Okay, I've been one of those guys who thought he was being careful on scent control, but never thought it necessary to go to the lengths that some folks go to.

Saturday morning I was hunting a friend's farm -- about a 40 acre hay farm. Hunting clothes had been sprayed with a scent eliminator and had been outside for a week or so. I park nice and early, get out of the truck and spray a little red fox urine on the soles of my boots and set off across the field to my stand. It's still 45 minutes or so before first light, clear and cold... and the field is dry as a bone (no rain here for over a month).

I'm set in my stand, no extraneous gear, watching it grow light. About 15 minutes before sunrise (and about 15 minutes after legal shooting time around here) I watch a young six pointer walking across the field without a care. He's not in the prime hunting area, he's walking in the open between me and my truck (he's about 75 yards away). All of a sudden, he stops, drops his nose to the ground, jerks his head up, looks around, stomps, blows, and drops his head to the ground again. At this point, I notice that he's right where I crossed the field. He jerks his head up again, stamps, and bounds off across the field (in the same direction he'd been travelling). He didn't run, but kept springing his but up in the air, kind of "hopping" until he I lost sight of him in the treeline.

Other deer came through that AM -- only a couple of yearlings in range and I let them pass. None of the others crossed the path I came in on, and no others scented me... but it got me to thinking. (Even though I'm hunting with the Rage 2 blade mechanicals, I don't think it was their fault that this deer ran )

I thought I was being careful enough, but I guess not. Any thoughts or comments on this deer's behavior or on mine? Any suggestions on what else to do to "cover my tracks"? I'm not currently using a cover scent except a little squirt of fox pee on my boots (the foxes are thick up here - so it's a common scent).