Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Let me start by saying that I am 35 and have never hunted before in my life. I had intended to only rifle hunt this year, but my buddy bow-hunts and encouraged me to try it. I borrowed a bow from another friend and started going to my local pro-shop/range every day to practice. I had the bow tuned and got lots of great tips from the techs there. I can now get 1.5" -3" groups at 20 yards. I am using a PSE Baby-Gforce and pulling 60.5lbs.

I have been hunting in my stand for 5 hunts now and I keep getting busted. I am washing all my clothes with scent-free detergent and washing with scent-free soap/shampoo. I have sprayed all my gear with tons of carbon blast and have put racoon urine on my blind. (I have an older blind I am borrowing from a friend) I have been using the fresh earth dryer sheets as well as fresh earth disks inside my blind. On my last 2 hunts, I started using cedar cover scent on the inside of my blind. I have Scent-Lok Savanna coveralls, Lacoste Burly 800s and a scent-blocker balaclava. (sp)

I actually had a doe only 10 yards from me on Saturday but was not sure she was old enough to harvest. By the time I had decided to take her, another doe with 2 kids showed up and she busted me from 30 yards out and started huffing at me. It spooked the first doe and I was done :( As I was packing my gear and preparing to leave, a spike came up from my left and was approaching my lane. I could not believe he was there since I had been making so much noise. I made a reach for my bow, and that was all he needed. He was gone in a flash...

On the hunt Saturday night, I saw only one doe about 80 yards away and nothing else for most of the night. I made a couple of calls on my Primos Original Can and like a miracle, a buck appeared out of nowhere at about 7:25pm. He was feeding at a tree just 18 yards from my stand where I put some corn gel and some feeder corn. I could not see how many points he had, but he was just outside the ears and 6" -8" tall. I had completed the swivel in my seat, my arrow was already nocked (sp) and my release was attatched. I had tension on the string and was waiting for him to put his head down so that I could draw when suddenly, I was attacked by several squadrons of mequitoes the size of Volkswagens. [:@] I tried to hang tough and get my shot, but it got to be just too much for me and I dipped my head to the right to get one off my ear and he saw me. He bolted, but ran back accross both of my shooting lanes and then stopped about 40 yards from me. I wanted to call him back in, but my light was almost gone and I was in severe distress from all the darn mesquitos. I put my scent-blocker balaclava (sp) back on even though it was pretty hot and had every inch of me with the exception of my face around my eyes covered. They were still pouring into my shooting windows so I just had to close them. (again, this is an older blind so there was no shoot-through mesh) It sounded like a sound-byte from the movie ' Swarm' . [&o]

This morning, I was all set up and motionless. I had resprayed my blind with racoon urine and put out some fresh corn and gel on that 18 yard tree. All the corn I had there last night was gone and I could see fresh deer and hog sign all around my feeder. It was about 7:45am and a doe came up to my tree and started to feed. Again I made my turn and was ready for her to dig in so I could draw. Suddenly I hear huffing. I lean over just a bit and see 2 more does to the right of my target doe and about 30 yards back. My doe held still for a bit, but then bolted about 20 yards. I was completely still and was even afraid to breath. Then came 7 or 8 quick huffs and I heard hoofbeats heading away from me. :( There were the only deer I saw this morning. The mesquitos did come back once it got warm enough though. yay

Is there anything you guys can see in my setup that should be changed? Should I put the racoon urine on my clothes? HELP!

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

I used to get busted constantly and still do on rare occasions. MOST IMPORTANT: HUNT THE WIND!!!!

that is the only foolproof way to go. sounds like these deer might be getting a hell of a lot of coon urine in their face. Dont go in trying to smell like something else, go in trying to smell like nothing. Any carbon clothign you have, dont put any scent on or it will absorb it and reduce its scent absorbing properties. Those are just a few tips i have, hope thye hlep

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

If they are coming to within 30 yards, you may not be getting busted on smell. Deer can be very curious, but with that curiosity is cautiousness. They will know when a ground blind has been placed in their normal area. Initially they will be very curious with it, and may come straight in to inspect it. ANY movement on your part will be enough for them to get spooked....as you have found out.

Try leaving the blind in place for a few days. The deer will become used to it' s presence, and will not be so cautious around it.

Another piece of advise that I was given was if you get picked off when you are trying to draw, just go ahead and draw back. You are busted anyway and the deer' s reaction may be the same watchng you raise your bow, as raising your bow and drawing back. Once anchored you are done moving and you can wait for the animal to give you a shot.

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Sounds to me to be a combination of a few things.

Bait - is the corn and corn gel naturally there? I can' t bait by law in my area, so no experience there to help you with. But I would say that they know when something is different be it pile of corn or unfamiliar sites and smell etc.

New scent/site - Leave the blind out let them get used to it being there. Racoon urine are there lots of coons in that area? remember that a drop will do most cases they have sensitives noses. Surely they are picking up on a over abundance of coon urine. As it gets later in the year buck urine and does estrus are good choices. Buck urine should help in pre-rut as bucks disperse and establish their areas. Doe in heat(estrus) should be great once the rut is on. DUmb buck smells hot doe and comes to take care of business.

You are seeing deer so with some luck and fine tuning you should have some success. Be careful of the wind and go easy on the unnatural scents.

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RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Thanks for the comments. My stand has been out for about a month now. They have no trouble coming to eat when I am not there. They are just very skittish when I am there. I am going to try some doe estrus when the rut starts, but for now, I will try to take it easier on the scents and see if I can be any more diligent about scent elimination on my person. Any other suggestions welcome.

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Are you wearing rubber boots ? Forget the coon urin , it may be spooking them . For the skeeters you might try a thermesill unit , they dont spook game like bugspray does . As far as getting busted by movement , you should be high enough , I like between 20 and 25 feet , and you should have background cover behind you . Move slowly and shoot a sharp stick .

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

I am in a ground blind so height is a non-issue. and yes.. per my original post, I am wearing LaCoste Burly 800 rubber boots. I will ease up on the coon urine and try to just be as scent free as possible on my next hunt. I should be back out hunting on Wednesday morning and continue till friday morning. Then the deer get a week of rest before rifle season.

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Ther deer in my area never got used to the ground blind that I put out. I put it out over 2 onths prior to season, I never saw a deer out of it. I agree with the others about all the cover scent, especially the coon urine. Just try to stay as scent free as possible and hunt the wind. It' s possible that he deer will always be on alert while you have a ground blind there as well.

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

The coon urine is great but not too much as people have suggested. Also you are not going wrong with the earth scent dryer sheets and earth wafers. I use all three of these things and have had great success with them. I use the dryer sheets after i wash my clothes and i usually have a earth wafer on my jacket and one on my pants. When im in my stand i use only two sprays of coon urine on the tree or a leaf nearby. Just my .02

Brian

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

ditch the coon urine and the earth scent. i do like the carbon blast. use it on the outside of your blind and cloths. dont be disappointed hunting from the ground is a great test of skills. as stated before take note of which way the wind is blowing and try to set up with it in your face and blind facing the direction you most think they will come. KEEP AT IT ISINT THIS FUN!:)

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

It sounds like you' ve taken quite a few precautions on reducing your scent, and also covering it up. I' ve never been one to use cover scents, but I started trying to make myself as scent free as possible. I was my clothes in scent free soap, shower in scent free soap, use scent free deoderant, and use a home brew scent eliminator (distilled water, hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and scent free soap. I can give you the formula if you want it). I don' t own Scent Lock type clothing, and I' ve had deer walk right on the same trail as me, and feed under my tree with no indication of being spooked. I had one downwind last night for a while as well, and it didn' t seem to notice. Saying this, I still pay a LOT of attention to the wind, and won' t hunt a stand if the wind is wrong.


The only advise I could give is: use fewer or no cover scents for a while and see what happens. But, I' m betting the problem is the smell you get after putting all your scent free clothes on. How many clothes are you wearing on your walk to the blind, and how hot is it? If you' re sweating on the way there, all the scent free stuff isn' t going to do you much good. You said mosquitos bothered you, so it must be fairly warm yet. Try to wear as few clothes as possible on the walk in so you don' t get how and sweaty. Bring them along in a back-pack or something. When you get to the blind, quietly put them on.

It sounds like you' ve done everything else right. My bet would be that you' re sweating on the way in, which will make any hunter smell-no matter how much care he puts into scent elimination before the hunt. Good luck!

peashooter

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

My stand is actually pretty close to the road (140yds) where I get dropped off and in the morning, it has been 48-63 degrees. I usually wear a t-shirt and shorts and my long socks. I keep my coveralls in a bag till i get out of the truck. Then I put on my boots and then coveralls and get my gear to head in. The night before hunting I try to hang my pack and everything in it (gloves, release, nylon belt for my quiver, the quiver itself, arm guard and my swivel chair) in a tree where we are camping. I spray them down with carbon-blast and let them sit till well after midnight and repack them. After I am out of the truck and have my clothes on, I again spray with carbon-blast. I put on my quiver, put on my pack and grab my bow. The first time I went to my blind, I used a mini Mag-lite to help me find it. Now I have a small light that clips to my hat and gives off a red light. I am about to wash all my stuff again tonight and I will avoid the dryer sheets. I will try to be as scent free as possible and may respray my blind with carbon-blast.. or I may just leave it alone. I will set out more of the corn gel and more corn under my 18 yard tree and hope for the best.

On a side note... I just had my local pro-shop change my bow from 60 to 70lbs and WOW! What a difference! I went from 2" -3" groups down to 1" -2" groups just due to the change in pull! Now I will resite the bow and feel alot better about making the shot to the bush that is 30 yards off. The bow I am using is meant to pull 70, but I have had it on 60 since I have never shot a compound bow before this last month and had alot of trouble with the heavier pull. Practice has paid off though and I was pulling 70lbs today with no issues. I will keep my fingers crossed that all my precautions will pay off. Even if I don' t get one, I am still havin fun. :D

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

I got into hunting a little late, at age 23 and it took a few seasons for me to even see a deer, then when I finally started seeing deer, they were stomping the ground and blowing. I started paying attention to scent control. I bathe before I go out with some soap and shampoo (can' t remember the name brand but its from Wal-mart) before I go out and use the deodorant for deer hunter too. Now for my clothes, I keep them in a plastic storage bin(about $5 again from Wal-Mart)and before the season, I wash them one time with the same stuff I use in the green bottle to wash my hair with before the season starts. In the bottom of the storage bin, I fill it with cedar limbs and put a small peice of plywood over it to seperate my clothes so I don' t get cedar stickers in them. As soon as I get through hunting, i take off the clothes and put them back in the storage bin with the cedar. Since I started doing all this, I started regularly seeing deer close and regularly killing deer and haven' t killed one over 20 yards. My clothes are even just brown carhart, none of the new scent lock stuff that are camo.

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Not to be a wise guy or anything but have you had someone check your breath? I' ve known guys that could melt 55gal drums at 30yds..a little of that baking soda goes a long way for breath control..and don' t forget to floss..:D

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

I agree with everyone here forget the cover scent and just try to go scent free. I would also suggest trying to get off the ground. I used a blind for a long time and unless they are hidden very very well deer will always be nervious around them. I am not saying this is not a good way to hunt deer because they have their place but up a tree 15 feet or more allows for alot more movement and scent on your part.

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

I have thought about the breath issue. I have been using my regular toothpaste, but that may not be the best thing. Is baking soda the best thing for breath control?

Thanks for all the help guys. :)

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Natural cover scent is better than those store bought kinds any day. I use standard flora from my area in my bin with the cloths.

You might try making a spray yourself using the same stuff.

Additionally, you might also try setting that blind up near or up against some cedars. Break a few limbs when you get there each time. That will cover a lot of your scent.

Works for me.......

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Reacher ,
ease up on the scent . Baking soda as a gargle will temporarily deodorize your breath , but it tastes like azz ! The most common reason for dragon breath is your diet . Ease up on the meat and smelly foods for a couple of weeks before the season starts , and buy some chlorophyl tablets for field deodorizing .


If the deer are getting spooked by seeing the blind then double cross them . Figure out where they' re bypassing your stand and set up a natural blind there . When they try to go around your old stand they will trot right past you .

RE: Getting busted on scent.... HELP
 

Sounds like everyone has given you some good advice on the scent control issue. The only thing I would suggest is try and be aware of other deer in the area before you draw. If there is one doe, you can bet there is another not to far away that you did not see when you moved into position and busted you. Just take a moment and slowly turn your head or roll your eyes to the side to check things out before you draw.

I was out last week and was walking down the trail to my stand and came upon a doe grazing. I was slowly sneaking in and did not see the other doe 15 yards to the left of the grazing doe. Needless to say she busted me and they where both gone, because I did not take the time to scan the area before proceeding.

Good Luck and keep us posted on your success.