Ground scent

[mheichelbech]

Just heard a podcast by Bill Winke where he makes the case that ground scent that deer react to is due to scent from pants legs rubbing against brush. He said he doesn't wear rubber boots (not sure why not???) but that when he used waders...he never got busted to and from his stand.
My experience doesn't match up with this as I used rubber boots (but not waders) and tuck my pants in, use clean clothes etc and seen deer react...

Curious about others experience with this.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Stanley]

Bill is spot on walking walking through tall grass. You will get busted. Even with waders on. I have had very good luck with rubber boots and not getting busted. Tall wet grass is the worst. Wet ground is also bad. Just tends to hold scent.

[Dewey]

On more than one hunt I have walked in with heavy rain while wearing head to toe rain gear and hip boots over the top then had a deer totally come unglued at my ground scent. In almost every case it was cattails or taller marsh grass. Pretty surprising since in most cases I just walked long distance in thigh deep muck and water. Proves to me you cannot in any way cover your scent. Only way to beat a deers nose 100% is keep the wind in your favor and never ever walk where you expect a deer to travel.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[mheichelbech]

Bill is spot on walking walking through tall grass. You will get busted. Even with waders on. I have had very good luck with rubber boots and not getting busted. Tall wet grass is the worst. Wet ground is also bad. Just tends to hold scent.

He was saying he didn't get busted with waders on...at least the way I heard it...that's it due to scent on clothing. If that were true then tucking your pants into rubber boots should work but it does not...so I am not really sure what his point is.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[stash59]

I used to always wear hip boots. Even when hunting well away from water. I thought it helped but it wasn't fool proof. Granted most of the deer crossing my trail were younger or in semi-wilderness/wilderness settings. With very low hunter/human impact.

I think part of the deal with rubber boots is how you store them. If you put the whole boot in a bag or tote. The stink from your feet gets saturated even on the outside of them. I always put them in a plastic bag. But tied the bag around the tops. But let the air go in and out of the inside of the boots.

[BassBoysLLP]

Bill is spot on walking walking through tall grass. You will get busted. Even with waders on. I have had very good luck with rubber boots and not getting busted. Tall wet grass is the worst. Wet ground is also bad. Just tends to hold scent.

He was saying he didn't get busted with waders on...at least the way I heard it...that's it due to scent on clothing. If that were true then tucking your pants into rubber boots should work but it does not...so I am not really sure what his point is.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

Bill hunts exclusively on Winkeland. Winkeland has manicured trails and ditches to stand locations. He isn't walking through tall wet grass.

[ Post made via Android ]

[Bigb]

I think part of the deal with rubber boots is how you store them. If you put the whole boot in a bag or tote. The stink from your feet gets saturated even on the outside of them. I always put them in a plastic bag. But tied the bag around the tops. But let the air go in and out of the inside of the boots.

I like the way you think. I keep my boots separate from everything else in a boot bag. As soon as the boots are on or off, they are in a zippered boot bag. I try and treat my boots the best I can. I think keeping boots as scent free as you can must help some. I see plenty of people who just throw there boots in the back of there truck on on the front seat floor boards. There picking up all sorts of non-natural scent that way. If you can keep you boots out of any elements that could hurt you in can only help.

[Tufrthnails]

I think part of the deal with rubber boots is how you store them. If you put the whole boot in a bag or tote. The stink from your feet gets saturated even on the outside of them. I always put them in a plastic bag. But tied the bag around the tops. But let the air go in and out of the inside of the boots.

I like the way you think. I keep my boots separate from everything else in a boot bag. As soon as the boots are on or off, they are in a zippered boot bag. I try and treat my boots the best I can. I think keeping boots as scent free as you can must help some. I see plenty of people who just throw there boots in the back of there truck on on the front seat floor boards. There picking up all sorts of non-natural scent that way. If you can keep you boots out of any elements that could hurt you in can only help.

I used bag in everything but my underarmor. I actually got pulled over speeding on the way to some private land I had running late. You should have seen the look on the officers face when he walked up to my truck and I am wearing black under armor long sleeve and pants. Took a bit of explaining and showing him my hunting gear. He laughed so hard that he let me off with a warning. I stopped worrying about it so much when I realized it just doesn't work you can't hunt upwind from a deer. That said I still spray my boots before I head in. I do agree it might help in the right situation, but honestly just hasn't helped me enough to go through the trouble anymore. I have a buddy that still to this day uses activated carbon and doesn't kill crap.

[Lockdown]

On more than one hunt I have walked in with heavy rain while wearing head to toe rain gear and hip boots over the top then had a deer totally come unglued at my ground scent. In almost every case it was cattails or taller marsh grass. Pretty surprising since in most cases I just walked long distance in thigh deep muck and water. Proves to me you cannot in any way cover your scent. [glow=red]Only way to beat a deers nose 100% is keep the wind in your favor and never ever walk where you expect a deer to travel.[/glow]

[ Post made via iPhone ]

The taller the grass is, the more likely you are to get busted. I had decent luck with rubber boots in a hardwoods scenario, IMHO thats because their nose was 3 feet above my scent trail and the only thing touching earth was the soles of my boots.

I have aborted scent control efforts entirely. I do NOTHING aside from wearing rubber boots. Whatever I wear to work is what I wear on stand. I obsessed over scent killer and totes for years, and always chalked up positive experiences to my scent control regime. Last year the biggest buck I saw all year crossed my scent trail and didn't bust me Weird. A few years prior I would have been praising wildlife research center for an amazing product. Now I realize he didn't have his head low enough to smell me in that thin grass.


Plan your entry and exit knowing they're going to smell you. If they don't, then lucky you. If you have to cross trails near your stand, cross directly where your wind is blowing, or cross where you can shoot him.

[mheichelbech]

I agree with Burkhardt. The podcast was somewhat contradictory as he talked about wearing regular hunting boots but that it was his belief that scent coming from your pants (the material) is what disturbs deer. If he believed that then why wouldn't he wear rubber boots? Unless of course the mowed and manicured entry/exit trails negated the need for it. He used the analogy of pants that hold water being way worse than waterproof pvc type pants which do not absorb water. I dunno it just was off to hear such a strong statement about scent from him.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[tgreeno]

IMO you are going to leave scent no matter what you do. I think sometimes it depends on the mode of the deer. I've had many deer walk right a crossed my back trail and not react in the slightest. Others have taken a bound or two, then settle right back down.
.

[Rutnstrut]

IMO it's all about how you store those boots. It doesn't matter if they are leather/neoprene/rubber. If you wear them for ANYTHING other than hunting and don't keep them clean, dry and in their own container. You WILL contaminate them and leave more ground scent. I say more, because regardless of what you wear you will always leave some ground scent. But if you keep a few pairs of boots for nothing but hunting and put them on as you go into hunt and take them off when you are done. I believe it cuts way down on getting busted by ground scent. But I also do this with my hunting clothes. Clean and in their own containers. Worn ONLY for hunting, changed into and out of outside the truck. I see supposedly serious hunters wearing their hunting clothes and boots to the gas station, store, bar, etc... Yes hunting the wind will cover a lot of stink. But it doesn't cover anything you may brush against on the walk in or out.

[Stanley]

If you think about it, you can be within a few yards of a deer and he will not smell you if the wind is right. So you can elude a deer's nose. Gotta be smart about it and use that knowledge to help you out. If you are walking to your stand on a windy dry day your ground scent will blow off the path you walk.

If you are walking in wet conditions with no wind your ground scent stays right where you walked/walk. So it's not all equal. I have had many bucks cross my path and not become alarmed. But I'm not slipshod about it. My boots stay outside. They do not go in the truck, in the house, they stay outside in the weather. Any way it works for me.

Just like anything else some guys can do things others can't. This usually comes with a reason. Just like hitting a golf ball, some guys can hit the ball 100 yards farther than the other stronger bigger guy using the same exact equipment.

[Rich M]

The lease I hunted had mowed trails - 6-8 inch grass. I always went out of my way not to brush against anything or touch anything with other than my boots, which had/have Evercalm scent on them (bottom arch, sides, toe, and up the sides).

In 3 years, I saw no less than 6 - 3.5 yr old bucks or better feeding or walking down my trail in and out of the stand after I used it. I also used to have to walk through corn/bait to reach a downwind stand and had multiple does and young bucks and even several mature deer feed in the corn I had walked through, sometimes less than an hour earlier.

I'm fully convinced that rubber boots are the way to go, scent free shower soap, scent free detergent for clothes, and not touching stuff as you go to and from stand.

Hunting heavy cover is diff but my hunting spots allow me to access stands without touching stuff. I HAVE to cross ravel routes at times and haven't seen them impacted by my passing. I don't hunt Winkeland but do get to mow my access trails.

[Stanley]

On more than one hunt I have walked in with heavy rain while wearing head to toe rain gear and hip boots over the top then had a deer totally come unglued at my ground scent. In almost every case it was cattails or taller marsh grass. Pretty surprising since in most cases I just walked long distance in thigh deep muck and water. Proves to me you cannot in any way cover your scent. [glow=red]Only way to beat a deers nose 100% is keep the wind in your favor and never ever walk where you expect a deer to travel.[/glow]

[ Post made via iPhone ]

The taller the grass is, the more likely you are to get busted. I had decent luck with rubber boots in a hardwoods scenario, IMHO thats because their nose was 3 feet above my scent trail and the only thing touching earth was the soles of my boots.

I have aborted scent control efforts entirely. I do NOTHING aside from wearing rubber boots. Whatever I wear to work is what I wear on stand. I obsessed over scent killer and totes for years, and always chalked up positive experiences to my scent control regime. Last year the biggest buck I saw all year crossed my scent trail and didn't bust me Weird. A few years prior I would have been praising wildlife research center for an amazing product. Now I realize he didn't have his head low enough to smell me in that thin grass.


Plan your entry and exit knowing they're going to smell you. If they don't, then lucky you. If you have to cross trails near your stand, cross directly where your wind is blowing, or cross where you can shoot him.

Bingo..... bucks don't react to what they don't smell. A dog has his nose to the ground to smell for a reason.