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Pre season stand setups

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jason

Guest
I just ordered a new climbing stand from cabelas tonight. I was wondering how you guys prepare for hunting with a climbing tree stand? Do you guys climb trees a head of season,cut branches, and make shooting lanes, in the area you'll be hunting?
And what height do all you guys usuall hunt at??
Thanks and good hunting
 
Jason,
I just started using a climber last year and really like it if I know that I'm only going to hunt an area once or twice.On public land there great because you can get in and out of the tree without leaving anything behind,plus your hunting the surprise factor, when you hunt that way you never know what could happen.As far as getting in and out of the tree I like to pretrim the limb's that need trimming before season if possible but if I'm hunting public groud I normally do not do this.Alway's wear a safty harness when hunting in a stand and that go's double with a climber!The only other thing that I would say is try to practise setting the stand up and also make sure that you can carry it quietly in and out of the wood's,I had some trouble with noise when I first got mine but the more you hunt with it the easier it will get to be quiet.As far as how high to hunt I like to hunt about 16 to 20 feet but the lay of the timber may not let me get that high sometime's,you just have to set up were you think you'll have the best chance to get a clean shot,That's the neat thing about a climber is that you can move up and down the tree at will.As far as trimming shooting lanes I try not to do this when I hunt with my climber but that is a decision you can make on your own.Good luck to ya!
 
Jason, if you are hunting public ground I believe there are regs forbidding the cutting of shooting lanes. I could be mistaken about this and I know most people do it anyway. However somewhere I read this many years ago so I do not trim. (I have tied some branches back with short lengths of rope though).

My best advice is to setup in several different areas for 1 or 2 times each. That way you do not spook the deer out from any single area, plus when you figure out their patterns you will have a couple good trees already scoped out where you know that you can set up quickly and quietly.

Watch the wind and do not wear out any single spot.

IaCraig
 
I also have a new API climbing stand coming from Cableas. In the 30+ years that I have been bowhunting I have never been in a climbing stand. Now that I am older I find getting in and out of trees with hang on stands and slippery steps to be a challenge to say the least. I do plan to immediately use it to trim branches at the stand sights that I have been scouting for the last few months, I have already cut some shooting lanes, and piled some bush to funnel deer. As for me, in the past I have found that a tree stand height of 15-25' works well for me.
 
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