How bad do I Stink?

[drthornton]

Let me preface this discussion by saying I have never Elk hunted but...

I was watching a hunting show recently, a guy and his guide were rifle hunting and watching a Bull in a Meadow at about 250 yards preparing for a shot. The wind (which was in there face) switched to directly behind them. The Bull caught wind and hot footed it out of there.

I am an avid deer bowhunter(whitetail) and I have had deer(does and even mature bucks) downwind of me at very close distances and they almost never spook. I don't use any special clothing. I just watch myself around cooking and other human scents in my hunting clothes/boots. I do use Scent Away a lot, shower in scent free soaps and also use a dirt or cedar cover scent.

Since I have not been Elk hunting what am I missing here?

1. Do Elk have better noses than whitetail?
2. Are Whitetail simply more tolerant of human smells as they inherently live nearer to humans and come across their smells all the time?
3. Is keeping yourself as scent free as possible infinitely harder when you are in the backcountry without access to showers and scent free stuff? The guy on the show has no excuse because he was hunting from a lodge.
4. Is it something to do with the typical elevated nature (treestand hunting) for whitetails? i.e. your smell simply wafts over the deer.

I do believe that there is no substitute for hunting with the wind in your face but getting winded at 250 yards sounds ridiculous to me.

Please, someone set me straight.

 

[drahthaar]

I have been winded at distances of probably 150 yards, maybe a little more. For sure, open country, I was with a guy from IA that came up here to hunt. He was impressed. You could see when they got the smell, they didn't just bolt, like they do when you are right on top of them, but they knew, they circled up, than decided to head out, right into the wind.

 

[Bambistew]

I'm not sure if they can smell any better or worse, but when they do smell humans they're gone. I believe they can see better than deer too. I've had elk spot me over 600-700 yards walking in the open.

There is no similarity between hunting deer in a tree stand (that took you 10 min to walk to) and hiking 2 hours in the dark to get to the spot you plan to hunt elk that morning. You get stinky and stay that way. There is very little you can do to keep scent free on an elk hunt.

I've seen whitetails spook (either by sight or smell) and come back to the same area the next night. With elk you probably won't see them for 2 weeks. Deer are much more tolerant to humans.

I've taken a pretty fair share of both whitetails and elk, and will say that with deer, I don't worry so much about the wind as I do elk.

 

[drthornton]

Yeah I don't discount the fact that if Elk smell you they are gone. Perhaps being a larger critter and thus a larger nose they have additional sensors which allow them to pick up more scent.

Maybe this is not a apples to apples comparison but I'm just trying to get my thick skull around it.

Bambistew is 100% correct that if you bump a whitetail (scent or sight) that critter will be back, sometimes as soon as 45 minutes, especially around food sources. Even as a current "TV Elk Hunter" I can figure out that Elk simply range far more than deer and will spook many miles instead of to the next clump of trees.

I hope more chime in with their theories.

Makes me think about my archery hunt next September (which will likely be a hot and sweaty endeavor). Do I need to even plan to pack bottles of Scent Away or just deal with the wind?

 

[belly-deep]

Elk have larger nasal passages than deer, so it would stand to reason that they could smell better as well.

Another thing to consider is that your average whitetail probably smells many more humans in the course of a year than your average elk does. From December to August, there is just not that much human activity in most elk country.

 

[Gerald Martin]

I don't think its ridiculous at all that the elk smelled him at 250 yards. I've had them smell me well over 150 before. Most elk hunts if you are camping you will be smelly, period. Anymore, I figure that if the wind isn't right its not going to happen.

 

[drahthaar]

Makes me think about my archery hunt next September (which will likely be a hot and sweaty endeavor). Do I need to even plan to pack bottles of Scent Away or just deal with the wind?

I would just deal with the wind. Maybe its just me, packing around bottles of scent away isn't worth it. Like Bambi said, you get stinky and stay that way. Even when you get to where you want, to end up walking God knows where else, usually uphill, and you stink some more. I have heard of some hard core guys hiking in on trails in their underwear, packing their camo in a plastic bag, and then putting it on when they get there. Whatever. I think you just do your best with the wind when you have it. I don't believe you can be THAT scent free no matter what. Just hope the winds are consistent when he is coming in, no swirling!!!!

 

[drthornton]

I think I am starting to understand.
Pack in 30 pounds of fresh clothes, unscented baby wipes, and scent spray or just play the wind.
Even though I have not gone I plan to play the wind

I am totally on board with the fact that if Elk wind you, even at extremely long distances, you are out of luck, But....I still can't quite comprehend it.

If I can remember I'll repost to this thread in October (after my hunt). I have a feeling that I still may not have an answer but my tune will have changed.

Thanks for the responses. I know a lot of you guys have hunted Elk for decades but your wisdom really helps us rookies. We're not idiots, just not experienced, and the info we glean from good forums like this helps us tremendously!

 

[sweetnectar]

Just a side note. You can use as much scent away as you want but I doubt your rifle or bow uses it. Just smell your limb saver, fletching glue, or rifle action. Ya they stink, and to an elk they really stink.

 

[drthornton]

Very Good Point!

I used my archery gear exclusively this year for whitetail which had new arrows and freshly lubed gear.

On Dec 27th I had a respectable 3.5 year old deer buck come creeping in downwind of my stand. He was not more than 10 yards from of me(I am about 15 feet elevated). He got spooked, by not me, but a Bobcat walking around at 40 yards in front of us. After the bobcat left he came on thru.

This is what perplexes me!

 

[drayegon]

How far can you smell?

I have been hunting for way to long. I have seen just about anything and everything that can come to pass. Elk have good days and bad just like people. Yet on their worst day they can smell and see and hear just about a thousand times better than you and me combined.

I love to set up with a spotting scope at the top of a mountain and watch the ridges for up to fifteen miles away. WHAT!!!!! yes that is 15 MILES. I have a Meade 125mm telescope with a straight thru eye piece. I can crank it up to 125X on its tripod. I can see fly's buzzing around an elks head at Ten miles. When I watch an elk bugle I watch its throat jiggle back and forth. Some times I never even hear these bulls if the wind is going against me.

I was doing exactly that one time watching a bull bugle. I could hear him fine but it was taking almost two full minutes after I would see him bugle. Before I could hear him. That meant he was over 20 Miles or maybe a few foot more.

The wind had been in my face for about an hour when for some reason it turned a full 180 and was against my back. It was not blowing to hard say maybe five miles per. Still it stopped me from hearing that bull. I did hear the ones behind me though. Seemed like four or five of them. It was the day before rifle season started so I had a campfire going and was cooking up some sausage with lots of pepper and I had just tossed in a couple of hand fulls of flour and three cups of milk. To make up some gravy to go with the biscuts in the dutch oven. I had walked over to the scope because the elk I could not hear any more from him. When I looked he was still at full song but it must have been maybe a full ten minutes or so. While I am watching him it was like he got a bit shook up. I could see his eyes bulge out some and his ears were twitching this way and that. It was like that elk was worried more than just a little. All of a sudden there must have been twenty cows started out of that field at a dead run going straight away from me. That bull was hot on their heels.

To this day I figure that herd must have smelled their relatives cooking away for dinner that night.

dray

 

[Bio Bo]

I have been hunting for way to long. I have seen just about anything and everything that can come to pass. Elk have good days and bad just like people. Yet on their worst day they can smell and see and hear just about a thousand times better than you and me combined.

I love to set up with a spotting scope at the top of a mountain and watch the ridges for up to fifteen miles away. WHAT!!!!! yes that is 15 MILES. I have a Meade 125mm telescope with a straight thru eye piece. I can crank it up to 125X on its tripod. I can see fly's buzzing around an elks head at Ten miles. When I watch an elk bugle I watch its throat jiggle back and forth. Some times I never even hear these bulls if the wind is going against me.

I was doing exactly that one time watching a bull bugle. I could hear him fine but it was taking almost two full minutes after I would see him bugle. Before I could hear him. That meant he was over 20 Miles or maybe a few foot more.

The wind had been in my face for about an hour when for some reason it turned a full 180 and was against my back. It was not blowing to hard say maybe five miles per. Still it stopped me from hearing that bull. I did hear the ones behind me though. Seemed like four or five of them. It was the day before rifle season started so I had a campfire going and was cooking up some sausage with lots of pepper and I had just tossed in a couple of hand fulls of flour and three cups of milk. To make up some gravy to go with the biscuts in the dutch oven. I had walked over to the scope because the elk I could not hear any more from him. When I looked he was still at full song but it must have been maybe a full ten minutes or so. While I am watching him it was like he got a bit shook up. I could see his eyes bulge out some and his ears were twitching this way and that. It was like that elk was worried more than just a little. All of a sudden there must have been twenty cows started out of that field at a dead run going straight away from me. That bull was hot on their heels.

To this day I figure that herd must have smelled their relatives cooking away for dinner that night.

dray

Ha! Ha! Ha! That story reminds me of the MT mosquitos that flew off w/ the washpot...

 

[Gerald Martin]

"Ha! Ha! Ha! That story reminds me of the MT mosquitos that flew off w/ the washpot..."


You saying you don't believe that story about the mosqitos????? I know that one was true for a fact, cause Drayegon saw it from 15 miles away through his telescope, took some pics and emailed them to me.

p.s. it was an iron 30 gal cooking kettle not a washpot.

 

[Bio Bo]

"Ha! Ha! Ha! That story reminds me of the MT mosquitos that flew off w/ the washpot..."


You saying you don't believe that story about the mosqitos????? I know that one was true for a fact, cause Drayegon saw it from 15 miles away through his telescope, took some pics and emailed them to me.

p.s. it was an iron 30 gal cooking kettle not a washpot.

The way I heard it... the guy hid under the washpot from the mosquitoes, so they drilled holes in the washpot w/ their proboscises. He then bent their proboscises down w/ a hammer so they simply flew off w/ the washpot... but they could probably do the same w/ a kettle. They DO grow'em big up there, don't you know...

 

[Gerald Martin]

Yup. I heard it the same way so it must be true.

 

[smalls]

I love to set up with a spotting scope at the top of a mountain and watch the ridges for up to fifteen miles away. WHAT!!!!! yes that is 15 MILES. I have a Meade 125mm telescope with a straight thru eye piece. I can crank it up to 125X on its tripod. I can see fly's buzzing around an elks head at Ten miles. When I watch an elk bugle I watch its throat jiggle back and forth. Some times I never even hear these bulls if the wind is going against me.

I was doing exactly that one time watching a bull bugle. I could hear him fine but it was taking almost two full minutes after I would see him bugle. Before I could hear him. That meant he was over 20 Miles or maybe a few foot more.

dray

I suppose range isn't a factor since laser beams aren't effected by gravity.