Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Camo

I here a bunch of comments about not needing camo when hunting but how many of you bow hunt? I am all for using technical outdoor clothing, I use westcomb and montbell to name a few. However when bowhunting moose/elk/deer I am trying to get under 20 yds away from these animals and I use any advantage I can get. I feel like camo is needed in these situations.

when I am gun hunting I have to wear blaze orange hat/vest anyways plus geeting inside 200 yds is not like getting inside 20 yds.

Love to hear some opinions on guys using solid colours and getting close to animals.

I think you might be referring somewhat to my last post in the Sitka thread. I solely bowhunt, and am of the firm belief that camo and scent control are 100% scams pulled on us hunters by the industry. Let me tell you why:

Not only do I bowhunt extensively, but I'm a research assistant at Auburn University, and my job is to tranquilize deer for research purposes. Which is to say that getting within 15-20 yards of deer and elk is what I do, pretty much year-round, for work and for pleasure.

Since this thread is about camo, I'll just say that I've totally stopped buying any more - I see ZERO difference in how animals behave in my proximity, the gear made for hunters is not as good, and it's far more expensive. (Mostly because good backpacking gear/clothing is easy to find on huge closeouts).

Same with scent control - I've completely stopped making attempts. If an animal is downwind, it will smell you, and if not, it won't. Simple. Sometimes animals are downwind and don't react - is that because of some superior scent-control techniques, like the TV hosts would have you believe? Nope. Sometimes they just don't react, it's anybody's guess as to why.

So those are my thoughts, and why you will never catch me wearing matching camo from the Hollywood brands, or wearing a friggen scent wafer hanging from my hat (seriously guys?). Works for me!

Pete

agree with pda45 re: scent control

Clothing and camo is more of a gray area, no pun intended.
Is a specific camo pattern "better"? I'd say no.

Does dull, earth tone or plaid clothing work as well? Yes

Will a raspberry and chartreuse Patagonia climbing jacket worn in a treestand fool the local whitetails? Not around here! especially if you plan to draw your bow.

Also varies with the deer herd:
pressured vs not pressured
farm land deer, suburban deer, wilderness deer

my 2 cents

P.S. There also is a lot of over priced, cheaply made backpacking-mountaineering clothing. Over priced is sure not limited to hunting gear.
Buy only stuff that is on close-out.

Hmm. I guess I'd slightly disagree. I'm a fan of camo and scent control. Now, that being said, you don't have to buy expensive top of the line camo. Anything that blends with the country behind you is good IMO. Does it make you invisible? Nope. Does it help? I say yes. As far as scent control goes...I don't think that buying the most expensive clothing will make you invisible to the nose either...but I do think it helps. I am scent conscious. Shower with scent less soaps, don't use scented fabric softeners, be aware of where you store your clothing, wear scent controlling base layers AND outer wear. I think you have to do all of these things together. You can't just go to cabelas and buy the most expensive stuff in the store, put it on and expect to never be seen or smelled. It's a many step process IMO, and I do believe that it does/can help.

I agree with pka, I think camo and scent control is a scam.

I've walked right up on deer, elk, bear and moose and had them not react. But if I act like I'm hunting, they spook out immediately.

I think animals have a process by where they determine if a threat is hostile or not and act accordingly. If it's moving and acting stealthy, then it's likely a threat and they will bug out.

Consider this for scent control, even if you got out to the woods and totally eradicated your scent on the spot, five minutes later you will be producing human stink again. What you ate for breakfast, your sweat glands and even breaking wind, you just aren't going to be able to remain scent free for any length of time.

Not to mention how sensitive animals sense of smell is and we really think we can cover it up enough to make them think we aren't human!

Hunting the wind >>>>>>>>> whatever camo patter you choose

I like the Mountain Mimicry camo and even wear it occasionally when the wife and I go out for the evening.

Hunting the wind is the most important thing PERIOD. But lets keep this from becoming a scent control argument because that answer is just to obvious

I love that pka45 is coming at this with lots of experience, how can you argue against his results?

So pka45 is earth tones good enough or can you even get away with bright colours?

What about your face? do you need something to break that up?

In my head I just feel more concealed if I am blending in.

That for the opinions guys

Sent control is a scam..If a sniffer dog can detect drugs in vac packed bags buried in cases of coffee grounds, nothing we can wear that is practical is going to work.

Camo for deer hunting? I think that is open to debate.

Many camo patterns are designed to look good for hunters and therefore sell.
A deers eyesight and its brain processing is different to humans in that they tuned to pick up movement and "shape", not so much the fine detail so it is debatable how effective camo is..

Also, some folks are simply such good hunters, they don't really need camo.

For others, in a limited way, I think it can help.

That said, look at the colour of the winter coats for many prey animals in North America and Europe..From deer to rabbits its usually a shade of "gray" not unlike German Army Field Gray..

I don't worry about scent control and only play the wind when hunting. IMO, playing the wind is THE only way to sneak up on an animal without him knowing your there.

Absolutely agree..

On the other hand i can think of times when i have been walking with the wind on my back, mind in neutral, "thumb up bum" and stumbled into deer that should have been spooked by my scent long before I arrived.

I don't offer that as a valid hunting strategy, just an observation that sometimes odd things happen, scent control clothing or not!

I've experienced it too Pete.

Years ago I was stalking a moose that I watched bed down in a small patch of timber. I saw him get up and walk up a small ridge and disappear. So I got up and started following him, still not knowing exactly where he was but I could see his tracks.

As I got to the top of that small ridge I felt the wind hit me in the back of the neck, right in the same direction that the bull went. Thinking the gig was up, I followed anyways and stumbled onto him about 30 yards away. He just stood there between 2 trees staring at me and I promptly put a 150gr NP out of my 270 into his neck. Sometimes I think they are just to curious for their own good.

I've had different thoughts on camo over the years.

Basically I've come down to the belief that camo can almost never hurt a guys chances, and may improve it, if only slightly.

Nowadays if I buy camo it's because I like the material...

Example: Microtex only comes in camo and not earth tone solids...

TRUE STORY;

Years ago I was into the complete scent control mind set. Washed with non-scent soap, washed hunting clothes in non-scent soap and placed everything into garbage bags with leaves and some dirt. Put it on when I got to my hunting land. I walked into my tree stand before daylight, wearing knee high rubber boots. At 10:00 AM an 8 point buck I was trying to take came across the path I walked in. He immediately dropped his nose to the ground and tensed. He was 30 yards out and I started my draw when a little squeak came from my Berger button (that long ago), which sent him into fast gear out of there. Had he been relaxed I may have gotten a shot. After that I decided I could not beat the NOSE and always plan my approach and location with the wind in my favor.
As far as Camo goes, it's cool and I like it, so I will wear it. Nothing wrong with regular clothes as long as it's quiet and dull.

As has been alluded to earlier, I think that silhouettes matter, so as for my face, I usually have a beard. I try to stick to earthtones, although from all the research I've seen on ruminant vision, blue is the only color to avoid. It seems that deer see the rest of the colors in black and white.

Of course there have been a lot of animals killed in blue jeans, so even the blue stigma I take with a grain of salt...

Think about what signal danger to many prey animals: its a flash of a white rump.

Covering hands and toning down or covering the face is therefore never a bad idea..

Slow, slow movements are perhaps more important than specific camo patterns as is using the lie of the land and natural cover.

The only time I hate being caught out with out specific camo is in the snow. A commercial or improvised snow suit is one of things I really need to get sorted out...

I have several suits of camo, bought over some 25+ years and also a lot of clothing in "earth" colours, especially shades of forest green. Several years ago, 2006, in the late afternoon, I walked up to a spike Blacktail to ten feet and then dropped him with a high neck shot from one of my 7x57s, loaded with the good, old 140 NP.

I was wearing all wool, green Filson whipcord pants, layers of Icebreaker and MEC merino on top and a green "Tanker" beret from "Kangol" of the UK, which I have had for over 40 years and often wear hunting. I DO use light gloves and a face kerchief and I was on Texada Island, in BC, wet, green and lots of heavily hunted deer.

All in all, I think that the camo-scent control gear IS largely bullschit and good, "earth" coloured clothes are as effective in regions where they match the terrain. If, there are better all-around hunting pants than Filson's whipcords for cooler climates, I have yet to encounter them and these with a good sweater and merino undies are very effective and wear like iron.

Buy camo and scent stuff if it gives you confidence. Confidence is an indefinable help to a hunter that is hard to come by sometimes and camo can be a cheap price to pay for it.

For me, dittos to several who mention covering hands and face, but only when I am calling critters -- and I call virtually everything that I hunt. In snow, white seems worthwhile.

Also ditto that beating a critter's nose at his game IME is futile. Shoot him before he smells you!

Just reread the OP and will add credentials that I bow hunted for many years, never with full camo though often wore a cheap camo shirt. Have killed elk at 4-6 inches range, moose at ~8 feet, deer at 10 feet, had coyotes within touching distance, etc. usually without camo, some of those with bow. My grandson called a 4 pt. bull elk to within 13 yards while wearing full camo but no scent help two weeks ago, bow hunting.

I think that Muleyfan said it best that it is the fabric we buy. Many times the camo just comes with it and if we could get it in a earth tone it would work just as well. I gun hunt and do not feel the need for camo and infact do not like it because I hate to be scoped and wear orange when I can. There are so many people in the wilderness areas in Oregon that you need to protect yourself. i do not think I have ever missed a chance at a deer because of orange.