i recently had to move a deer stand to a location that is kind of hard to walk to. Any way that I walk to the stand I will be crossing at least 1 deer trail. I am trying to decide how to prevent as much human scent as possible as not to spook the deer that might be using that trail. Would wearing rubber boots help? Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Based on what I've read on the subject, wearing rubber boots doesn't help as much as people would like to believe. It's more about picking a time when deer are more likely to be bedded so they don't encounter you, or during windy conditions when your scent is more easily dispersed. An abundance of humidity probably works in the deer's favor as well, meaning they will detect your scent more easily in wet conditions. I know dry conditions makes it much harder for hounds to track other animals.

As many up close wild life encounters as I have enjoyed and only wearing rubber boots when it is, ahem, wet and/or muddy. Your leather soles are much more likely to exude the smell of the earth they come in contact with. The belief here - step in a cow patty and you will be more than fine.

I'd put this in the myth category.

Lot of different strategies here, some work some of the time others none of the time. My best advice is hunt the wind, but that isn't 100%. And enjoy your time in the bush...Knowing where a trail leads to or from would tell me where to cross it at a given time of day.

Rubber boots help. Plus you can deal with any water and/or muddy ground you need to cross much easier.

When I lived and hunted in Louisiana, for many years, rubber boots were necessary. And they needed to be tall because the water was often deep. They were always muddy to some degree, and I never took them indoors. It was my feeling back then that they carried little human scent. But I did.

These days I wear some nasty old worn out leather boots to work and to hunt with. They stay outside always. I walked in to my stand yesterday, using the same path I always use. Shortly after I was in the stand, a love hunting buck walked right down the same path I had came down. He was sniffing around, but didn’t sniff any scent I might have left.

What does all that mean? Heck, I don’t know, but I think (from the last 50+ years of deer hunting) that scent I leave behind comes from the parts of me that aren’t covered by boots.

My college boy grandson hunts and is usually successful, and he wears so much cologne that he smells like a $2 streetwalker. It isn’t his boots that smell.

People put too much stock into what a deer can smell. I bow hunt. Ive had deer come within 3 feet of me and not run off. Ive been walking a trail, saw a deer and froze, the deer walked within 10 feet of me and didnt react. Heck Ive been in a pop up blind and had them sniff the window opening and go back to eating.

Dont wear colognes, use scented soap to wash clothes or you, dont use scented deodorant while hunting and you will be good. Deer mainly see movement. Conceal yourself well and youll be good

I agree with this 100%.. I killed a big, mature 8 point 3 days ago that walked 30 yards behind me, down wind, and circled to my right and stepped out at about 50 yards. I dropped him right in front of my stand. I was hunting out of my lean-to also. I had one deer bust me earlier that day... it wasn’t because she smelled me, it’s because it saw me moving my head. I didn’t know she was 20 yards behind me and I just happened to turn around to look and she blew... yes I spray down with scent away and put it on my boots... do I think it helps? It doesn’t hurt, but I think people get hung up on scent way too much. Deer bust you by seeing you move. If they were afraid of human scent, you’d never see a deer. Be still and you’ll be just fine.

I've been hunting for over 25 years and experienced a deer smell the path I walked only once. Not say it's never happened but I've only seen it happen once. I was bowing hunting and got in my lean to before dawn. there was a mature 8 pt that I've seen on camera and was targeting him for that year. well he was coming in straight to the feeder but had to pass through where I had walked in about 30 minutes before. As soon as he got to the path where I had walked through he immediately went into alert mode. He smelled the path, cocked his head up and looked around, walked up and down the path smelling the ground for about 10 yards, then slowly turned around and walk back into the thick mesquite trees. I never saw him again except at dark on the camera.

I was not wearing rubber boots but did buy me some after that incident. I don't know if rubber boots work but I decided I would get some just in case they do work.... and I need new boots anyway.

Usually the first thing I do when I get out of truck.
After you drive a 3' long mesquite thirn through the sole of a rubber boot into your foot you will go back to leather. I had one go through the boot through the foot and stick in the top of the boot once. Had to fillet the boot off on way to hospital. Nothing but leather from then on.

I walk on a road to my stand and cross it fine. Sometimes I dump corn out all along it and deer don't care. We fill feeders and deer are in their eating an hour later.

I believe that human scent is impossible to get rid of. Even if you can eliminate it temporarily our scent comes from our skin cellsz. We drop millions of cells every hour. You can spray and spray away best bet is just try to work the wind as best as possible and try to stay as far back as possible from tails and other sign. Think about native Americans. They stalked deer with no scent control. I personally think “scent control” is a waste of money and that you can’t really eliminate human odor. Just try and plan a route and do what you can.

Yeah, the only time I see them react is when they get just downwind of the blind. Then they scenr and look around. But it is fresh scent, not where I walked an hour or two earlier. Hogs seem to spook more.