Mainely Outdoors: Let’s talk tree stands

MAINELY OUTDOORS

By Bill Graves

Fifty years ago hunters utilized three main tactics to fill a big game tag. The foremost method involved selecting a likely piece of woods to slowly, quietly walk through in hopes of spotting the quarry. If gunners were lucky enough to have snow cover, the technique was to locate a fresh set of tracks and try to catch up for a shot. A few sportsmen found a high spot in a fresh cut-over area, sat on a stump or log and waited for game to come into the open.

Each and every fall for the last couple of decades, more and more deer, moose and bear hunters are spending more time sitting and less time walking. Oh, and a lot of that sitting time takes place up in the air; tree stands are fast becoming much more than a trend and hunting success rates are increasing because of them. There are three basic styles of tree stands, each with a few pros and cons, and often dozens of models for each of the trio of types.

Climbing tree stands or climbers for short are two-piece outfits consisting of a foot rest and a seat unit. Lightweight and portable, climbing stands have shoulder straps and may be transported just like a backpack from vehicle to hunting site. Once a likely location is selected, the two stand parts are attached to the tree at ground level and held in place by a weight-induced, friction clamping system. The hunter then steps onto the base foot rest and uses arms and legs to push and lift the two pieces up the trunk to a satisfactory height.

For hunters who like to change shooting regions weekly, and might move from one area in the woods to another daily, climbers allow a quick change option. The downside to climbing stands is the need for trees with high limbs or a saw must be carried to prune a path up the tree trunk. Also, it takes a bit of balance, coordination and strength to move a climber up and then back down a tree, more likely the attributes of a younger hunter. While this type of stand will work in northern Maine, it’s nowhere near perfect for most of our tree species and hunter’s age and physical attributes.

Hang-ons or stationary tree stands are comprised of a safe, solid, easy-to-position and comfortable seat and foot platform in one unit. A hang-on stand uses either a cam-locking strap, ratchet binders or heavy metal screw-in bases to attach the stand to a selected tree. These are meant to be put in place overlooking a field, cutting or game trail and remain there for a full season dependent on the big game quarry.

Hanging stands require some sort of ladder or attachable tree steps to place then access the seat each hunt. Some sportsmen build and paint their own wooden ladders while many more take advantage of commercially available steel or aluminum ladders, steps or foot pegs sold by a dozen outlets. Some ladders attach with ratchet straps, other steps and pegs screw into the tree trunk and are removed at season’s end. I will mention that ascending a tree on nearly vertical ladders or steps requires more effort, coordination and care than climbing a solidly attached, properly angled ladder.

My favorite tree stand, and statistically most popular across the country, is the ladder stand unit; a comfortable seat, back rest and floor foot rest attached to two or three detachable ladder sections with various heights available from 8- to 20-feet. Despite being a bit more heavy and cumbersome to carry in and set up, it is simpler to erect, safer to set up, and extremely hunter friendly to use.

Most ladder stands feature seat arm rests, flip up foot rests, and a flip-up adjustable shooting rail, all of which surround the seated hunter to lessen the chance of a fall and to elevate comfort. I just purchased a 20-foot Odyssey model from Muddy with all these features and more and once set up and strapped to the tree, there wasn’t a wiggle or wobble and the ladder is solid as a set of stairs.

Since I often have friends who like to take their children on a hunt, and sometimes a husband-wife team, or one shooter and one photo or video buddy, last season I bought a two-man tree stand. Big Game Tree Stands make a Partner Plus outfit that’s like having box seats at a Red Sox game! A huge foot platform, a heavily padded flip-up seat, padded back cushions, and camo-covered arm rests and adjustable shooting rail with plenty of room for two people up to 500 lbs. load weight makes this a terrific outfit.

Tree stands range from as little as $50 dollars to upwards of $300, but when you divide the cost over 10 or more seasons of use, it’s more than reasonable. Booming popularity of tree stands stems from how much they increase a hunter’s effectiveness and success rate. When you’re on the ground stalking the woods, not only do you make more noise, but your scent travels on the breeze at the same level a deer is moving about. Much less human scent drifts downward from an elevated hiding site and the higher vantage point allows a shooter to spot game moving through dense wood easier than at eye level.

Another plus to shooting from a tree stand is a better sight picture and shooting lane with fewer chances of brush or trees deflecting an arrow or bullet. Big game animals seldom look up as they are not expecting danger from above and therefore frequently pass very close to hunters sitting quietly overlooking trails, food plots, tote roads and larger feed fields!

They are still a few woodsmen who just have to tramp the forest floor to pursue their whitetails, so tree stands aren’t for everyone. Older or partially disabled folks who still enjoy getting out hunting will certainly benefit from a medium height, comfortable tree seat. Check out your local sporting goods store or catalog or shop online to learn more. You might be the next outdoorsman taking a stand for better hunting.