How to Avoid Spooking Deer During Your Hunt

If you want to come out of your hunt successfully, it is essential to avoid spooking deer.

A lot goes into a hunt: countless hours of planning, preparing, and packing. The last thing you want to do is ruin your chances of successfully coming out on the other side by giving away your cover and spooking the deer. Deer heavily rely on their incredible senses to protect themselves against predators, so avoiding setting off their keen senses is crucial.

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4 Ways to Avoid Spooking Deer During Your Hunt

If you don’t want to scare off the animals you stalk, it’s essential to approach your hunt like a predator. Here are a few tips and tricks that will help you tap into your spook-free hunting instincts.

1. Time the Herd — Investing plenty of time into scouting and learning about deer movements could be one of the best moves you make (or don’t make). Study their access patterns and base your traveling to and from your stand or blind off what you learn. The most important takeaway is that you understand where the deer are less likely to be than where they will be.
2. Wear the Right Camouflage — Hiding in plain sight is essential for a clear shot. But, not all camo is created the same and will give you that effect. The camouflage you select should directly correlate to the animal you’re hunting and the surrounding environment. Deer and other big game animals’ sight is good enough to detect the outline and texture of your clothing. 

So find a camo that breaks up your silhouette and helps you blur into the background. Since these animals cannot detect colors with longer wavelengths, like orange, red, and pink, wearing blaze orange is safe (and legally required) to wear.

3. Silence is Key — While eyesight may not be a deer’s strongest suit, their hearing is fantastic! It is essential to remain as quiet as possible. This means you may want to reconsider using your ATV or UTV to access your hunting spot directly and hike in instead. 

You may also want to reconsider opening that piece of candy since the wrapper makes a lot of noise. You get the idea — just be as quiet as possible so you don’t blow your cover.

4. Control Your Scent — Like hearing, deer heavily rely on their sense of smell. Make sure to skip your scented soap and shampoo in the shower, use unscented laundry detergent specifically made for a hunter, and avoid using any scented products, like deodorant or colognes and body sprays. 

Also, make sure your truck doesn’t have an air freshener. Moreover, the exhaust smell of your ATV could drift more than 150 yards and expose your presence before you’ve even settled into your hiding spot. 

Contact the Professionals at The R & K Hunting Company Today!

Learn more insider tips and tricks like how to avoid spooking deer when you hunt with the experts at The R & K Hunting Company. Our skilled team will guide you through an exciting hunting adventure in the scenic mountains of Utah and Wyoming. Expansive pristine wildlife habitat, abundant game combined with professional guides, outfitters, and services allows The R & K Hunting Company crew to give you an unmatched Rocky Mountain hunting adventure! Contact us to book your next hunt today!