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Which option is more important?

Bwhana

Well-Known Member
SH Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2017
Messages
2,286
Location
Hickory, NC
Playing the wind, Scentlok, and hunting high are the big three of scent control (not including ozone generators). For this discussion only, let's ignore the wind and say for your options, you are hunting deer that are going to be dead downwind. Given ONLY the choice of Scentlok to hunt on the ground or none and hunt above 25 ft in a tree, which would you choose? Please keep it light, no arguments intended or desired, just for fun and thought!

For the record, I used to only high before Scentlok and scent control was even on most radars, and I rarely got busted back then and I ignored the wind. I choose height over the technology for this scenario, but I do believe in Scentlok and use it out of state.

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Hunt high everytime. I think scent-lok is interesting and wouldnt mind trying it. It never hurts to have another tool in the arsenal in my opinion. But the way I look at it hunting high is a tried and true method and another reason I love saddle hunting. Theres no way I ever wouldve went much over 20 feet in my climber and loc on days. But when I started saddle hunting years ago I found myself climbing closer to the 30 foot range at first by accident and then later on purpose because my deer sightings went up noticeably. So hunt high is my vote
 
I currently hunt high while wearing scentlok. Not that I want to, but if I HAD TO give one up it would be the scentlok. I try but I must not be dedicated enough to scent control to make scentlok infallible by itself at ground level. I still get winded occasionally even with my hunt high/scentlok combo. IMHO the height provides the bigger bang for the buck in my case.
 
Scentlok, I mean the entire system. I use mouthwash before going in, head/face cover must be included. NOW brand Chlorella works unbelievably well. I have worn the same t shirt for a week and COULD NOT smell it. I don't mean to hijack the thread, but I can't create a thread- a pop up saying "oops we ran into problems" appears...
 
Scentlok, I mean the entire system. I use mouthwash before going in, head/face cover must be included. NOW brand Chlorella works unbelievably well. I have worn the same t shirt for a week and COULD NOT smell it. I don't mean to hijack the thread, but I can't create a thread- a pop up saying "oops we ran into problems" appears...
No hijack as I see it, this is your viewpoint, welcomed to be shared.
 
Scentlok, I mean the entire system. I use mouthwash before going in, head/face cover must be included. NOW brand Chlorella works unbelievably well. I have worn the same t shirt for a week and COULD NOT smell it. I don't mean to hijack the thread, but I can't create a thread- a pop up saying "oops we ran into problems" appears...
No hijack, no worries! Agree on the whole system approach, and I assumed without stating that all the prep was identical, just the Scentlok vs height as the variables. There is no wrong answer to this one, just food for thought, especially for some of the new and less experienced hunters I have seen on the site recently. I hope this challenges their thinking beyond simply following someone else's approach and ask the deeper "why" questions to all things hunting.

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I think they all have their benefits. However, there are times when you cannot hunt high. I grew up hunting the pine barrens of NJ. The scrub oak and small pines only allowed perhaps only half your stand placements to get above 10-15 feet before you could not see. The areas I hunted were so thick the deer have tunnels through the scrub oak. Scent lok for my brothers and friends that hunt these areas have been a game changer.
 
I choose both. I don’t try to hunt deer downwind without scentlok. Not that I haven’t killed downwind deer without scentlok but it was never part of the plan.
 
I hunt lots of broken terrain with so many wind swirls, the idea of a steady wind is laughable. ....any idea why I can't create a thread?
 
I also choose to hunt high if I had to choose. However too high can present some not so great shot options where you are likely to one lung the deer. Combo of both is best.
 
Hunt high. I use scent control as much as possible. Wash the Sitka in scent free, work the wind, try to leave as little scent as possible. I'll take a 5% advantage Everytime.
But I think the biggest thing I learned this last season was milk weed!! Have always hunted high (much to my buddy's frustration), but watching the thermals with milk weed was magic!!
 
i used to take all of the precautions. i tried to de-scent or cover my scent all the time. i killed plenty of deer. however, i now only play the wind, i do no scent control at all. i just let the wind do the work. i have been seeing more deer, especially since being wind aware on my entry. just my two cents. as long as everyone is happy with their own system, that's all that matters.
 
Stand height is the X factor. It can cause the air that moves over your body to not come in contact with the deer's nose. With scent control the deer smells some human odor but has difficulty determining distance to the possible threat. Deer use their nose to judge distance similar to how we use our eyes. If we can cut our scent dispersal in half we can potentially represent that we are twice as far away. From that calculated distance the deer will decide if the odor is of concern or not.
 
If you like getting high, then i believe that would be more effective than on the ground in scent lock. Personally getting high is not even an option for me where hunt, so I would choose on the ground wearing my ghillie downwind - even if that meant sitting in a stubble field trying to "become the bush" I just do not think you beat a deer's nose.
 
Hunt high. I use scent control as much as possible. Wash the Sitka in scent free, work the wind, try to leave as little scent as possible. I'll take a 5% advantage Everytime.
But I think the biggest thing I learned this last season was milk weed!! Have always hunted high (much to my buddy's frustration), but watching the thermals with milk weed was magic!!
Milk weed, or cattail: super important.
 
Hypothetically, I would hunt as high as I could and hope the deer were far enough away that the shot angle wouldn't cause a one lung hit. Realistically speaking, my time in the woods is way too valauble to waste, so I ain't intentionally hunting upwind of deer, ever.;)
 
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