What is your hunting setup and why?

[Fluteman]

I'd like to hear how everyone on hunts, when it comes to the use of treestands. Why do you use them the way you do?

I grew up using a climber, and only owned one permanent stand up until two years ago. I've always been a mobile hunter, and it has been successful for me. By having the option to hunt a new tree everytime I go out, I feel that it makes it hard for the deer to pinpoint where I'm gonna be. Now, I do hang a few stands before the season starts, but most of them are for quick hunts before or after work, or in places that need to be prepared ahead of time. The majority of the time, I use my Millennium stand and Lone Wolf sticks and hunt with it just like I would a climber, only I'm not limited to straight, limbless trees.

My biggest reason for being mobile is to keep the deer guessing. If you hunt the same stand long enough, the deer are gonna figure you out, and that spot is going to be junk. By being mobile, it forces me to not get lazy. It also helps me keep my head in "the game" by constantly making adjustments to my hunting setup in an attempt to outsmart that big old buck. Also, I don't get bored with the same old scenery, and I learn the lay of the land, all by being mobile.

So lets hear it, how do you hunt and why?

 

[Dannmann801]

I envy you guys who can drag mobile stands and hunt any tree anytime. That's a game for young men, not old fat guys like me.
I mostly groundhunt.

However, I did put in a ladderstand on my dad's woods that I'm very excited to get in this year. dropped some scrubby trees, trimmed some limbs, cleared the lanes and can't wait to be up in the air there. Basically put the stand in the same area I ground hunted last year but got busted (twice) ....maybe the height will give me an advantage. Plus the view is great. Also have a good permanent treehouse stand at another spot, but it's better for gun, not archery (just a little far from the travel lanes).

I will say one thing - I find treestands a little restrictive in that you can't commence a stalk immediately if needed. And stalking is fun. And I did it a couple of times last year successfully (picture Fred Flintstone on tippytoes in camo). But reality is, I think I'm gonna like being up in the air this year.

 

[Milo]

I am a mobile guy myself. I just picked up a lone wolf alpha elite and an extra set of sticks..Had a climber accident and prolly not gonna use one until i get fully healed from it...which I am not and its been 4 years.

 

[swantucky]

90% Of my hunts are quick after work deals, even on the weekends it seems with 3 kids and stuff around the house they end up being quick hunts. So I have not used a climber in probably 10 years. If I hunted more public I would use climbers more but the areas I hunt I feel pretty secure leaving my gear.

I also prefer hang ons to climbers because of the amount of noise climbing up and down. It is much easier to slip in and out of a loc-on step-up IMO.

The downside is having enough stands to rotate hunting them to keep them fresh. Off the top of my head I have 5 ground blinds and a combination of a dozen ladder/loc-on set-ups in the woods right now with 3 more stick and stand combos to get on a hot spot if need be.

 

[haleybrock]

I like the climber for moveability.

 

[swantucky]

I like the climber for moveability.

Plus you can move it to different spots.

 

[hickslawns]

I am switching to the LW sticks/Millenium setup this year to be like my heroes!

Seriously, I do think this is going to be the way to go. Last year was a first for a climber. I found it to be pretty limiting to which trees I could use. I do have 10-12 fixed hang-ons and ladders spread around, but not sure how much they will be used this year. I haven't hung a single stand on the new farm as I plan to be strictly mobile. The other new property will have a couple permanent hang-ons and a couple 22' ladders. Otherwise it too will be mobile hunting.

 

[Gern186]

I hunt only out of hang on stands and occasionally on the ground in standing corn.

I like to have my stands hung and trimmed out at least 6 wks before the season comes in. If during the season I see a need to move a little to tweak a setup I won't hesitate to hang a new stand, trim it and hunt it immediately. 2 years ago I adjusted a stand location on a fencerow about 100 yards and I killed the buck I was after on the same evening.

I don't like ladder stands all that well, I feel that they stick out like a highrise hotel. I honestly feel that a mature buck will pick a ladder stand out. A doe might not care about it, but 4-6 year old bucks have figured things out at this point. They do offer a little more room and are easier to get into, but as long as I am able bodied my butt will be using hang on stands.


For those of you who change their setups with hang on stands, what do you do when it comes to trimming shooting lanes? It seems almost every stand I put up requires a lot of trimming, which requires time and making some noise and it also changes the scenery..... and I believe deer sense these changes and can smell freshly cut vegetation.


I almost always put my stands in trees with multiple limbs at around 18-20'. This helps break up your outline and hide the stand at the same time.

As far as getting into the tree I like to use screw in steps, although those climbing sticks do look interesting and could be put up quickly.....just haven't tried them yet.

When attaching the stand to the tree I use the strap that the stand comes with to temporarily fasten it, then I use 2 ratchet straps to tighten it down real good...that way there is no movement or sound when you move around on the stand.

 

[formerbowhunter1023]

I blend it all. I have hang-ons, ladders, climber, and the infamous LW and Millennium set-up. They all have their place, but the LW and Millennium set-up is the cat's ass. It is super comfortable, fast, and will go every place a climber will and all the place a climber can't. As I progress in my tactics, I see how mobility has to be a key fundamental to successfully filling a tag every few years.

 

[RedCloud]

I hunt with a hang on stand. I started hunting this way and just haven't wanted to use a climber much. I did buy one from a friend a few years ago to maybe try it out. I have yet to use it just because it is so bulky and heavy to try and carry around. It would be an OK stand to put up on my trusted private property and leave there and carry short distances but that's about it. I just feel for me and in my situations that my hang on stand and stix are so much easier to move around if need be.

 

[rgecko23]

At first it was a climber, and always trying to find a tree was a PAIN, but I liked the sersatility of it as far as I can bea in a diff tree everytime. I never carried a saw with me so I was very limited. The best tree I had was one that was snapped off about half way up and stil lconnected, so it hung down the backside of it. I would get up in there as high as I could and would be blended in perfect. Then it fell in a wind storm and that one was out.

Last year I bought some permanents and I set them up and I just dont like it. The one I bought is great, it has a big seat an umbrella, a wrap around. I just feel like how gern said, like I am sticking out like a soar thumb.

I put up a hang on this year ina spot that noone has ever hunted before and I just know that its a major travel route for bucks as it always has scrapes and rubs through it. So this year I said screw it I am going on. So i got a old TV antenna, a 30 footer and I hung my hang on. I am way up there in this old tree and I am pretty hidden up there.

It makes me nervous as all get out being up that high, but I think it wil work out pretty good. My plan was to have my millenium and sticks by now but its going to have to wait just a little bit longer. There are some spots that I want to get into that the only way I am getting in there is with a hang on.

 

[dante322]

this will be the first year using a fixed stand, I got a 2 pesron ladder stand from a relative of redcloud for 75 bucks. and i also purchased a hang on and sticks. both are set up in a place that i expect to see some traffic and also offer a good vantage point to see whats going on and where to move in with aclimber.

 

[bow lady]

I only have one ladder stand set up. I feel pretty safe in those type of stands. Maybe with more expience I'll try a climber so i can move around more. After reading about how much you guys move around I think that may be part of my problem. I learned something already. What do you think about clearing out some spots on the ground?? Like behind a downed tree or agianst an old oak??

 

[CJD3]

I have hunted the same woods for many many years. I know all (most all) the runs so I hang my 3-4 stands and then just hunt whichever one works w/ the wind. I do still hunt the ground 15-20% of the season ( especially on rainy days ) Being in a stand and seeing the deer coming from a greater distance allows me more time to study behaveure and movement. I too am to damn old for a climber. :smiley_deer:

 

[Beentown]

There are very little "big" woods that I hunt. Most of the places are 5-40 acre woodlots surrounded by fields. There really are very few set paths. The whole woods is littered with paths. Using cameras and time in stand I have to adjust. So usually I am in my climber after seeing the movement. There are two ladder stands that I do not get into until the rut.

Both of the are in CRP fields...bedding areas. I don't push in on it until the rut/right before gun season.

Beentown

 

[huntn2]

I have 2 hang-ons and my climber. This year I have my hang-ons on two different private properties I have access to. I use my climber on public and to be mobile on the private lands.

Last year I would move a hang-on as needed based on what I may learn from the climber. This is the first summer/fall that I have a camera to help with stand placement so I will see how this works out. I moved my camera last Sunday and am checking it this Saturday. Based on what I see I may move a hang-on for the early season.

 

[jagermeister]

I hunt out of hang-ons and a climber all throughout the season. Whenever I hunt public land, I'm hunting out of a climber. My hang-ons, the few that I have, are saved for spots where I'm in a multiple-trunked tree or a spot where I need to get in and out of quickly. Noise really isn't an issue for me with the climber though. Even though it's an old cheapy, I've gotten pretty good with it and can get up a tree fast and virtually silent. I would really like to try the mobile millenium and sticks setup but I just don't have the cash for it at this point.

For those of you who change their setups with hang on stands, what do you do when it comes to trimming shooting lanes? It seems almost every stand I put up requires a lot of trimming, which requires time and making some noise and it also changes the scenery..... and I believe deer sense these changes and can smell freshly cut vegetation.

Chad, I completely agree that deer can pay attention to freshly-cut vegetation. That's why when I'm creating shooting lanes I try not to cut anything if I can. Whenever possible, I bend limbs and saplings out of the way and tie them down with paracord. This results in a less noticeable manipulation of surrounding vegetation, and less scent that gets left behind. If I have to cut anything, I try to do it in the early spring... while doing my february/march scouting.

 

[DJK Frank 16]

Little bit of everything for me, I have a couple ladder stands, a couple hang on stands that I hang early in the year, and I keep my Lonewolf Sticks and Lonewolf Alpha hang on stands to be mobile. I like the LW setup especially during the rut when I feel like being mobile is especially important. Most of my permanent type setup or the stands I hang in about the same area every year are on heavy travel routes or food sources where I can usually atleast harvest a doe early for the freezer.

 

[formerbowhunter1023]

Chad, I completely agree that deer can pay attention to freshly-cut vegetation. That's why when I'm creating shooting lanes I try not to cut anything if I can. Whenever possible, I bend limbs and saplings out of the way and tie them down with paracord. This results in a less noticeable manipulation of surrounding vegetation, and less scent that gets left behind. If I have to cut anything, I try to do it in the early spring... while doing my february/march scouting.

If I cut lanes in season, I will keep it at a minimum. Anything I cut, will get drug away from the set-up to a location I think is safe from alerting deer. I will also bend and tie anything out of the way that I can to avoid cutting. I've never seen deer react to in season cutting, but I trust the opinion that I have heard from others and try to take steps to avoid excessive cutting or major changes associated with cutting lanes.

Now in the off season, I am a shooting lane cutting sum beech!!! :smiley_adfundum:

 

[Jackalope]

I am a mobile guy myself. I just picked up a lone wolf alpha elite and an extra set of sticks..Had a climber accident and prolly not gonna use one until i get fully healed from it...which I am not and its been 4 years.

You know that feeling you get when you hanging a stand before season and step in it for the first time right away. You have bent knees, You are as close to the tree as possible, Not sure about it yet, baby steps to turn etc... Then after you hunt it a few times you notice you're just standing up there, turning around, and it's just as comfortable as you would be on the ground.. You trust it now. Yeah.. With a Mobile setup you never get that luxury. Every time you hunt it is the first time since it was put up., And put up in the dark none the less. Getting past that initial uneasy feeling with a new setup is the hardest part to being mobile.