How high do you sit in a tree when hunting from a stand?
When rifle hunting, I'll often go 40'-50' up, depending upon the cover/brush I'm hunting over.
But for bowhunting, how high do you go?
Platform is usually around 18 feet.
I have 2 ladderstands from 5 to 15' my climber I stay about 15'
12-15 feet for me but it seem's to be getting lower as i get older.
doug77
10-15 feet.
I would say my average is12'. Sometimes I go higher but that has more to do with background cover than anything else.
I stay around 6-8'. I can't stand heights!
Bill
lower than when I was younger, ave, 15-18 feet, used to go alot higher. Mike
High enough to get killed, low enough to be seen...
Seriously, 12-20 feet, usually about 16-18 feet.
David
Usually no higher than 12. I want to hit both lungs!
It depends on the cover I'm hunting....I have killed a lot of hogs and deer out of an 8' tripod
I try to keep my feet no higher than 12-14 feet off the ground, regardless of the cover I'm hunting. Shot angle becomes questionable much higher than that.
15-20 feet for whitetails, 5-6 feet for bears. I'll hit both lungs on deer at that height. I think deer are looking up more.
depends on the tree and the way the wind acts most of the time. I like them low for better shot angle
ladders put me to 15', climber depends on needs, but usually max at 18' (used to go higher with wheels or a gun). Fixed stands would also be in that range.
15 to 18 on average but it is all dependent on the vegetation around the stand site.
If it is too low I will just put in a ground blind.
Tom,
Holy cow! :scared: You get 40' high in a tree for rifle hunting? :confused:
I guess I go the average of folks here...which seems to be 10-15 feet. :thumbsup:
I like to hunt 20ft or so, but tend to stay around 15ft so i can make better shots.
At least 20. You've got to practice the shot for that height.
I like to stay around 18' it gives me plenty of time to think about my life as I plumett to the ground. (I actually do hunt at the 18' platform height
Seven to twelve on the average. Killed a nice doe at about 25 ft. this past season. Find it hard to shoot while holding on with both hands and frozen with fear. :pray:
IMO...If you go too high the shot angle gets messed up.I like between 10 and 20 feet depending on cover and terrain.
Best
Bob
I use 2-3 Lone Wolf sticks, I am usually 10-15 feet high, which is plenty high for me.
David
15-25 feet depending on tree and suroundings
Forty to fifty feet up? You must be an Iron Worker! LOL! Depends most of the time 12' to 15' but I've been known to go up to 22' or so with the portable climber.Like you said it depends on the surrounding cover. If I have something to break up my outline,12/15' is plenty.I try to find a climbable tree with a pinetree behind it.This way my outline is broken up and I break a branch or two on the pine to mask my scent.
Most of my stands are 8 to maybe 14 feet above the ground. I like the better shot angles present at lower heights and feel much safer, which results in better shooting on my part. It's also safer in climbing shorter stands and putting them in the first time.
You might also find that sometimes if you put in 12-15 of steps to get 25' up, you are more reluctant to move your stand to a better tree due to all the work you have invested in the erection of the first stand. At least that was the case for me when I was young and hunted higher. A lower stand has less of that involved (and also requires less brush cut for shooting lanes), so I'm more likely to pull up stakes and move over a few trees if the deer traffic is telling me to do so.
If one is careful about foreground and background, you can actually be better camouflaged at lower heights in some environments than 15-25' up due to being skylighted against bare trees and the sky. Often times, one trick I'll use is to place a deadfall (old, small cedars work good) under my tree to keep deer from getting too close, which can be a problem if you're only 8-10' up.
It completely depends on the individual situation. One stand I used to hunt in the bottom of a ravine was 22' up. Another one of my favorites in a small pine tree is only 8 feet high.
I don't make any hard and fast rules because every situation is different.
I agree with JRW, it depends on cover and a lot of things. I have a couple that are actually 3ft or so and some like my Beaver creek stand that around 25-27 ft, off the ground but due to the terrain the deer are usually only 15-18ft. below me. Shawn
It all depends on the situation, but rarely over 16 ft. I'll hunt 12 if terrain, wind and cover will allow. I usually brush in the stand unless the tree has enough cover already.
I hardly ever place my Screaming Eagle stand more than 4' or 5' off the ground. :readit:
But....then again, the only time I use it is when I'm teaching a NBEF course. That's the only reason I own a stand. I just like my feet on the ground when I'm hunting. I've found it quite difficult to shoot a bow with both legs and one arm wrapped around a tree. :bigsmyl:
Season starts here Oct. 1. That time of year there is so much foliage that you can't really hunt to high. I try to stay around 12' feet if possible for better shot angle.-------Bone
8-9'
For the last few years I've used ladder stands so I've been right around 15-16 feet from the ground.
When I used a climber/strap on stand I would normally go anywhere from 15-20 feet up.
I go as low as 10' if the tree provides cover to do so. If I have to hang without good background cover, I usually end up 15 - 18'.
QuoteOriginally posted by BodarkOkie:
I hardly ever place my Screaming Eagle stand more than 4' or 5' off the ground. :readit:
But....then again, the only time I use it is when I'm teaching a NBEF course. That's the only reason I own a stand. I just like my feet on the ground when I'm hunting. I've found it quite difficult to shoot a bow with both legs and one arm wrapped around a tree. :bigsmyl:
Now there's a man after my own heart! ;) :D :biglaugh:
Bill
With traditional I like 12 to 15 in good cover .
Mike
12' - 18'
Thats good for my area.
Carl
I get as low as the background cover will allow and really consider my stand nothing more than an elevated blind, at least I think in those terms. I like looking-em in the eye!!!!
15 foot max. Some stands as low as 10.
Every now and then I'll get one boot up 3-4" but I like to have 'em both on the ground when I shoot. :goldtooth:
16 to 20 depending on terrain
I like to hang treestands as low as I can while still having some cover around me.
The height varies alot from tree to tree and with terrain type.
I've been as low as 10 feet in the early season and as high as 35 feet when hunting river bottoms with straight pole timber in late season.
I'm a little scared of heights but a treestand has never bothered me.
Regardless of how high you hunt, do yourself and your loved ones a favor and wear the very best fall restraint system you can afford and if you cant afford a good one borrow money. If you hang around in trees long enough you are goping to have a mishap. Be prepared for that day. Okay enough soapbox.
Trap
I'm not to keen on Two screamers I like to scream one time before I hit the ground. :biglaugh: 15 to 20 ft.
Right around 15-23'. Lower I'm exposed, higher and I loose all my shooting lanes and can't see them coming in.
In the swamps it varies from 8-14', just out of the scrub, but not high enough to stick out.
20 to 25ft. I'll cut my shooting lanes while im in the stand and directing a friend to cut what needs to be cut from the ground.
I have gone lower in recent years.
For hogs, I like 8-10 feet. Deer hunting I go as low as I can get away with(usually 10-12').As long as I have good background cover I feel that's high enough and not so high I won't hit both lungs.
I've been hunting a lot more on the ground lately, to me that's the ultimate.
I usually set the platform at 20ft for deer.Lower and the wind has to be strong and steady to get away with it around here.In late season when the woods are thin I might go a bit higher and have hunted at 30ft in the right location.I hunt on the ground for hogs.
I like to be able to reach up and touch the platform with an arrow from the ground.
My ladder stand only reaches 12'.
12-15' for me. Like Huntrdfk, I use 3 LW climbing sticks.
15' max when hunting with my kids
18'-22' on average for whitetail depending on cover and terrain
The lowest possible cover between 0-12'.
Though I prefer the shot angle from the ground.