Smoking in your treestand? yes or no?

Question

Me and a friend have debated this several times, we both smoke but I do in the deerstand, he doesn't. I have shot deer while actually smoking, or immediatly after. Biggest buck I shot was while I was smoking sitting on the ground, and he was 25 yards away when I shot him. Have had them come in behind me from the downwind side within minutes of putting one out.
I think it matters more about wind direction than anything. Anyone else?

Answer 1

First off, Danny D has a REAL problem. Why come into the hunting forum and bash hunters? Deer and other animals were put on this earth for humans to eat. That is their purpose in life!

Now to answer the question, I believe that it is ALL about wind direction if you are on the ground. But if you are 15-20 ft. in a tree, I don't see much it could hurt as long as you don't throw them on the ground.

Answer 2

This is one of the greatest debates I have heard amongst hunters (this and the debate on whether a buck leaves its home territory if you spook them)...

When I go hunting. I wash all my hunting clothes at the end of the season in scent-free soap. I store my clothes in a scent free bag made for clothing with a few earth scented wafers in them (the clothes soak up the scent of the wafers and the smell of dirt won't even wash out of the clothes). I shower in scent-free soap and use scent free deoderant. I hunt from a 16 foot ladder stand that I put up the day before or hunt from the ground. Any straps or ropes I use to secure my stand also spend the year in my scent bag so they smell like dirt. I then use scent eliminating spray or baking soda as I dress. I only wear scent-free rubber boots no matter how cold. I pee in a bottle or if I am cold, I hike a quarter mile or so away to relieve myself.

After all my preparations, I smoke on my stand (hunting is the only time I smoke). I put my butts in a glass baby food jar so they don't stink up my area.

That being said, I see and have killed pleanty of deer. Some will argue that I don't have a trophy on my wall, but I hunt mainly for food, I don't take "young deer" (even if they have a nice rack), and I have had opportunities to kill some very nice bucks. For the most part, I haven't taken a nice buck yet because I choked when I shot, the shot presented to me wasn't very good, or I had used my buck tag already.

I have about 20 years of deer hunting behind me now. I do not pretend to be an expert. However, this is my take on spooking deer while smoking:

Human scent tends to spook deer , especially in places with high hunting pressure. Before I took scent precautions (and before I smoked), many times I had a deer catch my scent and they would take off like a shot out a gun
.

Smoking doesn't scare deer as much as people thing. I believe that smoking will scare some old, wise bucks. I have seen a lot of deer with a cig in my hand. I missed an opportunity at a monster whitetail because I was packing my pipe with tobacco. Maybe it is Murphy's law, but I swear everytime I light up, a deer comes walking by.

Do I think I have been lucky so far? There are a ton of factors. I usually have good stand placement and walk a long way from others. I take quite a few scent precautions and I usually hunt from a tree. I usually see more deer than everyone else I hunt with. Maybe if I didn't smoke I'd do better. However, I hunt to relax and experience nature. If I put some meat in the freezer, it is a bonus. I just happen to like to kick back in a tree, light up a Marb Light, and watch the bird and squirrels play.

Answer 3

I'm with you on this. I smoke in the treestands too. I agree that it goes against all logic and you would think the deer would smell you from the next county and go the other way, but I'm still seeing and taking deer. I also have a thermos of coffee with me and I'm sure that adds to the smell, but again I'm still taking deer. I like the idea of all the scent control clothes and such, and I have some things to help that, yet I'm still lighting up. I can't help but think that maybe, just maybe, that all this scent control stuff is just the new gimmick for the hunting industry. If you tell hunters that by buying a product, it will help increase their chances of taking game, then more than likely they will buy it - especially if its marketed well and is found on every hunting show on The Outdoor Channel.
Now back to smoking in the stand.......My crowd I hunt with -most of us smoke in the stand, and we are usually taking deer. But I can't help but think that scent control should help, even though my actions speak otherwise.

Answer 4

I use scent lock clothing, shower with the no-scent shampoo the night before I go, wash my clothes in the exteremely expensive no-scent laundry detergent, even use no-scent deer hunting deoderant. On top of that I pin on a scent wafer to my hat. I do fairly well. I have a friend who uses old spice in the shower, if any shower at all, and usually the latter. He washes his clothes when there's a respectable amount of mud caked on. He also chain-smokes in his stand even when deer are ten yards from him or less. He also does fairly well. The moral of this story is that while logic would say that it matters A LOT about scent control, specifically smoking, I've found that it doesn't matter too much. If a really smart deer comes by, and the wind is just right, maybe he'll get spooked. Notice I said maybe.

Answer 5

Doesn't matter what you do, if you're downwind from the deer, he isn't going to notice you. Five thousand years of deer hunting has proven that pretty well....and in that five thousand years, we didn't have all this modern crap scent blocker garbage.

You sat your stand up to cover one main direction. Logic says that as long as the wind is in your face from that direction, you can smoke all you want to. Hell, you can eat liver and onions with extra garlic and stinky cheese on the side and the deer won't smell you.

Upwind and downwind. All that matters with a cigarette.

Answer 6

I personnally feel that it depends on where you hunt. Most of us hunt deer that are used to the smell of humans (including smoke) becuase we have crowded them into such small areas where human contact is normal for them. I think that your movement will play a bigger factor than any smells that might come from it. Watch the wind. It has always been, and will always be, the difference between success and failure. If you hunt in a place where the deer rarely if ever come into contact with us, they might react differently.

Answer 7

What matters is you are up in a tree stand. You surely have noticed that deer seldom look up. Deer do not react to one stimuli. It may detect the smoke, but if it does not see or hear anything, then he just be curious, but do nothing.

I just hope you don't ever get careless and set off a fire.

Answer 8

NO....You had a stroke of just plain luck and nothing else. Smoking in a treestand while Deer hunting is a sure fire way to get detected. You might think that you are safe to do it since you are higher up than ground level, but cigarette smoke disperses out into a very wide pattern depending on wind direction and draft conditions. I have seen other hunters in the woods at the same time I was and watched Deer spot them over a 100 yards away. I don't have any where near the ability to smell as a Deer does, but I've smelled other hunters cigarette smoke before I actually saw them so it is a problem. Smell and hearing are the two greatest abilities of Whitetail and Mule Deer. You are only hurting yourself and your own chances for success.Wind directions DO matter.........

Answer 9

NO, NEVER smoke while hunting. I don't know how you shot a deer while smoking/or right after smoking, but for the older wiser bucks that you want to get will know better.

Answer 10

i think the biggest problem with smoking and deer hunting would be movement. more than the smell of the smoke