[Joe7137]

Ive been out hunting all day today, still am matter of fact. But this morning I found a nice tree that had partially fallen. I decided to make use of it and got in the branches. After clearing the leaves out from where I was standing. I proceeded to use my rattle bag. Only a little, though. About five min later I see a deer coming directly at me. While he/ she (not sure which) was hidden behind a large tree I drew my bow. But the durn deer stopped just outside my shooting range. Stood there for about two min. Before he/she turned and bolted wheezing like the forest was on fire. While agrevated cause apparantly the scent killer I got at walmart isn't worth a crap. I did get one heck of a rush watching it come in.

 

[tator]

joe- awesome man! It's a rush to have deer come that close to you. You never know... it may have been something else that spooked it. Maybe it saw a coyote or smelled something it didn't like. I buy the scent away spray at wal-mart too and it works great. Just be sure to use enough of it. To me, bow hunting is hard to do on the ground and I give alot of respect to those guys and gals that can get it done! But you won't catch me on the ground hunting w/my bow. Now w/my rifle, that's a whole other situation.

 

[Joe7137]

I hate being stuck on the ground. Im buying a climber asap. For sure

 

[Hunting Man]

Just got another ladder stand today in S.Ohio for 49.99 :ibtl::ibtl:

 

[spiker]

could of spooked after knowing there wasnt another buck there.rattling is tough you are telling a deer your location and if that deer percieves something out of place(i.e. no deer) he's gone.he checked you out for 2 minutes and for him something wasnt just right.had to be exciting though

 

[Joe7137]

Just got another ladder stand today in S.Ohio for 49.99 :ibtl::ibtl:

Nice, I only hunt public land as I dont have any private land to hunt. Being on public land there is no way I would want to leave a stand overnight much less all season.

 

[Buckshot]

It smelled you and I doubt any amount of scent away would have helped it, deer can smell things we can't imagine, it may have smelled your breath.

The lesson here is that he came to the rattle and came in down wind. Now how do you get around his nose?

 

[buckfever]

The scent away is a help, not a cure. Im sure the buck was probably down wind and caught a whiff of something he didnt like. Like buckshot said that could just be your breath or something else small that happened that day. Like your arrows having some scent of yourself on them.

Down wind is the key in scent control. The sprays help tremendously but are for sure not a cure all to deer that can smell what seems like anything from 35 miles away.

Good hunt anyway. And they did respond to your rattling.

 

[tator]

ok ok ok, enough of telling Joe he has bad breath guys! JOKING! they are probably right. I try to breath through my nose while hunting... sounds stupid, but I do. Plus I hear better when i'm breathing through my nose. (you figure stuff like this out when you are sitting quietly, alone, in the dark, waiting for day light).
Do you use the laundry detergent too?

 

[Joe7137]

Thanks guys, cause I didn't think to spray my bow or my arrows. I had just finished eating an apple about 15 minutes before all of this happened. I figured that since deer like apples so much. They would be a good cover scent for my breath.

 

[Joe7137]

In your opinions what's the best thing other than breathing threw ur nose. To cover up your breath

 

[kemster99]

as i am usually hunting in pine woods, i put a pine scent wafer in my bow case and in my rifle soft cases. bow string wax has an odd odor. i put them in my rifle cases for the slings. i usually hog hunt during the summer the slings can get mighty sweaty..

 

[kemster99]

In your opinions what's the best thing other than breathing threw ur nose. To cover up your breath

have used a mouth spray from "Dead down wind". seemed to work. now i either chew that gum that is out for hiding your breath or i have a dip of chew in my mouth. i spit in a bottle though.

 

[Hunting Man]

Scent control is a giant issue for hunters. Some take it lightly others like me may go to extremes. I like to use the scent elimination detergents, hang the clothes outside to dry. Spray them down with scent elimination spray (per instructions) while outside, then pack away into plastic bags/containers. Because PA has lots of pine trees I cut some fresh pine and put in with the clothes. Shower using anti-bacterial soaps and some do chew special gum to deorderize the mouth, I don't. I do however, at camp, use the steam sauna, which I believe cleans the body pores and bacteria really well. I then spray down the clothes every night at camp, hang outside under porch. Every morning spray down clothes,bow, boots,hat, gloves ect ect. After a few hours in stand a light misting of the scent elimination spray is used. This has worked very well for me as I cannot remember the last time being busted by any deer. I only hunt 16' high in ladder stands. I also mist the air with estrus scent every 1/2-1 hour along with ground wicks and scrapes. Hpoe you find some ideas from this and above posts.

 

[thatguy]

my father in law does some stuff that i never would have thought about doing. and i cant do it in my barracks, but i have a week at home before gun season starts, so i can try it out too. he goes around to where he hunts pre season, about a month out, and gathers up leaves, branches, digs up dirt, and about anything else he deems necessary and puts it into a plastic tote. when he gets home he pretty much buries his hunting clothes in the tote and puts it in his garage storage space and lets it "ferment" till the day prior to bow season. as for himself, about 2 weeks out he starts using the scent controlling soaps, shampoos and whatnot to condition his body. he jokingly says he could walk up to a blind deer and they wouldnt know what he was. hes been doing this for the better part of 25 years or so. maybe not the soaps and stuff, but definately the tote thing. says it works for him, and i trust him.

 

[Whitetail_predator]

one thing i have learned is you never know what may spook a deer. it can be anything from your scent to maybe the scent of a hunter that was where the deer was standing before you got there. Like i said before, you can do everything right and the deer still not play ball.

 

[tator]

FYI, found a 15 ft ladder stand at DICK's for only $59. thought that was pretty good!

 

[gargoyle]

Apples, if not a local (normal) food source will alarm deer. After a while they will get curious and eat them, but the "new" smell will alarm them.
Play the wind, use any advantage you can to conceal your scent, move quietly. Use the heigth of the stand to carry away any scent.
Ground blinds can work, but it puts you in their direct feild of vision, its a lot tougher to draw when they can see you.

 

[Hunting Man]

I don't mind hunting close to local food source but I never use a food type scent product.

 

[I shoot trophies]

Scent killer from walmart is poop. I used to get busted a bunch and I was always using that stuff. Switch to something like white lightening or dead down wind. So far them 2 have worked great