Fresh Earth - by Bruce Wilds

Deer season is fast approaching and for some, cannot come soon enough! Many folks are hanging treestands, trimming shooting lanes and growing food plots while frantically checking trail cameras for glimpses of giant bucks that they hope to pursue this fall. While I am no different, I am well behind this year in getting ready for the upcoming season. Life has been busy, but it is time to start making preparations and getting into my areas to make mock scrapes, trim out shooting lanes and set out my remaining trail cameras, which leads me into the magic of Fresh Earth.

Hunters Specialties Scent-A-Way products have been on the shelves for decades. I can recall growing up as a young deer hunter many moons ago, always spraying down with Scent-A-Way prior to hitting the field. Technology has come a long way and the formulas over the years have been tweaked, making them what they are today, the best scent control sprays on the market. Scent-A-Way has long been known for its “Fresh Earth” spray and is a staple in the fall for many serious hunters in reducing human odors. I will take this product usage one step further.

There is no doubt in my mind that deer, and in particular bucks, are attracted to the smell of fresh dirt. I discovered this over the years through the making of mock scrapes, but in particular I discovered it last year after my three year old son and I had hung some trail cameras and cleared shooting lanes.

Whenever I hang new stands or trail cameras, I always spray my sets and cameras down with odorless Scent-A-Way spray.  This ensures minimal human odor at my stands or cameras and keeps the deer less spooked. Last September was no different. We were in the remnants of Hurricane Irma, as I like to hang my sets in as nasty of weather as possible to minimize my scent. My stands were already hung, but my son and I were trimming shooting lanes and hanging a few more trail cameras.

I got the shooting lanes trimmed on a cutover stand and hung the camera facing the path around the cut. I did not have the odorless spray, so I used my bottle of Fresh Earth Scent-A-Way. I sprayed the camera and tree down heavily and we walked back to the truck. We left the area as scent free as you could with a three year old in tow. Fast forward to October.

I am not one to check my trail cameras often, as I believe the deer pattern us as well. However, this particular camera was very easy to get to and the chance of leaving much scent was minimal. So, on my first sit in that stand, I pulled the SD card and swapped it with a fresh one. I don’t have a card reader, so I had to wait until I got home to see the pictures that were taken. As expected, the first couple of photos were of me and my son Jaxson, setting up the camera. The very next photo was of a decent little 8 point buck, less than 45 minutes later, standing on his hind legs trying to get closer to the camera to smell it. The proof was in the pudding. I was onto something. Not only did the Scent-A-Way Fresh Earth Spray reduce our odor, but it acted like an attractant and drew this buck right in. Several other times over the last few years, while hunting out of my ground blind with my daughter, I have had bucks come right up to the blind, sniff it and remain unalarmed. The secret was in the spray. I sprayed the blind down heavily with Scent-A-Way Fresh Earth and it acted like a magnet for deer.

So, while Scent-A-Way Fresh Earth Spray is primarily intended to reduce human odors as a clothing and gear spray, I highly encourage everyone to use the spray as an attractant. Spray it on trees near your stand or blind, as well as on the ground. My daughter and I have had several encounters with November bucks coming to the Fresh Earth smell and none of them are around to tell about it. Try this unique use for Scent-A-Way Fresh Earth Field Spray this fall, you won’t be disappointed!

Bruce Wilds

Hunters Specialties Field Staff