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Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: Captain*Kirk on June 10, 2016, 12:59:00 PM
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Do you prefer hunting from a tree stand or blind, and more importantly, why?
Please differentiate between fixed, portable or climbing stand, or pop-up or self-made blind.
It's also OK to say both, or other if you have a different setup.
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Yes; used fix, climber and natural blind. Just depends on how the property lays out and how they move.
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Stand, for only 1 reason, because I enjoy seeing critters almost as much as taking them. The elevated position gives me more of both.
Will use a natural hide on ground too, and have a lot of times, but can't see anywhere as much scenery from them. That said, I've had good bucks close on the ground a decent percentage of times.
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I'll do either. Here in these east Texas pines treestands work great. When I hunt in the hill country or south Texas it's pop ups or brush blinds since there's a shortage of tall trees. I like the cover that a pop up gives, I can move around a little more and I believe they help somewhat with scent control. But I love being in a tree too. Hard for me to pick a favorite I guess!!
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While the stands give you the elevated advantage, I find them a PITA to carry in and set up, and claustrophobic to move around in, especially with a harness. A nice ground blind allows you all the freedom of mobility you need and (usually) shooting access 360 degrees, which simply makes for a more enjoyable hunt for me.
There's usually less wind (and resulting 'tree sway') on the ground as well. Drop an arrow? On the ground, just pick it up. In a stand, you have just left a scent stick for the deer if you don't climb down and pick it up, pronto.
Of course, you have to be much more aware of scent and winds, have a limited field of vision, and are now on an eyeball level with your quarry. Last season a 4-point buck walked within 10 yards of my stand and we had an eyeball-to-eyeball staring contest for well over 3 minutes before I cracked and drew, and he whirled and split, white flag waving "So long, sucker!" It was a heart-pounding, adrenaline rush experience I'll never forget, though. It was him and me, on his turf, and he won. Kudos, my white-tailed friend! Long may you run!
For me, hunting is not about 'whacking deer'. It's about interacting with them. And I find the ground blind a better place to play.
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Depends on what the terrain and conditions tell me I need to use. However, I have 10 different lockons, climber, and ladder stands and only 2 pop ups. I don't prefer the pop ups because by the time I brush them in I don't have a lot of visibility and feel to confined. My favorite is my home made ladder stands with Big roomy platforms!!!
If I "have" to hunt the ground Id rather just sit without a blind. But that's just me. They all have their place!
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Hanging stand first choice, better visibility.
If its a place I want to be and no good trees I use a pop up blind or natural blind.
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Tree stand 100 to 1 IF I'm hunting white-tails in the east.
I prefer the view from a tree stand. I feel like I'm better concealed in a tree stand . Often times I can get more clear shooting lanes from the tree stand.
This is how I started way back in 1970 and probably much of the reason I have this very strong preference.
I've successfully hunted mule deer, pronghorn, and hogs from the ground when the terrain (lack of trees) dictated I must.
I use hang-on stands (Lone Wolf and Muddy) most of the time. I have a couple climbers but I rarely use them as climbers. Too much noise and effort to scale the tree. I hunt my own property so thievery isn't a problem.
If I hunted public land I'm sure my climbers would get much more use.
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I tend to use stands more. I hunt on my own land and my cousins land so I have decided to use ladder stands and leave them year 'round in their place. I will occasionally move them base on the conditions I see.
I will say one of the most fun evenings I had was on the ground with my back against a tree and big branches on my sides. I was in a ghilli suit. I had a couple of young deer around me for quite awhile.
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I use stand, blind and ghillie. Just depends on the area I'm hunting and weather.
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Stands whenever possible. Having said that I have come to believe that most stands on average are only good for about 3 hunts per season. Much more than that and the deer are on to you. So I try to hang as many as I can. If it's a public area (lot of the time) then I prepare the tree the spring before season and will climb it with a lone wolf stand and sticks. This year I've got around 20 stands in place and 20 trees setup ready to hunt out of.
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Gotta go up! Prefer lightweight climbing stand so I can go up where I want, at least around here where you have lots of good straight trees. As long as I am on the ground I am moving locations, constantly seeing that place just ahead that looks so much better until I get there. I do it from a stand but it's too much trouble so I stay.
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ladder or hang on 10-12' up. any higher and I don't like the shot angle presented.
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For deer, I prefer a tree stand. But, having said that, I will use every tactic and resource available to me. Stands used are hang ons, and climber. I use natural blinds made by God, and natural blinds made by me. I also hunt exposed, whether from a sitting position, standing position, or moving slowly still hunting. Every tactic I choose has a reason to do so, which depends on a bunch of different variables and situations.
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I've used all the above. But, about 95% is done from fixed tree stands.
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The tree stand is my favorite, and I know it's because it gives me a much wider view of what's happening.
I feel like I'm in a dungeon when in my blind. I usually only use them on bad weather days.
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I also prefer a stand just because I like the view from up there!
But I'm not opposed to a good old blind, brushed or popped.
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I have 4 ladder stands and 4 blinds on the property I hunt. It depends on the weather or where I feel like hunting that day. :archer:
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I like ground blinds the best because I like the shot angles better from the ground level. That being said, I let the circumstances dictate which would be best, and hunt accordingly.
Bisch
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From the ground due to physical limitations and authorization by physician to intercede since family had proposed that I should not be permitted to go the woods.
Thank you doctor.
The blessing and gift continues.
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I generally hunt form a stand. I have trouble remaining as still as necessary, so being off the ground gives me a little help. I do like a ground brush blind, but I get busted more often.
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I like a ground blind , mostly because it's easier and the kill zone is bigger .
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I am only on the ground anymore. I used to feel that without being up in the tree I'd have no chance at being close..WRONG!! My hunting partner only hunted on the ground and eventually coaxed me down. In the past 5 years I have enjoyed the following: frequent encounters with deer at very close ranges often under 15 yards, easier ambush site selection, warmer sits, less cold exposure to the wind, no risk of falling and PERMANENTLY dying for good and for always or chronic injury (one story I heard of is of a guy up here sliced some saplings off at about 6 ft high for shooting lane then got up in stand, fell later impaling on sapling spikes), no virtual heart attack every time I drift off to sleep and jolt back awake when I start slipping out of my stand seat, better shot angle on vitals (got compound friend who loses em and can never figure out why with good hits but steep angles), intense joy of eye-to-eye encounters, easier to set all your crap quietly around you and grab your coffee thermos etc, and most of all....NO LUGING THE DANG NOISY PIECES OF CRAP MILES THROUGH THE WOODS!!
Hee hee!! Sorry about the rant and opinions! You can tell I am happy with being back on the ground! No offense to those who like stands at all. I just prefer the freedom of hunting without them....
Dan
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Originally posted by kennym:
Stand, for only 1 reason, because I enjoy seeing critters almost as much as taking them. The elevated position gives me more of both.
Will use a natural hide on ground too, and have a lot of times, but can't see anywhere as much scenery from them. That said, I've had good bucks close on the ground a decent percentage of times.
...same here
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Stand for me, and some move and stalk in the late winter.
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Usually only hunt on the ground anymore. I would rather be THAT close to deer on the ground than see a bunch from up there in a stand.
On the ground I can move immediately if the wind changes, even to the other side of a clearing or trail..
Easier going in and coming out too.
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Yes...I like what Russ said about being able to move with ease. Thats such a great sense of freedom. We have a lot of shifting wind conditions here near lake superior and I often find myself having to switch over to the other side of the trail.
It always bothered me that I carried such light tackle with whisper light longbow but then lugged heavy metal hardware to hunt with it....
Dan
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Mobile loc-on or climber. I hunt thick areas in Louisiana and anything else on these pressured deer is not a high percentage hunt
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I truly enjoy both. A well set treestand is 2nd to none for concealability. I tend to set them in pine trees. I can move, stand, sit, all without being detected.
I enjoy popups (my favorite is the Hidden Hunter) for their comfort. They also allow you y=to move undetected, and have the added benefit of keeping you out of the weather a bit.
Natural brush ground blinds have their place also. I have several brushed in on the farm I hunt, and I'm not afraid to make a new one just because something looks "right".
I use all 3, I try and not hunt the same stand twice in a week, and I let the day/wind/weather tell me where to sit.
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Originally posted by kennym:
Stand, for only 1 reason, because I enjoy seeing critters almost as much as taking them. The elevated position gives me more of both.
Will use a natural hide on ground too, and have a lot of times, but can't see anywhere as much scenery from them. That said, I've had good bucks close on the ground a decent percentage of times.
This here :thumbsup:
Eric
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As many here have stated, the situation many times dictates the choice of stand type. Heck, one time I sat in the middle of an open field in some weeds next to a telephone pole since the deer were bedding right inside the woods and then fed out into the field during the late season. To try to approach the woods in crunchy snow to take a treestand, or even a ground blind there, would have been an exercise in futility.
The below picture is of two bucks I've taken with bow. The larger was taken out of a treestand at 20 yards while he blindly followed a doe past me. Except for his size (just under 180 P&Y)it wasn't a particularly exciting "hunt."
I use treestands, but the real excitement to me is being eye-to-eye on the ground. The small yearling buck on the left often gets comments like "What the heck did you mount THAT for?" To which I reply that one is my biggest, while the other was the most exciting ever. I called this buck in with light doe talk, slowly coaxing him in on a cold December late afternoon. He literally tried to force his way through the oak deadfall mere feet from where I was hiding. When he couldn't force through the thick mass of branches, he came around it and I shot him at 7 steps. I had to lean way forward in my kneeling position and cant my longbow horizontal to the ground to get the shot off in the last minutes of daylight.
Now THAT is excitement and the reason I love taking natural ground blinds wherever I think they will work. When all things are considered, that small 7 pt is as much or more of an accomplishment and "trophy" than the big guy.
Mike
(http://i1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb472/spikebuck/Bucks.jpg)
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I mostly use hang on stands. I like being able to see game approach from a distance. I also like the fact that I can get into more trees with the hang on and climbing sticks than I can with a climber. Also getting in and out of the stand is a lot quieter.
I also use ground blinds, but usually save those for when I take the kids on their hunts.
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Have ladder stands up but bought a ghillie and I'm migrating to the ground. It seems to be more fun. Not as dangerous either. I'm not as limber as I once was
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I would like to say tree stands but my 3 largest bow kills have come from ground blinds. You miss a lot of what is going on around you but a properly placed ground blind can be deadly.
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Originally posted by FlintNSteel:
The small yearling buck on the left often gets comments like "What the heck did you mount THAT for?" To which I reply that one is my biggest, while the other was the most exciting ever. I called this buck in with light doe talk, slowly coaxing him in on a cold December late afternoon. He literally tried to force his way through the oak deadfall mere feet from where I was hiding. When he couldn't force through the thick mass of branches, he came around it and I shot him at 7 steps. I had to lean way forward in my kneeling position and cant my longbow horizontal to the ground to get the shot off in the last minutes of daylight.
Now THAT is excitement and the reason I love taking natural ground blinds wherever I think they will work. When all things are considered, that small 7 pt is as much or more of an accomplishment and "trophy" than the big guy.
Mike
(http://i1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb472/spikebuck/Bucks.jpg)
Every deer is special and every hunt has a story. This is a great one. I completely understand and respect the reason that you had this buck mounted. There should be a lot more of this.
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I prefer a hang on for the view. I like to be elevated so I have a chance of seeing the deer arrive before they see me. I can ready myself.
I've been surprised so many times in a commercial ground blind before. I also don't feel as though I can see everything. I'm always looking in the same direction, at the same bush, trying to manifest it into a deer. I also missed two pronghorn last fall because my limb tip hit the roof. UGH!
That all said I'd love to perfect my ground game. I've tried and am still working on figuring out how to take a deer, on the ground, with a natural hide. No pop up blinds.
-Jeremy :coffee:
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Originally posted by J. Holden:
That all said I'd love to perfect my ground game. I've tried and am still working on figuring out how to take a deer, on the ground, with a natural hide. No pop up blinds.
-Jeremy :coffee:
Jeremy, last year I got in on the first-ever Illinois Beach State Park hunt. First time ever they allowed bowhunting in there. I saw more deer on the ground, at eyeball level, than I ever did with a stand and or compound. Natural blind, too..set up behind a big twin tree trunk. It was totally awesome. Had a staredown with a hefty four-pointer that went on for seemingly hours, but probably more like 5 minutes. Finally, I drew; he bolted. Game over. (he won) I wouldn't trade that experience for anything, including a bow kill!
VIEW FROM "GROUND ZERO"...
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5690/22239254323_7e0ae8ff0c_z.jpg)
Yep, That's me hangin' wide open behind a big tree and a big hastily-constructed stick pile. Saw more deer up close and personal than ever. Go figure....
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I wish guys would take popups to the next level, there just a tool for hunting and a good one at that. But nobody hardly seems to modify them or modify there positions were they place them. I here so many complaints about hitting the roof or the windows are to tall or I can't see out of them I can't believe it.
I understand that sometimes you bye what's on sale or you switch bows but there's so many things you can do besides brushing them in. You can dig the floor down or part of the floor or raise the front raise the back. If water is a problem you extend the height in so many ways horizontal logs, stakes or wooden poles (better idea for lighting storms) that's why you use wood on Tipi's.
Take the time and scout, find the perfect spots, play the winds, spend the time to really make a blind not just throw it up and put a little brush on it. Make it comfortable you can make them so much better then a tree stand, there perfect for late season when the winds are howling and your sitting comfy and warm drinking coffee and watching nature and they don't even no your there. Just don't fall asleep! :bigsmyl:
That said I use ladder stands to and spend as much time on them to. Brushing, clearing lanes comfortable seats and storage, good hangers for everything. I stay mobile and I may sit for several hours in a stand as the deer come thru from feeding all night. Once it slows down get down stalk my way up to a bench or clearing near the rub and scrap lines and climb into another stand or a well positioned blind depending on wind or weather.
Lots of variables, just a little of how I would never limit my self to one unless you had to but if you do put in the extra work. Then don't forget to pick a spot and shoot straight :archer2: there growing boys won't be long!
(http://i904.photobucket.com/albums/ac248/TmPotter47/Y2.jpg) (http://s904.photobucket.com/user/TmPotter47/media/Y2.jpg.html)
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