Hunting from Tree Stands

[Sperit de bois]

Sometime you have to use a tree stand for safety,,If you hunt in a populated area the bullet is safer if fired from a tree stand ,the angle is the factor,,
I hunted in GA ,swamp,snakes, mud, thick undergrowth,they hunt deer with dogs cause of this ,VA same plus people,here where I live in ME no need, miles and miles of woods.
Either have their place,just, I got to old to use the tree stand anymore.
Look at the good side,,If someone shoots you out of a tree stand they will never get the Warden to believe they mistook you for a DEER.Was a guy I read about shoot,the shooter mistook him for a bear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Sperit de bois]

In the Day they didn't hunt for sport/fun,,it was to live,so They night hunter,trapped herds of animals or drove bison over a cliff,
very difficult to compare then to now,
I figure there were lots of things then that were not recorded for us to read about.Education was limited,read some of Lewis/Clark writings,phonics!!!!
But to answer the original question,,use to hunt from both,they have their place,just to old to get up in the tree,,,

 

[Ben Grace]

Thanks roundball I normally hunt from a stand but I do have a few places that lugging a tree stand in is almost impossible. Definitely give the chair a try.

 

[Jesse Patterson]

I've hunted out of both but now since I'm disabled I hunt from a ground blind. I couldn't take the fall out of a tree.

 

[Sperit de bois]

I go in during the year and groom my ground blinds,trim limbs so they bush out and weave limbs to make/open shooting lanes,clear brush as needed.
L/D,I was invited to hunt around PAX River,1978,long time ago,,tree stand country for sure then,wonder what it looks like now..

 

[Johnny Too-Tall]

I am a sniper for the Army and pride myself on camoflague and concellment. I can tell you first hand that you must trust in your camo and set up. If it is done correctly the deer will not be able to see you. I have proven this by wearing a ghilli suit in training and had a cameraman who was 30 yards away from me and got footage of deer feeding within 2 yards of me and they never winded or smelled me, nor did I move giving away my position and the does and fawns were all around me for a good 15 minutes. It takes practice and I challenge anyone to give it a try in the off season and ya might shock yourself. Its tough to beat a deers noise granted thats where cover scents play in but if your camo is up to par and you are still the deer will never find you..

 

[Bill Hall]

Hanshi is right about how thick the woods are in Georgia. Some places you are lucky if you can see 15 feet.

Amen to that! I hunted there last year. Being a desert rat, it was like I landed on another planet. I couldn't even find the sun in all that leafy canopy. Complete opposite of hunting wide open spaces of the west.

But, if I had a tree stand, I certainly would have considered using it. Nothing wrong with adapting to meet the hunting challenges of a given area. That's what we humans do, and it's worked for a long time (give or take a million years). Bill

 

Being a desert rat, it was like I landed on another planet.

We felt the same way on our trip to the southwest over the summer. What actually surprised us more than the wide open spaces was how much the landscape changed in an hour drive. New Mexico was our favorite. I'd love to hunt in the wooded areas around the Grand Canyon!

 

[George]

I am a sniper for the Army and pride myself on camoflague and concellment. I can tell you first hand that you must trust in your camo and set up.

I hunt both deer and turkey in colonial garb, and if you really know how to do it you don't need camo of any kind. All that camo stuff is made to fool the hunter who buys it, and it works very well for that. Both deer and turkey can be successfully hunted up close and personal without it.

Spence

 

[rabjr]

I am a sniper for the Army and pride myself on camoflague and concellment. I can tell you first hand that you must trust in your camo and set up.

I hunt both deer and turkey in colonial garb, and if you really know how to do it you don't need camo of any kind. All that camo stuff is made to fool the hunter who buys it, and it works very well for that. Both deer and turkey can be successfully hunted up close and personal without it.

Spence

A hell of a lot of deer have been taken while people wore black/red plaid coats....I've taken more than a few within 15 yards wearing jeans and orange coat, they had no idea I was there. Didn't move and didn't let the wind betray me...wear camo if it makes you feel better but if you watch your outline and wind direction, not needed.

 

[BrownBear]

Add species and locale to the mix. For whitetail they obviously work in many areas. But in many locations, and especially for other species of deer you could have a veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery long wait between deer. Their habits just don't put them on the same trail often enough for a stand to work worth poot.

I think it would be neat to try a tree blind, because I certainly enjoy my times in duck blinds. But I just haven't hunted whitetails back east or in the midwest where it would work. I like all kinds of hunting, and it would be just one more variation for me. If it was the local tradition or necessity, I'd do it, but I'd also be looking for areas that let me get out and wander, too.

 

I am a sniper for the Army and pride myself on camoflague and concellment. I can tell you first hand that you must trust in your camo and set up. If it is done correctly the deer will not be able to see you. I have proven this by wearing a ghilli suit in training and had a cameraman who was 30 yards away from me and got footage of deer feeding within 2 yards of me and they never winded or smelled me, nor did I move giving away my position and the does and fawns were all around me for a good 15 minutes. It takes practice and I challenge anyone to give it a try in the off season and ya might shock yourself. Its tough to beat a deers noise granted thats where cover scents play in but if your camo is up to par and you are still the deer will never find you..

You're talking apples and oranges. Humans and game animals do not see or perceive what they see in the same way. Nor do humans rely on their noses. We are HIGHLY dependent upon our sight. Critters, not so much. Some are nearly blind by our standards, yet their senses of smell and hearing more than make up for it. That, coupled with personal experience and a little deductive reasoning, leads me to the conclusion that camo (for hunting) is overrated at best, a scam at worst. Either way, I haven't hunted in camo in years and it has not kept me from killing deer. Think about it like this, if you're required to wear blaze orange, how much is your camo really helping you? I had three instances last year alone where deer walked almost within spear distance, while I'm sitting there in solid colors and a cowboy hat.

 

[Johnny Too-Tall]

Well I guess I'm spoiled and got cool camo to wear. But have stalked deer and even turkeys in shorts before with a recurve so your right the camo isnt necessary but it sure is awesome.

 

[hanshi]

Since we wear orange (regular season) I don't depend on the camo to hide me. I've killed most of my deer wearing regular clothes and a tan shooting coat.

I wear camo now because I happen to have it and it's the best hunting setup I ever owned: pants, shirt and parka. Over that I wear an orange hat. Sometimes I still wear that treasured shooting coat since it does have an orange panel on the back.

In the turkey woods I do camo up with no orange.

 

[Spikebuck]

I use both, though for muzzleloading I prefer the ground. I let the situation dictate what would work best. I think the excitement of being "face-to-face" on the ground is more intense, but I don't see sitting in a tree as cheating. I've sat in many trees without stands. Lots of big twisty oaks around here that can be quite comfortable, though it may take a couple tree steps to get there. Always use a safety belt though!

 

[Huntin_Dawg1215]

I would like to see a photo of that, it sounds like something I would like to try.

 

[Pacobillie]

I hunt from the top of a rock ridge, that is about 30 feet higher than the area where my bait is. I works like a charm, as my scent is high above the ground. Best of both worlds: the comfort and safety of a ground blind, and the high vantage point of a tree stand.

 

[Jblk]

When I shoot from a tree stand I know that my round is going into the ground.The population in this area is so dense that I don't want any bullets flying around that I can't control.I am sure that the area you hunt in will dictate the method you use, but saftey should be your main concern.

 

[roundball]

On a related note, it seems some states are even beginning to 'require' some elevation for safety sake. Most recent tragedy I recall was a lady in New England somewhere, out hanging cloths on a clothesline, killed by an errant hunter's CF bullet.
Some of the heavily populated counties in NC already require that you be at least 8 feet off the ground for CF stuff, and in terms of a slippery slope I suspect it'll only be a matter of time for Muzzleloaders.

 

[dc7x64]

Nobody has mentioned the "shooting house"! Very popular here in Alabama. We have 32 food plots on our property and over half of them have elevated wooden "huts" on them. Some are very spartan accommodating a single hunter to very elaborate made of cedar siding 30 ft off the ground with a full size living room couch in it! Food plots are smallish with shots usually only 50-100 yds. Very thick where I hunt so this allows for more of a chance to draw a deer into the open. Does love them and we can usually take our limit (2 club rules). Bucks do come out in them, usually after dark, but some are still taken in them , mostly during the rut. Still the best place to kill a buck? In the thick stuff out of a tree stand!!!