fire/smoke in hunting camp???

[mich-mtnman]

ive heard that fred bear would cook and eat and fish in his hunting clothes then pourposly walk around the smokiest part of the fire to smell smokey.
what have your experiances been?
i hunt with some fellers that smoke and with no fire i smell like a bar room!
do you realy think this ruins hunts?

[Benha]

Campfire smoke no. Tobacco yes.

[adkmountainken]

here s a quick story for ya. during hunting season i keep my heavy wool hunting clothes at my mothers as that is where i hunt. i usally hang them on the porch to dry and air out. it rained real hard one day and i came out early, hung the clothes on the porch and went home. next morning i get to  my mothers and no clothes on the porch. she had taken them inside and hung them close to the wood stove. my mothers wood stove is a real smoke belcher let me tell ya and my clothes smelled like a 4 alarm fire!! man was i po'd!!! as i didn't have other clothes with me i was forced to wear my smokey the bear woolies. that morning i had 7 does and a HUGE 8 POINT milling around me for a long time with no concern at all, that really changed my thinking as i had been a die hard cover scent, plastic box for the clothes and clean freak. i occasonaly hang my clothes by the stove for good luck now and yes i did get the 8 point!

[Budog56]

Ive never heard that before but it makes sense and obivously after hearing adk's story it works..might have to give it a try

[traditional_archer]

I have never had game spook when smelling like a campfire.  I hunted with a cig smoker once and let Me tell you, just the slightest wind change and I was busted.

[drewsbow]

Yup , like Ken we smoke up by my fathers outdoor stove in front of the open door .

[JEFF B]

maybe thats what the indians did as well .    i hunt in tea tree and i rub it all over my clothes no problem i smell like a tea tree bush. works for me

[TJ Jones]

I think wood fire smoke can make a good cover scent. Many times before I head out I'll open the door to the wood stove holding my arms and head over it as alittle smoke rolls out. I think it's a smell deer are accustomed to.

[bowdude]

Yep - absolutely the best cover scent.

[Billy]

it is (from my reading) one of the things Indians did.
They fasted, prayed, and then ate vegetarian and had ceremonies that included fire/smoke.. sneaky buggers also used camoflage, cover and concealment.
IMAGINE doin all that "just to shoot some dumb critter"    
I been thinking I should eat more beans and corn from September thru January      

[Tree man]

FWIW, My Dad has had so much game come in while he was sitting smoking his pipe that I have stopped trying to avoid getting his pipe smoke on my clothes...it may even help.

[pintail_drake2004]

camp fires are great for masking your scent. I hunt in a draw where a large stand of pines meet hardwoods....i start a fire and put on some pine boughs and walk through the smoke....close your eyes though!

[weasle]

i quess i will be trying something new this year.

[BMOELLER]

It works.  I've had success as well smelling like a camp fire.

[Deadsmple]

I am a little suprised, this is the first time I have ever heard anyone question the validity of smoke being a good cover scent.  Does a bear ---- in the woods?

[30coupe]

I am not entirely convinced that tobacco smoke makes any difference either. To add to Tree Man's post, last fall my cousin and I were deer hunting. I don't smoke and was using Scent Killer, plastic tub for my clothes which had been carefully washed in scent free soap (as had I). My cousin, who has killed more game than I ever will, hangs his clothes in the garage and smokes before, during and after hunting. While we were hunting, his stand was about 100 yards upwind of mine. I watched four does mill around about 40 yards from me then wander toward Frank's stand. As soon as the deer were out of sight in the woods, I started to smell cigarette smoke. My first thought was, man, he just blew a chance at a nice fat doe. Fifteen minutes later I felt my cell phone vibrate. I pulled it out of my pocket and it was Frank, "I got one stuck, give it about fifteen minutes and then come help me find her."

When I got to his stand, I asked if he had been smoking. "Yeah, I had to put it out because four does came right under my tree. I picked the biggest one and shot her." The shot was under 12 yards. The deer had walked directly into the wind coming off his cigarette smoke. He put out his cigarette with four does standing within 15  yards of his tree.

I don't plan to take up smoking, but I don't really think the deer have anything against it.