right past me and never look around. Same day I'd have deer that came in down wind and were cautious. Same day I'd have deer that I could hear blowing 200 yards back in the timber.

Since I've quit doing all of that I've had the exact same experiences. I do get winded less however and it is because I truly play the wind and thermals. First few years elk hunting I screwed up a lot of opportunities based on the wind. You will never beat or even "trick" their nose. Sometimes they just don't care as much. WT care far less than elk.

[olympushunt]

So getting back to the original post, here is why I believe scent control is important. First of all I’d like to say that if you are in the camp that believes scent control is pointless and you take no measure to control it……fine, that’s cool. I couldn’t care less. I’m not being mean, I am not trying to make you a scent shield convert or carbon suit convert…..I own no stock in their companies. I won't change minds of those that have been successful in their methods and am not trying to. Have confidence in what you do and do it. I certainly won’t tell a guy like Paul that he is being ridiculous for not taking extra measures to scent control. That boy knows how to kill elk. It wouldn't matter in the grand scheme if he smelled like an old goat or 6 wolf packs. Big bulls will still die by his arrow.
I would like to pose a question though and I will get back to that in a minute.
I try to make as small of a foot print out in the woods as possible. Yes if they smell YOU, you are screwed but why not make less of “you” for them to smell? Think of snoopy’s buddy Pigpen. I want a little cloud following me. I’m on THEIR turf and I will do everything within reason to stack the cards in my favor. If it means taking a few extra minutes to lessen my scent cloud….parts per million or whatever I will do that. Just like I prepare with shooting and practicing with calls I will do what I reasonably can to improve my odds. Why would you shrug off one of their most keen defenses? Is it because in the end you can’t “trick” their noses or 100% eliminate your scent? I think that is true on both of those fronts. But you CAN reduce your scent output. Why wouldn’t you if you can? Because it doesn’t matter? That seems to be what I am hearing a lot. What makes more noise though, a firecracker or a stick of dynamite? Maybe that is a poor analogy.
Also, there are conditions that facilitate scent particles going into their beak better than others. Anyone who has hunted with hounds knows (get it……knows…nose…lol) that there are perfect conditions for them getting onto a scent trail. Temperature and humidity play a crucial role in scent lingering. I can’t control those factors but I can try to control the amount of scent I put out to linger and catch a nose.
I hear a lot of times well if the winds are wrong I back out. But how many times are you hunting the correct prevailing winds and get a rogue breeze or errant shift even for just a few seconds? Lots. I have had animals like others have talked about that spooked being downwind and others didn’t. Or how about the ones that some reason come to full alert and seem edgy but don’t leave town? I’m convinced some of those animals got a piece of scent….just a piece that put them on alert but it wasn’t enough of a snoot full to say “HEY! HUMANS ARE HERE!!!!!!” How many times do we catch a whiff of something only to not be able to get it again? Lots.
Another aspect we can’t always control (unless you have a leash on all the animals) is the old circle trick. The last bull I killed tried to pull that stunt on me. I was working a big bull for a buddy of mine and a nice 5 point satellite decided to sneak in downwind of me (a common trick they like to pull) and see who was making all this fuss. He came in dead quiet. The wind was blowing right to him (as he wanted it to be) and I knew I had maybe 30 seconds before he got a nose full. That 30 was all I needed. If I had a bigger scent trail would the outcome have been the same? I love the questions that we will never know the answer to….just like the question I want to pose to Paul or any of you elk slayers. I know when we have animals bust and we did everything by the book we chalk it up to a bad hand. Or it just wasn’t meant to be and we move on to the next set up. Certainly we can’t win them all. If they get our wind and bust it wasn’t meant to be. It is called hunting….not killing. So here is the question…in the hundreds or thousands of elk that Elknut has called in that busted, is there even one that might have afforded 30 more seconds more time from it not getting a nose full of human? Is it worth trying to scent control? Why not???? I am also not trying to imply anyone stinks. Lol Except for me.

[Swede]

I too am a proponent of minimizing my scent. You don't have to buy a bunch of expensive anything. I would rather have the amount of smell of a sardine can than a garbage dump. This is especially valuable for tree stand hunters who set up in a basin or where you have down drafts.

[Scorpyd shooter]

maybe scent control works for deer n elk, it'sa waste of time oin coyote for sure, Ispecialize in coyote, they know for at least a week that you were there before