Climbing into a tree stand - best options?

IMO, the most dangerous and difficult part of hang ons, it putting them up there in the first place. Without a ladder, they are a pain in the butt.
I not use a 2 person ladder stand, where I can't build one. Much safer, and more comfortable, with room for my pack beside me.
They are hard to put up alone too, but I did it. I'm over 60.
 
fraserdw said:
Descend all the ways to the ground by your method of descent. A pine needle floor looks close but looks can be deceiving and you may end up on the ground with the wind knocked out of you. Yes, personal experience!
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Hah. Good advice.

Reminds me of when I used to work on trains with an inertia fall arrester system. The system would "catch" you after about 18 inches of falling. The bottom step off the train was 24 inches... I wondered why a bit of a crowd gathered to watch my first descent from the train... I jumped off the last rung like any young strapping fella would... hilarity ensued (for them). It became a tradition for all newbies.

"ROOKIE ON A TRAIN!!"

And everyone comes running from every corner of the place to see who'll be crowned the next Princes Danglenuts. A nickname you'd have to put up with until the next rookie arrived.
 
kodiakjack said:
I was set on a climber, but talked myself out of it when scouting last year as a lot of the perfectly placed trees were gnarly low down, or had large branches between the ground and where I wanted to be.
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I should consider myself lucky as the area's I hunt usually have a few good options on most trails that are well suited for climbers. I sold both of my hang on stands shortly after switching to the climber.
 
I have been considering a climbing stand. I have a ladder stand but i should have went bigger as the floor area is too narrow to stand and shoot a bow comfortably. The seat does is not able to fold up to make room when you stand. Once the thing is up, you are rather stuck as it's a chore to move.
I am fortunate to hunt private farm land and just want to be able to move locations. There are lots of tall straight trees in the woodlots; maple, beech etc. I have never used one before. Do any of you guys that are "fully grown" ie. 6'4" 250 ever use one, or should these be left to the smaller "gymnastic" types of guys...;)
Perhaps the ghillie suit idea is a better idea, as some have mentioned.
 
TonyMo said:
I have been considering a climbing stand. I have a ladder stand but i should have went bigger as the floor area is too narrow to stand and shoot a bow comfortably. The seat does is not able to fold up to make room when you stand. Once the thing is up, you are rather stuck as it's a chore to move.
I am fortunate to hunt private farm land and just want to be able to move locations. There are lots of tall straight trees in the woodlots; maple, beech etc. I have never used one before. Do any of you guys that are "fully grown" ie. 6'4" 250 ever use one, or should these be left to the smaller "gymnastic" types of guys...;)
Perhaps the ghillie suit idea is a better idea, as some have mentioned.
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I'm 6'0" 240lbs and I use a Lone Wolf Wide Sit & Climb and it's great. Super portable and easy to use. Takes some practice to get the hang of things but I love it. I much prefer being in a stand when bowhunting and I like the freedom of a climber even if it won't work with every tree, at least it gives me options. They are not cheap at $500 but they are built differently than everything else and worth every penny. You'll buy it once,

Patrick
 
I have used hang on stands for years and the Ameristep screw in steps and they are my favourite. I have used the sticks but find them too bulky unless you're driving an ATV right to the treestand. It isn't necessary to pre-drill your holes unless your trying to screw into a hardwood tree. I look for a poplar that's right up against a spruce tree. The poplar is easy to climb and the spruce gives you cover. In my experience, the less you disturb the area, the better. Avoid hacking large shooting lanes out of the countryside. Yes, it will grow back but I think you'll make mature animals paranoid.

The most dangerous part of hang on treestands, or any treestand for that matter, is setting them up. The second most dangerous part is climbing in and out of them. Climbing the tree is easy enough, it's when you go to step into the actual stand that you need to be extra cautious.

A couple of tips: as mentioned in an earlier post, use extra steps over top and on the back side of the tree so you can easily get in and out. Screw an extra treestep or a lag bolt into the tree to initially hang your stand off of so that you can more easily cinch the strap down against the tree. It only took me 20 years to figure this out. You're welcome.

I also recommend buying some new heavy duty 1" ratchet straps and use 2 of them to anchor that stand to the tree as tight as you can. Using the cinch strap that comes with the stand I find is quite difficult to get tight enough with 1 hand.

Never stand up in a stand without holding onto something with a hand. If you lose your balance even a little bit, there is nowhere to step but air.

If you wear a harness, keep a sharp knife accessible so you can cut your lanyard if you suddenly find yourself suspended. Yes you'll fall but probably only 4 or 5 feet and you'll land on your feet instead of your head. After 20 minutes of being suspended, you're done for as the blood pools on your extremities.

Keep your rifle in your hands, not hanging off a branch or treestep. Be prepared for a 3-4 second opportunity at an animal. That might be all you see for the entire season.

And last but not least, always use 3 points of contact when climbing; 2 hands and 1 foot or 2 feet and 1 hand. You can count on one of your contact points failing sooner or later. It will happen.
 
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after a slide and a 12 foot fall off a a roof a few years ago with really minimal injuries, i figured tree stands were not too appealing anymore. sold all the tree stands i had and now use a collapsible ground blind instead, which has worked very well. much easier to fall asleep in and don't need to worry about falling out of your chair. stay safe out there guys.....
 
TonyMo said:
I have been considering a climbing stand. I have a ladder stand but i should have went bigger as the floor area is too narrow to stand and shoot a bow comfortably. The seat does is not able to fold up to make room when you stand. Once the thing is up, you are rather stuck as it's a chore to move.
I am fortunate to hunt private farm land and just want to be able to move locations. There are lots of tall straight trees in the woodlots; maple, beech etc. I have never used one before. Do any of you guys that are "fully grown" ie. 6'4" 250 ever use one, or should these be left to the smaller "gymnastic" types of guys...;)
Perhaps the ghillie suit idea is a better idea, as some have mentioned.
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I'm 6'3 and 230lbs. I used a climber for the first time this year, I used it for bow, and muzzleloader. I like the flexibility, you can play the wind much easier with them. And I quickly learned not to pick trees that narrow too fast, and to carry a small folding saw with me to take care of small branches to get myself that extra few feet (I like to climb 25-30+ feet) I didn't have any problems drawing back, if anything my harness was more of a hindrance to that than the stand platform. I also carry a climbing step with me to put in the tree when I get up there, to hang my bow on. It can either be left there if it's a tree you want to come back to, or taken with you when you go.

The one drawback is not having pre cut shooting lanes, if it's early season your visibility can really be restricted. But a little planning, marking trees you want to climb in season, and cutting lanes with a pole saw could solve this.
 
Slooshark1 said:
I have used hang on stands for years and the Ameristep screw in steps and they are my favourite. I have used the sticks but find them too bulky unless you're driving an ATV right to the treestand. It isn't necessary to pre-drill your holes unless your trying to screw into a hardwood tree. I look for a poplar that's right up against a spruce tree. The poplar is easy to climb and the spruce gives you cover. In my experience, the less you disturb the area, the better. Avoid hacking large shooting lanes out of the countryside. Yes, it will grow back but I think you'll make mature animals paranoid.

The most dangerous part of hang on treestands, or any treestand for that matter, is setting them up. The second most dangerous part is climbing in and out of them. Climbing the tree is easy enough, it's when you go to step into the actual stand that you need to be extra cautious.

A couple of tips: as mentioned in an earlier post, use extra steps over top and on the back side of the tree so you can easily get in and out. Screw an extra treestep or a lag bolt into the tree to initially hang your stand off of so that you can more easily cinch the strap down against the tree. It only took me 20 years to figure this out. You're welcome.

I also recommend buying some new heavy duty 1" ratchet straps and use 2 of them to anchor that stand to the tree as tight as you can. Using the cinch strap that comes with the stand I find is quite difficult to get tight enough with 1 hand.

Never stand up in a stand without holding onto something with a hand. If you lose your balance even a little bit, there is nowhere to step but air.

If you wear a harness, keep a sharp knife accessible so you can cut your lanyard if you suddenly find yourself suspended. Yes you'll fall but probably only 4 or 5 feet and you'll land on your feet instead of your head. After 20 minutes of being suspended, you're done for as the blood pools on your extremities.

Keep your rifle in your hands, not hanging off a branch or treestep. Be prepared for a 3-4 second opportunity at an animal. That might be all you see for the entire season.

And last but not least, always use 3 points of contact when climbing; 2 hands and 1 foot or 2 feet and 1 hand. You can count on one of your contact points failing sooner or later. It will happen.
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Some great tips and reminders there. Thanks :)
 
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