Backcountry Treestand Options

[ColeKira]

I'm hunting the WV mountains this fall and going in deep. I have a MR pop-up 18 and looking to pack in a set of sticks and stand. Im looking at Muddy, Lone Wolf and X-stand. I'm not only concerned about weight, but also ease of set-up. My only experience is 20 years of loc-ons and 20' sticks. I'm not sure how many climbing trees (climber stand) I will find as I'll be hunting the edges of oaks and laurels.

 

[adamm88]

Ever thought about just hunting off the ground. Conceal yourself in brush and stay still. If you have a gilly suit its even better. I hunt off the ground most of the time the the hassle it brings inst worth it.

 

[ColeKira]

I will be bow hunting and prefer to be elevated.

 

[ChrisS]

The latest Wired to Hunt podcast gives a pretty in-depth discussion of a tree saddle/sling. Much lighter option.

I haven't used one, but it made me think about it as an option. In the Adirondack public lands, we can't cut trees or use screw-ins, so a tree saddle is an interesting option.

 

[Violent Hippie]

Your fitness and climbing ability is what matters here. I've always taken a cheapo guide gear 30 dollar stand , a 40-50 ft piece of climbing rope, and a hand saw. Sticks, ladders, harnesses , strap on steps etc. etc I've always looked at as ridiculous . Just figure out a way to strap the stand to your pack ( using webbing / 550 cord/ pack straps etc ) , hike in, find the right tree / location, climb up with the rope in tow connected to the stand on the ground and trim as you go. When you are at the correct height and while straddling a limb pull the stand up and use a clove hitch or other desired knot to hold it over a limb as you secure it with the cam straps. Use the climbing rope and a locking biner as your make shift harness when you hunt . No problem. Its not the most ergo when hiking with one of these big old stands on your back but I leave them up all season and take them down after the seasons over so its not like I'm hiking that much. IMO if someone cant climb a tree on their own then they probably shouldnt be in a tree in the first place.

 

[ezmorningrebel]

i hunt in SW Virginia on the border with WV in similar terrain/habitat and it's rare than i can't find a tree to get in with my climber. old growth oak forests tend to have an abundance of telephone pole looking trees that don't limb out until 20 or 30 feet up. if you want to be 100% sure you'll be able to get up a tree a hangon/stick combo is probably the way to go but the convenience of a climber is hard to beat.

 

[ezmorningrebel]

Your fitness and climbing ability is what matters here. I've always taken a cheapo guide gear 30 dollar stand , a 40-50 ft piece of climbing rope, and a hand saw. Sticks, ladders, harnesses , strap on steps etc. etc I've always looked at as ridiculous . Just figure out a way to strap the stand to your pack ( using webbing / 550 cord/ pack straps etc ) , hike in, find the right tree / location, climb up with the rope in tow connected to the stand on the ground and trim as you go. When you are at the correct height and while straddling a limb pull the stand up and use a clove hitch or other desired knot to hold it over a limb as you secure it with the cam straps. Use the climbing rope and a locking biner as your make shift harness when you hunt . No problem. Its not the most ergo when hiking with one of these big old stands on your back but I leave them up all season and take them down after the seasons over so its not like I'm hiking that much. IMO if someone cant climb a tree on their own then they probably shouldnt be in a tree in the first place.

you must have very different trees where you live.

 

[Trial153]

I use one of two stands. A lonewolf assault or a muddy bloodsport. I perfer the muddy howver they no longer makr that model. The lone wolf i took the straps off and added a modified rope to make easier and quiter.
For steps i carry three muddy 32inch steps with the same rope mod to them as the stand and one 20inch step for my bottom step woth a two step aider. I can get my platform about 18-20 feet without too much stretching

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[elkyinzer]

A lot of discussion on a couple other forums I can point you to.

Basically your options to be mobile: climber, hangon, saddle hunting

You'll be challenged to beat the weight of a lightweight climber. Also the fastest climbing method, and to me the easiest in miserable wet/cold weather. But tree selection can be limiting is the obvious downside.

Hangon vs. saddle are similar in weight, really comes down to comfort and function. Saddle setups, you can get a lot more streamlined certainly which helps walking through brush, but the weight savings aren't as significant as I think some expect it to be. There are some guys that really dig and evangelize saddle hunting, but it's not for everyone. One big perk that gets cited frequently is reduction of back pain by going from a treestand to a saddle. I've never really experienced that so I can't claim it. I have experience with all three and I've settled on sort of a hybridized approach of hangon/saddle for the vast majority of my hunts.

Obviously with saddle and hangon you still need a climbing method. Sticks (Hawk, LW, Muddy) are popular and pretty hassle free. No sticks are great off the shelf imo, all require some mods. And use aiders if you are comfortable with them. Wilde Edge Stepps are another viable climbing option. Arborist spurs too, but not legal on most public lands.

With stands it's pretty key to put a good suspension on them and not just use the cheapo nylon straps that come with them. A lot of guys are using the MOLLE suspension. I have that on both my stands and never been fully satisfied with it, been toying around with a few other options this summer but haven't settled on anything yet.

 

[elkyinzer]

This is a visual comparison of my stand and saddle setups.

This is an X-Stand. I like it, but actually just bought an XOP to try as well. Similar priced stands, put them head to head and see which I like more. With the stand, I bungee my sticks, clothes, and fanny pack to the stand. No matter what stand you buy, putting some work into silencing it is going to pay off.

The saddle setup I pack the clothes and gear in the MR popup pack, put the sticks on the load shelf, and the saddle platform on the outside. Like I said they end up being very similar in weight, but you can see how much more streamlined the saddle setup is. Huge when walking through seas of mountain laurel. Through open hardwoods, not so much. I sometimes hunt 2 miles from the road and I sometimes hunt 100 yards from the road, so I don't like to be tied into one single option.


Another thing with any these setups is they do take practice. If your plan is to dust it off the day before the season and learn on the fly, you are going to make a crap ton of noise and just get frustrated. Once you climb and setup a dozen or two times, you really get the routine ingrained in your memory and start to setup quickly and quietly. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast, some saying like that.

Like I said, I plan to go with a sort of hybrid setup the most this year. Pop the seat off the stand and use the saddle when I need to give my legs a break. I just like having a larger platform to stand on, and I stand 90% of the time I am in the tree anyway.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I had a similar problem hunting in New York. My solution was a lone wolf assault with a bundle of lone wolf climbing sticks. It works and gives you the option to hang it as opposed to doing the pure climber thing.

Someone mentioned the ground hunting. Over the last 3 years I have shot 5 of 6 white tails from the ground with a bow on public land. I use some portable blinds (Turkey blinds) and some camo mesh that I can rig fast for impromptu concealment. I have a nice long bow season to play with so there is a margin for error but it is working so far.

 

[Violent Hippie]

In reference to the sort of trees we have out here. Most trees in the areas of the Sierra I hunt have many branches. I'll pole climb some that may not have branches until 6 -8 feet or so that are not too thick to pole climb but for the most part its a none issue finding trees with branches.

 

[ezmorningrebel]

This is what you're more likely to encounter in our neck of the woods. You can see why a climber works so well.

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[Violent Hippie]

Copy that . What kinda trees are those ?

 

[ColeKira]

What county is that? I'll be in Wyoming or McDowell

 

[ezmorningrebel]

Copy that . What kinda trees are those ?

various oak species, poplar, ash, and hickory for the most part. they're all in a race to get their leaves up to the canopy so they don't waste time limbing out down low. i carry a handsaw for the occasional limb that is in my way but for the most part it's not an issue. on a tree that is mature enough to climb, a lot of times that first crotch or large limb is higher than i care to go. it's not like this everywhere but the majority of public land that hasn't been logged in years looks like this.

 

[ezmorningrebel]

What county is that? I'll be in Wyoming or McDowell

this is Craig in VA, right on the border with Monroe Co. WV. the forest type does change a little when you get up on the plateau. if you can find pictures of the area you'll be going it might help you decide.

 

[Violent Hippie]

This is the terrain type I usually archery stand hunt in . Plenty of trees to choose from .

 

[Violent Hippie]

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[chuckq777]

Mantis tree saddle. 1lb. One climbing stick. 3 lb. another pound in robe and carabiners.

One stick method to climb and stand on the climbing stick as platform.

The saddle hunting forum goes very in-depth on variations. But this is my light weight go to.