Great reminder, Tim. I wish your friend a speedy recovery and I'm glad it wasn't worse!

After Saturday, I am staying tied in all the time, until my feet are on the ground.

I was using a Summit climber on the side of a ridge. The base of the tree was pretty big so I had to stop about 3' up when I was coming out of the stand. I lost my balance and fell backwards on the down hill side. I figure I fell about 7' because of the incline. I landed on my butt first right on a rock and then landed on my back and head, when they snapped back after the fall. If the rock was under my head instead of my butt I would have been in big trouble.

I am 60 years old and will stay tied from now on.

I know of three hunters where I hunt that fell and were killed over the years. One was 32 years old with 2 kids. They found his bow on the bow hook in the tree, his safety belt around the tree and him at the base with a broken neck.

At the age of 58 I got certified for climbing trees and climbed to 100' with ropes and climbing gear. I did this because I have to do arbor work on my farm. You would think I would know better.

Sorry your friend fell Tim. Our local archery shop had a young football player come in last winter sitting in a wheelchair for the rest of his life from a treestand fall. The last walk he ever made was to his tree that night. Hearing his story,and ones like yours should be all that's needed. But guys still take the chance. Crazy. Climb slow and deliberate. Wear a good headlamp when at dawn/dusk. USE A SAFETY BELT/HARNESS SYSTEM. Always let someone know where your going/when you left. Live to hunt another day.

Sorry to hear that, but it could have been much worse. I took a fall about four months ago as well, breaking my pelvis in three places and tearing a bunch of muscles/connective tissue in my midsection. Mostly healed now, just a little sore from time to time...and I'll never leave the ground again without being tied in.

I fell 30 Ft. back when I was 37 years old and lived to tell about it. Never heard of or thought of using a safty harness. It knocked me out, for how long who knows but no serious injuries, just sore. Why was I up 30 feet? That's another thing I have quit doing, going so high. Sorry about your buddy, hope he recovers without too much trouble.

Glad to hear all is "well",it definately could've ended up alot worse. We all say it won't happen to me....but it's always out there, and we all can never be too careful.  Prayers to all heading out to their stands, shoot straight, and be safe so we all can do it again next year.

Wow guys, thanks for sharing.  It's amazing how many have fallen and know folks that fallen.  My buddy will be fine but it will be a long recovery.  Hopefully he will be back by the late season.

Thanks Tim Glad he wasn't more seriously hurt.

What most people fail to realize, most falls occur due to some sort of equipment malfunction and has nothing to do with how "athletic" or "balanced" one is.

Tim,
      Glad your buddy is going to be ok. Also ,glad you posted this.

I was going to put two stands up this weekend which I normally do not do. I have been hunting from the ground seriously for the last few years now, just thought it would be a nice change of scenery.

 All these responses have me back on track to keep my feet on the ground. Less junk to carry in and it just feels "right".

Good luck this season and be careful when your up in the trees.

                           Good Shooting,
                                               Craig

I talked with the fellow today and he is doing pretty good. He is very thankful for it only injuring his foot. It all happened very fast!!
Please everyone take the extra time needed to tie in on a life line. Remember your Life is on the Line!!!

Lost a friend years ago from a tree stand fall. You could reach up and touch the failed climbing stand from where he fell.

I had a cousin startle awake and end up on the ground with a broken neck. He's lucky now.  He can still walk, but it's not worth it.  

Spend money on a comfortable, easy-to-use harness.  Otherwise, you won't take the time to use it.

I got careless about 25 years ago and fell backwards out of a tree, broke my back and wrist. It was a very bad day as I had to get myself out of the woods because no one knew where I was at. Try walking a half mile out of a steep hollow with a badly broken back and you will get the picture.

After reading about the cables breaking on loc-ons lately and having one friend badly injured by such a mishap last year(Blair on the Dream Season outdoor show)I am in the process of replacing my cables with chains on all my loc-ons.

I am always hooked up to my harness when I climb and use lifelines on my loc-ons now.

Tim let your buddy know I am thinking of him and praying for a fast recovery.i was lucky as well when I fell coming out of a tree back in 1988.i slipped on a step trying to switch feet and my pants leg caught slapped me against the tree hanging upside down then my pants leg tore and down I went thank God I was only 10 to 12 feet and have a hard head.I will never forget that day.Laid there for what seemed like hours seen some pretty big stars on that adventure.Still to this day I have neck problems.I now own a Rescue one harness and many others.This year since I cant climb I put in ladders with lifelines.Take care friend and safe hunting.

Thanks for sharing.  I always tie in when I am actually hunting, but I have been a little loosey-goosey when setting up new stands.  I will try to be more careful then, as well.

Kingsnake

Glad to hear he's not paralyzed or dead.
Stories like this is why I don't hunt from trees.

QuoteOriginally posted by Eric Krewson:
I got careless about 25 years ago and fell backwards out of a tree, broke my back and wrist. It was a very bad day as I had to get myself out of the woods because no one knew where I was at. Try walking a half mile out of a steep hollow with a badly broken back and you will get the picture.

After reading about the cables breaking on loc-ons lately and having one friend badly injured by such a mishap last year(Blair on the Dream Season outdoor show)I am in the process of replacing my cables with chains on all my loc-ons.

I am always hooked up to my harness when I climb and use lifelines on my loc-ons now.

Cables breaking is what got me...we've since replaced most of our cables with chains.

CAT scan showed his heel bone to be shattered in 20 fragments.  Ouch.  Unfortunately, he will miss this season in the woods.  He will be having surgery once the swelling goes down and than the long healing process.  

Thanks to all for taking time to post.

Every night 30 minutes after dark, for 4 months of the year, my cell phone rings with an evening hunt update. I will surely miss those calls this year.

Tim I wish your buddy the best and a speedy recovery.

Its very easy to get too comfortable hanging stands, etc. and "cheat" a bit here and there. This is about the time something bad happens.
I can not tell you how many times I climbed to a branch on the way up and thought "I don't need to hook my shoulder strap before I disconnect my lineman belt to get around that branch". I always think about these stories and it always makes me take the 10 seconds to connect the other before disconnecting the belt.

I just tell myself "rule to never be broken and always be able to hunt....connected to tree every second..period!"

Thanks again for this smack in the face reality check. Sorry it has to come at the expense of your friend. But tell him as he is healing, his message may save many others from worse tragedy. You sharing this story is one more tool that convinces me to take the couple seconds and always stay connected. This story will help keep me safe.

Hey Jason,

Glad you checked in.  Your podcast on ropes and exactly what to buy sealed the deal for me this past summer.  All of my trees are setup the same way and both my son and I have a Ropeman descender in our fanny pack to hook in before we go up.  Thanks for taking the time!

Tim