Smoke Cover Scent

by Carl
(Hayward Wis.)


MTMM:
I am from WI and have hunted moose in Ontario.

I met a speaker from BC when he was at our marriage encounter this past month.
We started talking about moose hunting and he was surprised I hunted them with archery equipment.

His family eats moose and deer but he hunts with a gun.
As the conversation went on, he asked if I got wood smoke all over myself and clothing so I could get close enough for a arrow shot.

After we parted, I kept wondering what if he was serious about the smoke and if it was a way BC moose hunters covered their scent.
Perhaps and old native trick.

Mark in your travels and visits with native moose hunters in BC, have you ever heard of this smoke thing?

I know deer are attracted by smoke, or at least my uncles thought it did. Back in the 40's they would hunt in wild country for the entire day and about noon would start a wood fire and warm their sandwiches and many times would have a deer poke their head out of the bush, assuming the wood smoke attracted them.

If it works, I just may try this.

Carl


Carl, that's a new one on me! The smell of smoke will certainly help to cover human odor but I'm not so sure about the use of an attractant.

Smoke usually means one thing to wildlife and that is forest fire. In my honest opinion I would think that dousing yourself in smoke would make you smell like a smokey human!

I usually don't use cover scents nor any of those fancy scent free washes. Rather I just use the wind in my favor, which of course doesn't always work (but that's hunting).

As for the first nations moose hunters in British Columbia. For the most part all I have ever seen them do is road hunt. There must be exceptions, but that is all I have ever witnessed.

That being said I have read some great recounts of first nations hunters being used by local mining camps as hunting guides (back in the early 1900's).

However, no article ever mentioned the use of smoke as cover. The early first nation bow hunter relied on the very difficult task of stalking from the downwind side.

Thanks for the question.
Mark
"The Moose Man"

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