The Eberhart Experiment

[rogerthat]

Anyone who knows me, knows I listen to too many podcasts. I was recently listening to a podcast with John Eberhart and I was blown away with his statement that he pays zero attention to wind direction on his hunts. I have read John’s older books and you can’t deny his track record of success. I incorporate some of his approach to hunting whitetails in mine. However you can put me firmly in the scent control skeptics camp. To me scent control means hunting the wind. I’m a hairy stinky bastard too.

Out here in the west, I believe this is normal. Long hikes and sweating don’t lend itself to staying scent free. But I am intrigued and curiosity has the best of me. I’m going to give John’s system a try. Full scentlok suit ordered and on its way. I will detail my understanding of the system in another post and how I plan to implement it as I archery whitetail hunt two states. Last year I mostly got winded when deer got directly down wind. I expect similar results this year but that will be the experiment. Daily results will be posted to this thread as time allows.(I don’t have much so be patient). Next post will lay out the system as I intend to implement it. Feel free to chime in if you see flaws in the system or logic. You guys can be my peer reviewers in a sense.

 

[rogerthat]

The system: full scentlok suit with gloves and pull down face mask - suit will be dryer regenerated every 40 hours - hunting face mask and gloves every 20.

Everything will be stored in sealed tote in back of pickup and changed into and out at hunting area. The concept is that everything will be covered in carbon except my eyes and cheeks. All accessories and climbing gear will be washed in scent free detergent and stored in sealed totes and only handled with gloves. Undergarment layers will be worn once and than washed in scent free detergent.

To me the weak spot in the system is the accessories. My bino harness is old and stinky. Not sure I can hunt without it though. It will be washed in scent free detergent just like everything else. I will throw a different set of binos for truck glass. John uses a scentlok backpack. I’m just going to wash a fanny pack I already use in scent free detergent. The only thing I plan to do different than John is I will use an ozone generator as well on my accessories inside a sealed tote from time to time which as I understand will leave an ozone smell instead. I don’t think he would approve but it makes sense to me.

Also I plan to do my hunts as normal. My confidence is low in this idea. So I will still hunt the wind but I always end up with deer downwind invariably anyway.

Some hunts I may abandon the scent control system if they are too far of a hike. For example one spot is a 3 mile bike ride and a two mile walk. I dont think staying scent free is possible for that spot but it’s a killer spot so I’m hunting it

 

[Point Creep]

An old roommate bought a scentloc suit. I tried it on in the house and ripped ass. They don’t work.

 

[MTTW]

I just keep the windows on the truck rolled up until just before I shoot. So far, so good.

 

[bigsky2]

Looking forward to hearing how it goes.

 

[rogerthat]

An old roommate bought a scentloc suit. I tried it on in the house and ripped ass. They don’t work.

Passing the fart test is a high bar. Has anything ever made it? If the material didn’t blow out we may want to call that a pass

 

[cgasner1]

Makes you wonder how bad the fart would have been in regular clothes.

 

[rogerthat]

A little more info, so my understanding is that eberhart gets his scentlok for free but he isn’t sponsored. I don’t understand what he would have to gain pushing this. I’m trying this strictly on his reputation and my curiosity. I think 99% of the hunting industry products especially regarding scents is hocus pocus. And obviously you don’t need to do this to be successful. Playing the wind works 100% of the time when you play it right

 

[MTTW]

Have you ever seen an animal stop and smell your tracks and bolt back to where they came from?
I think they can smell your breath, but I have no clue how far. Coyotes probably a lot further than a deer.

 

[rogerthat]

Have you ever seen an animal stop and smell your tracks and bolt back to where they came from?
I think they can smell your breath, but I have no clue how far. Coyotes probably a lot further than a deer.

Yes I have when not wearing rubber boots. I have also had them track me to my tree after spraying down with scent elimination spray that turns out has a scent haha

 

[Perlodid]

Doesn't Eberhart also hunt super high out of a tree pretty much exclusively? Like 30+ feet up? I think I read that a long time ago. Always wondered if that was more important than his scent free shenanigans regarding deer not smelling him

 

[Forkyfinder]

Man i find that to be head scratching. It seems like a never ending game? Food, oil/wax on bowstrings, nicotine, tooth paste?

Do you expect not to sweat, fart, or otherwise stink? If youve ever came home for the "homosapien rut'.. you've noticed that those draw odds are 0 until you are clean and washed.

I think this might be a decent play for an easy walk thats a still hunt with very little gear.

 

[Hunting Wife]

Have you ever seen an animal stop and smell your tracks and bolt back to where they came from?
I think they can smell your breath, but I have no clue how far. Coyotes probably a lot further than a deer.

A couple of weeks ago while chasing antelope with my bow, I was sitting and watching a herd, waiting for them to move and had a coyote walk right up to me. There was zero wind, so I assume after sitting there for 20 minutes or so, there must be some “bubble” of scent around me. I didn’t move, and he walked up to about 10 feet in front of me before he smelled something, but still couldn’t figure out where I was. I was sitting on the ground out in the wide open (some unexpected deer had pinned me down while I was sneaking, so I was kind of stuck there), so maybe any scent dispersed more than I realized. It was interesting to watch him sniffing and looking past me. But I was wearing clothes I’d been sweating in all morning and had worn the day before. I was surprised it couldn’t smell me until that close.

 

[cgasner1]

Should invest in some good Carhartt winter bibs. Those will hold a fart in. Be catching whiffs of that 45 min later. Also the greenhouse effect for staying warm on those long cold sits

 

[MTTW]

Story time. A few years back my brother glasses a mule deer buck about a mile away in open country. He walks up there and jumps a buck and kills it. Before he gets to it he realized it was the wrong buck, looks around and can't figure where the right buck could have gone.

He started gutting his deer and came up for air at some point and sees a dead buck in a 10 foot wide clump of brush with no leaves. He gets his glasses and sees the buck's eye blink, head on the ground watching him gut a deer that he just shot 40 yards away.

About this time the buck jumps up and hauled ass.
The moral of the story is, I believe some animals learn to react differently, or not react to the sight and smell of humans, and whitetails might be at the top of that list. I am not sure you will find a definitive answer.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

interested to hear your take after some time doing it.

That level of commitment is way too much of a PITA for me to get on board. I believe there's no way you're eliminating the scent from breathing and perspiring and im pretty sure theyve proven that out with dog tests in these suits. BUT, i also believe there is something to a deers reaction and future decisions being impacted by just how strong that scent they catch is. Does it smell like a farmer drove by on a tractor or like a homeless guy has been camped there for a week?

 

[Mallardsx2]

Been Archery and gun hunting whitetail for 35 years.

A story to share:

I used to be a scent free nazi.....I mean strict adherence to procedure kind of guy.

One evening 25 years ago, I put on all of my scent free gear, got on my rubber boots I kept in my tote of leaves behind my garage, I sprayed down, snuck through the woods, walked up a creek 125 yards in 5"of water....I got out of the creek and took 5 steps to my tree. I watched 2 hours later as a mature doe followed my trail. It then walked the creek smelling the water, then got out where I did and followed me right to my tree and looked up at me.

I knew right then, that I was hunting an animal that truly was next level intelligent.
No animal that I have ever hunted in north America compares to a heavily pressured whitetail. None.

You will NEVER beat their nose.

Eberhart.....well.....he spends a LOT of time in a tree. Anyone who does that will have shots eventually. Especially if your are high in a tree in a bedding area (one of his favorite tactics).

 

[rogerthat]

Been Archery and gun hunting whitetail for 35 years.

A story to share:

I used to be a scent free nazi.....I mean strict adherence to procedure kind of guy.

One evening 25 years ago, I put on all of my scent free gear, got on my rubber boots I kept in my tote of leaves behind my garage, I sprayed down, snuck through the woods, walked up a creek 125 yards in 5"of water....I got out of the creek and took 5 steps to my tree. I watched 2 hours later as a mature doe followed my trail. It then walked the creek smelling the water, then got out where I did and followed me right to my tree and looked up at me.

I knew right then, that I was hunting an animal that truly was next level intelligent.
No animal that I have ever hunted in north America compares to a heavily pressured whitetail. None.

You will NEVER beat their nose.

Eberhart.....well.....he spends a LOT of time in a tree. Anyone who does that will have shots eventually. Especially if your are high in a tree in a bedding area (one of his favorite tactics).

He claims he hasn’t been winded in 17 years. Pretty amazing claim

 

[Wild Bill]

I knew right then, that I was hunting an animal that truly was next level intelligent.
No animal that I have ever hunted in north America compares to a heavily pressured whitetail. None.

I've wondered what is more impressive, their sense of smell, or reaction time. Something pretty impressive about a deer hearing the whisper of a string releasing an arrow @ about 300 fps and having the ability to react and slip out of harms way.

 

[Mallardsx2]

He claims he hasn’t been winded in 17 years. Pretty amazing claim

He lost all creditability with me when he said that. Actually, that's when I stopped listening to his nonsense.