Follow this system to beat a whitetail’s nose this fall.
By FeraDyne Staff
If you’ve watched deer-hunting TV shows, thumbed through hunting magazines/catalogs, or strolled down an outdoor store’s hunting aisle, then you’re likely well aware that there is an entire product category — a very robust one, might we add — devoted to fooling a whitetail’s nose. While a scent-control product that will eliminate your scent 100 percent doesn’t exist, we can’t overemphasize the importance of diligence in this area.
The more you minimize odors, the more effective your hunting strategy becomes. Create and follow a regimen to greatly reduce your scent footprint while you’re afield, and the scent left behind when you exit will be minimal. Your attention to detail can pay huge dividends regardless if you’re chasing does or mature bucks.
As we address this topic, we’ll provide some product suggestions along the way. Scent-control products can be divided into these sub-categories: cover scents, scent-eliminating products, scent-eliminating clothing and ozone-producing products. With the exception of cover scents and clothing, all can be found here.
Without further ado, let’s discuss a killer in-season scent-control program and products that will boost your results.
Hygiene and Clothing Routine
Showering in Scent Crusher’s Hair & Body Wash and Bar Soap is a critical step in the scent-elimination process. Shower immediately before your hunt to eliminate odors you contact during your daily routine — bed sheets, pets, food, cooking odors, candles, etc.
Don’t dress in your outer layers until you reach the property you’ll be hunting so they don’t contact vehicle odors. During a long hunt, say a few days or a week, base layers will absorb more and more body odor as the hunt unfolds, especially in warmer weather. Be sure to store these separately from your outerwear and “crush” them often with Scent Crusher ozone between hunts.
Once you’re dressed and preparing to leave your vehicle, home or cabin and head for your stand, mist your gear — which you washed before the season in Scent Crusher Laundry Detergent and stored in Scent Crusher’s Halo Series The Trunk, Gear Bag or The Locker — with scent-eliminating spray. Stowing them away in airtight Scent Crusher containers when not in use will prevent contact with odors from your cabin, house, garage or vehicle.
The Walking Scent “Wick”
A backpack is perhaps the most overlooked item in regard to scent control. We spend hundreds of dollars on scent-elimination sprays, clothing and rubber boots. Then, we toss jerky into our backpacks and sneak off to the stand with scent billowing and leaving a nice “scent trail” down field edges and across deer trails. It’s not only important to treat the pack with ozone and spray it with a scent-eliminating spray, but it’s crucial to consider the fine details.
What you carry in the pack matters. Anything tossed in the backpack could be a virtual scent “bomb” to a deer’s nose. Think snacks and lunches. To earn their place in a backpack, they must be stored in airtight bags. Further, if the pack becomes sweaty or smelly, the whole bag should be treated with Scent Crusher ozone.
Your Vehicle: A Huge Piece of the Puzzle
For most hunters, hunting equipment becomes a permanent fixture in our vehicles from September or October through the end of deer season. For that reason, think about what odors come and go from your car. One example is rushing from work to fast-food restaurants and then straight to the woods. How about filling up at the gas station?
The odors of greasy foods, fuel and air fresheners in a confined space such as a vehicle cab are astounding. Keeping your apparel in airtight Scent Crusher containers or bags is important, as we mentioned before, but you can also treat the cab with an ozone generator, such as Scent Crusher’s Ozone Go Super Max.
Clean In, Clean Out
Regardless if you’re walking from your back deck or your truck, minimize your impact as you enter and exit your stand location. This means starting with clean, ozone-treated clothing that’s also been misted with a scent-eliminating spray, as noted earlier under the first subheading.
Next, be sure not to walk along deer trails unless you’re creating a deer-scent trail, and also avoid touching saplings and branches along the way. The same goes for your exit strategy.
And when you return to your cabin, home or vehicle following your hunt, don’t take the easy way out and wear your clothing where it will contact tons of odors. Undress and transfer the clothing to Scent Crusher bags or totes, and repeat the process of treating them with ozone before your next hunt.
Conclusion
Done properly, scent control is a very involved, highly detailed process. It isn’t always convenient or comfortable (think dressing in your outer layers in freezing temps after you’ve parked your vehicle). But, it is a critical effort that must be taken seriously. Scent Crusher’s products will streamline the process so that you can beat a whitetail’s nose and experience more routine deer encounters.