Scent elimination or minimization of yourself and your hunting clothing is one of the most important and rewarding efforts you can take to be successful at deer hunting. Like many of you, I have always taken precautions to remove my scent and related man-made odors from my hunting clothing and footwear. Over the years, my efforts have evolved to further ensure that I achieve the desired result in the field of bringing home venison, and can carry out scent elimination efforts with expedient efforts and minimal costs. But one commonly overlooked practice in particular, and expanded upon below, will make a significant difference in getting you closer to deer. This extra effort, paired with other factors such as how effectively you have “de-scented” your body and head, the height of your tree stand, and of course, wind direction work together in circumventing a deer’s sense of smell. This single, most important thing you can do is check your work. Smell your hunting clothing and boots after the application of your scent elimination efforts. If you can detect an odor or scent, so can the deer. So, think twice about using those articles of clothing or make the extra effort to eliminate or further minimize observable scents and odors before heading into the field.
I’m very confident in the combination of techniques I employ because one of the most important things I do is check the condition of my hunting clothes and footwear prior to my hunts. I do this by taking a simple, qualitative approach. I take a whiff of each article of clothing right down to the gloves I’ll be wearing that day. If I detect any scent or odor that I think will alert a deer to my presence, a different article of clothing will be worn or I may “play the wind” and change up the stand location for that hunt. There have been times we are going out and my buddies will question why I am hunting a certain stand… where the wind is blowing in the direction of where we expect the deer to be coming from. My response is usually two-fold: “The stand is high enough, and I am confident (thanks to my qualitative quality control determinations) in my efforts of minimizing or eliminating my scent.” On those occasions, the deer typically stick to their patterns and are passing within bow range despite the wind direction being in their favor. So, I’m sticking with my rituals, no matter how weird anyone may think they are unless I have some experiences in the field that tell me I need to improve upon my scent-elimination game. Now. If I could just sit still while I’m on stand, I could be even more successful.
My hunting clothing and footwear scent elimination/minimization efforts are divided into three segments. Each phase involves the qualitative quality control step of smelling my hunting clothing to determine if it is ready for the field from an olfactory perspective. The three segments are:
- care for new hunting clothing and footwear
- pre-and post-hunting season scent elimination efforts, and
- pre- and post-hunt preparation
Let me begin by stating my hunting clothing and footwear are used for hunting only and they are stored in the corner of my closet during the off-season away from other clothes and the “dirty” laundry basket. Not using your hunting clothing and footwear for other activities or wearing them where they may pick up other odors that are in the air such as exhaust from yard equipment or stepping in man-made substances like oil is just as important as the other efforts you can take to overcome a deer’s sense of smell. So, dedicate your hunting clothing and footwear to hunting. Doing so will simplify the other efforts you take to de-scent or at least minimize human scent or odors that may emanate from your hunting clothing and footwear.
Scent elimination on all of my hunting clothing and footwear begins when each new article is received. All new hunting clothing and footwear are aired out in direct sunlight for a short time. If I can detect an odor, they are washed using a fragrance-free detergent and some baking soda. (Not the boots.) If not, I’ll spray them down with a product that minimizes or eliminates scent, let them dry, and hang them in the closet until ready to use.
After deer season closes, my hunting clothing will get a thorough washing in the machine with a detergent that is free of fragrances and perfumes. (This may also take place during or just prior to the beginning of the season if any unwanted odor is detectable on my hunting garments.) You can look for fragrance-fee detergent options wherever you buy your detergent. Also, since these detergents may have “brighteners” in them, I’ll add a tablespoon or two of baking soda to the load and run it with an extra rinse. The baking soda not only can help minimize scent but also reduces the effect of brighteners that may be in the detergent. I once read deer can distinguish “a sort of glow” that comes from clothing from the surrounding foliage, giving away a hunter’s position. So, baking soda is important for two reasons. Please beware that baking soda has corrosive properties, and while I never experienced it ruining my hunting clothes in any manner, it is prudent to limit its use and employ that extra rinse cycle if you choose to add it to your wash. Another tip you may want to consider if you detect detergent fragrances in your washing machine from previous loads is to run a rinse cycle with hot water on its own prior to running a load of your hunting clothes. This is an important extra step if other detergents that have fragrances are used in your household. I’ll always do this or first run a load of my “street” clothes with fragrance-free detergent if fragrances from other detergents can be detected (smelled) in the washing machine prior to running a load of my hunting clothes. These practices are used primarily for my outer and middle layers. My base layers are typically washed more frequently with my “street” clothing using a detergent that is fragrance-free and I typically won’t worry about traces of fragrances in the washing machine that are detectable by smell from a prior load of laundry.
I also use the dryer to dry all of my clothes vs. hanging them outdoors to dry. We don’t use any type of dryer sheets. So, the risk of unwanted odors from the dryer contaminating my hunting clothing is nil. I also rely on the heat from the dryer to play a role in further off-gassing any traces of odors or fragrances that may be on the clothes. However, after using the dryer, I will typically hang my outer layers where they can further “air out” away from other clothing and sources of man-made odors, indoors or out. Of note, I’ve tried storing my hunting clothes in a bag with foliage from the areas where I hunt. But, have migrated away from those efforts as they did not always yield desirable results and well, I just feel that clean clothing is more effective in preventing the proliferation of microbes that can cause odor.
My last qualitative quality checks are done prior to and immediately after my hunts. If I can detect any odors or if garments are slightly damp with sweat, I will spray the garments in question with a commercial spray that will minimize or eliminate human scent. This is also done just prior to the season as a redundant precaution. In those cases where my outer or mid layers become more soiled than not, they are getting pulled from the lineup and washed. I’ll then check them again prior to the next use.
The old adage “details matter” applies to scent elimination and minimization efforts. Determine the scent-elimination efforts that will work for you and stick with those strategies that work during each stage of preparation. Most importantly, don’t be shy about using your own nose to detect odors or scents on your hunting clothes. Remember, if you can smell it, so can the deer. Stay tuned for my article on the efforts I take during the season and particularly prior to a hunt to influence the scent my body generates on hunt day. These efforts are also important and go hand-in-hand with efforts used to keep your hunting clothes odor free since your scent does transfer to your hunting clothes.
