Dan Andrews Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 What are your thoughts on camouflage and scent blockers etc? Myself I call BS marketing. It probably matters more in remote areas but I think if you sit perfectly still you're camo'd enough for most situations. Don't get me wrong, I wear camo almost every day it's a great fashion statement. I also find throwing a pillowcase full of weeds collected in the wash with your hunting clothes is an even better idea then scent covers or blockers but I've jumped out of my work truck smelling like plastics and gone straight to my stand and shot a deer within the first hour. Timing and lack of unnatural movement are your best allies. For waterfowl I hunt in a kayak and use the wind and coral them in a bright coloured life jacket and plaid shorts. I do however love sitting in a treestand with a leafy outfit and having chickadees coming through my clothes for bugs and squirrels touching my hat to see what I am but I don't think not having camo is a deal breaker. Discipline is tough but not budging works. Don't even blink when they're staring at you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jwl1 Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 That's a beauty Dan.....work clothes tricked him....he didn't think you where out hunting...just thought you where making a delivery...lol.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 Ya Dan, I've seen a blue jay landing on you & wedding guests, including the minister ....looking for bugs ? haha . If you have been hunting in the bush long enough you will smell like the rest of the animals . When I moose hunted we wore bright orange coats & hats . Moose can't see as well as deer (they say) and I walked right up on 3 deer that hissed at me before casually walking away ....didn't like my ripe b.o. ? When I shot my last bull moose , I stood as still as possible for 10 -15 min. only 50' away until I could get a clear shot ....luckily the low wind was coming from the moose 's direction , keeping my scent away .....But I did rub moss over my boots & pants before trekking into the bush . As Dan said , keeping very still may be more important than camo..... ....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 2 hours ago, Dan Andrews said: What are your thoughts on camouflage and scent blockers etc? Myself I call BS marketing. It probably matters more in remote areas but I think if you sit perfectly still you're camo'd enough for most situations. Don't get me wrong, I wear camo almost every day it's a great fashion statement. I also find throwing a pillowcase full of weeds collected in the wash with your hunting clothes is an even better idea then scent covers or blockers but I've jumped out of my work truck smelling like plastics and gone straight to my stand and shot a deer within the first hour. Timing and lack of unnatural movement are your best allies. For waterfowl I hunt in a kayak and use the wind and coral them in a bright coloured life jacket and plaid shorts. I do however love sitting in a treestand with a leafy outfit and having chickadees coming through my clothes for bugs and squirrels touching my hat to see what I am but I don't think not having camo is a deal breaker. Discipline is tough but not budging works. Don't even blink when they're staring at you Finally some pics. That deer looks like a trophy forsure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genec Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 I wear camo all the time for deer and turkey hunting. I think it helps break up your body silouette, even when sitting still, but won't help at all if you fidget or move around, especially with turkeys. as to scents, I have been a firm believer in their benefits fow many years now. What convinced me to using them was a hunting outing with a co-worker. We were sitting about 300 yards apart on either side of a very large, very deep wooded ravine, out of sight of each other. I saw an 8-pt buck come walking down a trail 1/2 way up the far side of the ravine. Suddenly the buck stopped with his nose up in the air, and I knew from his position and the wind direction that he was downwind of my buddy. The deer turned 90 degrees towards me, walked to the bottom of the ravine, then began continuing in his original direction along the ravine bottom for about 150 yards, walked back up the side of the ravine to his original trail, and continued down the trail. My buddy never knew the buck was anywhere near him, but the buck knew exactly where my buddy was from his scent, and detoured perfectly around his stand. From that incident on I've always been a firm believer in masking scents! before the deer opener I put all my outerwear on the clothes line for a day, and set chair and fanny pack and boots out as well. Then, before bringing them in, I spray them thoroughly with scent killer, and bag them all in new garbage bags. I keep them in the bags until I drive to my hunting site, then take them out and put on. Every subsequent outing I respray everything when I take them out at my hunting site. I know that the scent killer works, because I have had foxes come trotting by and stop 6 ft. Away from me and not have a clue I'm there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 I suppose it's not a good idea to smoke , even before the hunt as it leaves a scent from head to toe .... If a deer's nose is anything close to sniffer dogs , I would try killing (masking) all human scent . (never hunted deer , only moose) ....and look at that nose on a moose ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishingking Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 I use scent killer every outing .i spray clothes , hang to dry pop them in the dryer for 5 mins( with nothin else )then back in a rubber maid bin till i get.outta the truck .i also have a trick that works which ive been using only in december every year .instead of putting apples down for bait i let like a few dozen rot in a bag till brown and juice leakin out .i fill a chunk of panty hose up with the rotten mashed apples and when i get in my stand i hang it on a branch and acts as a great scent cover and attractant .currently have 3 wall hangers above 150 inches .two of which came in lickin the air constantly.i dont usually get to hunt much till december as i do exterior renos and stay busy till then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishingking Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 I cant post pics either .all are over the 2 mb and not techy at all .i build s&#! And works with tools .skipped all computer classes back in highschool to fish hunt and smoke grass .now i smoke fish and meat and cut grass lol.oh how things change .hope my 15 year old daughter doesnt read this lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishingking Posted March 17, 2019 Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 and i wear camo just so people say ....oh sorry didnt see ya there ! Getting old .get a stain on a colored shirt it sticks out like a sore thumb .get one on some camo and it blends right in !...as we do with trees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted March 17, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2019 18 minutes ago, fishingking said: I cant post pics either .all are over the 2 mb and not techy at all .i build s&#! And works with tools .skipped all computer classes back in highschool to fish hunt and smoke grass .now i smoke fish and meat and cut grass lol.oh how things change .hope my 15 year old daughter doesnt read this lol! LMAO the cycle we go through. I know they can smell and your apple idea works better than cover scent I think. Great idea really if you take it with you because dropping them just draws in coyotes. I've dropped corn and was inundated by birds who rat you out everytime you blink or yawn. Ya deer they smell but if you hunt in an area where human smells are normal like near the truck stop they it doesn't phase them. As for the pictures I just resized them. I had one so far I couldn't make small enough. Don't worry smerchly I'll show you how but you'll have to install irfanview again. I see the more pics I post the smaller the size I'm aloud. Tyler I'm down to .06MB now so that may have been my last one. Here's a youtube vid of a deer sniffin me in 2008. I was downwind so it slowly worked its way upwind and got a sniff of me before running off. I'd guess it to be a 4 pointer if it had a rack. This was during the spring shed hunt as you can hear by the frogs in the background. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishingking Posted March 18, 2019 Report Share Posted March 18, 2019 Yup ive had them walk right up to my turkey decoys 30 yrds away with the wind blowing from them to me and just walk away like i was never there .cool video dan! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jwl1 Posted March 18, 2019 Report Share Posted March 18, 2019 That's wicked cool to see Dan.....if anyone puts thier time in it's you for sure and you get some great pics to share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigugli Posted March 19, 2019 Report Share Posted March 19, 2019 Decades back, when I did hunt, none of us wore camo. Dark plaid duffle coats, blaze cap and jeans or my old combat greens. As for scent, a native friend taught me to throw off my "predator scent" before hunting. As meat eaters we exude a different odour. So before a bush trip we sometimes gave up the meat, and the booze a few days before, and into the hunt, until we had some success. Never hurt to rub fresh juniper on the clothes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 19, 2019 Report Share Posted March 19, 2019 Back in "those" days Bruce , a hunting license was about $3 for small game . My first hunting coat was bought at Russ Moshers when I was 16, still in nice shape . It has the flap at the back to carry your game & has a well made steel zipper which may have been made at Lightening Fastener on Niagara St. They made things to last for years then .I also rubbed juniper on clothing when moose hunting . It was pretty strong smelling . I suppose cooking bacon & eggs for breakfast inside our kitchen tent wasn't a great idea .....unless you wanted to bag a bear ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Surf and Turf Posted March 20, 2019 Report Share Posted March 20, 2019 Nice buck! Personally I think that camoflage can give you a bit of an edge in that it helps break up your outline, and in a game that is usually won by who sees who first and that the deer have the edge in that department. For turkey it's even more crucial, not so much for moose as they aren't as skittish as either. Regarding scent blockers, I think minimizing your scent is more important. Shower with non-scented soaps, don't smoke on the stand or eat strong smelling food etc., and leave clothes closed up away from every day scents when stored. The crucial thing is playing the wind, if they get downwind of you unless you are really lucky with air currents or a curious animal they will smell you and most of the time you won't know they were even there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verado Posted March 21, 2019 Report Share Posted March 21, 2019 Smerchly's comment hit home for me. I also bought my first hunting jacket at Russ Mosher's when I was 15. Wore it for 20 years than somehow it shrunk. In regard to camo clothing and scent blockers, I think it depends on the situation. Our hunt camp for moose and deer is in the Haliburton Forest. For most of the year the animals are accustomed to hikers, campers, fishermen the sounds of outboard motors, chainsaws, snow and ATV machines etc. When hunting I think the animals are aware of you at most times and probably don't perceive you as a great threat. Here the need for camo and scent blockers is probably much less than compared to say the far north on a fly in trip with game that has had no previous human contact. Just my opinion but what the hell do I know anyways. On a different subject, I just returned from the hunt of a lifetime in South Africa. Harvested four beautiful animals similar to our elk and deer and all with huge racks. If I can remember how to do the picture thing, I will post some in the near future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 21, 2019 Report Share Posted March 21, 2019 Good comment verado . The air is fresher at the remote areas of our north country . We hunted a whole week at Rose Lake near the Minnesota border and never saw another human . ...one major portage involved from Arrow Lake, a lot of slugging but well worth the effort . We all wore our bright orange coats & hats .....no orange on moose .... 23 minutes ago, verado said: Wore it for 20 years than somehow it shrunk Ha ha ....mine still fits as I have shrunk over the years . .....not back to wearing my cloth diapers yet .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave524 Posted March 21, 2019 Report Share Posted March 21, 2019 On 3/17/2019 at 2:36 PM, smerchly said: I suppose it's not a good idea to smoke , even before the hunt as it leaves a scent from head to toe .... If a deer's nose is anything close to sniffer dogs , I would try killing (masking) all human scent . (never hunted deer , only moose) ....and look at that nose on a moose ! 2 best bucks I ever shot I was smoking one of those tipped Colt's cigars ( rum flavoured /wine dipped) in my treestand, I always theorized it masked the human scent. Deer don't see particularly well too IMHO, don't move and they have a hard time identifying you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 21, 2019 Report Share Posted March 21, 2019 40 minutes ago, dave524 said: ( rum flavoured /wine dipped) Ahhh..... so that's your secret ! We had smoked jerky in our trail packs ...... it would mask that rye in the morning coffee ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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