Close Call

[Barry Wensel]

I wanted to mention something that happened to me twice this week that I can't remember reading about before. I'm obviously accident prone. I took a fall down a 30 foot embankment a month ago today and I still have bruises and a slight limp. I hunt almost strictly from ladder stands. The ones that have sections fitting together with buttons are great. But I've also got some older ones that are just male/female connections. This morning while climbing into the stand in the dark I got one step down from the platform when the sections separated. It was just plain luck the stabilizer bar was tight and we also had a second rachet belt around the upright and a close by tree. What happens is it's often hard/dry ground when we put the stand in. We always set them as deep as possible with two fat guys at the same time. But when rains come later the ground softens. The base slowly sinks deeper when climbing up. You can hardly notice it coming apart (especially in the dark). I should also mention we have had tree growth actually separate the sections too if you leave them in the same tree for years. You can keep the sections from sinking by putting a 1x6 board under the bottom so it doesn't sink too deep. Or you can twist a single strand of wire between two steps at two sections so they won't pull apart. Metal ladders are probably our safest elevated stands but you need to be careful even with them. A fall can end your season in the blink of the eye. BW

[jcar315]

Glad it wasn't worse that it was on your tumble. Sorry to hear about your mishap but sage advice on stands that are left in place year after year.

[Shedrock]

Great tip!

[bentpole]

True words of wisdom here Folks! Thanks for posting Barry!  

[Fletcher]

Thanks for sharing this, Barry.  Maybe it's time for me to drill and pin a couple stands.

[Charlie Lamb]

I always keep an eye on my ladders worried that could happen. I put a board on bottom as described and have joined my sections with Clevis pins.

Fat guys don't fall well (I should know). Glad you are OK bud.    

[FerretWYO]

good info Barry

[Froggy]

Yall don't remember in Rudolph the red nosed Reindeer show that "Bumbles Bounce"..      

[Big Ed]

Thanks for the info!

[Gray Buffalo]

That is why I hunt from the ground Charlie. Fat boys don't bounce well.  

[Tony Sanders]

Thanks Barry for posting this, and thank God you were not hurt or injured. I had the same thing almost happen this past Friday as I climbing down from one of my ladder stands that have been in place a few years. It started to come apart, but thank God I made it to the ground before it did. I was able to put a flat rock under the bottom rung. Thanks also for the tip about putting a strand of twist wire to keep the sections together. Stay safe. Shoot straight and Good Hunting.

 Tony

Thanks Barry!

Bisch

[Steve H.]

"...with two fat guys at the same time"

Wher'd you find a second fat guy?

[Scott Teaschner]

Hope you get rid of that limp. Scott

[Eugene Slagle]

At my club had 2 stands have the straps break from sun damage, we replaced all the straps & all of our stands have pins holding the sections together.

Thanks for the tip bud, be safe everyone.

[landman]

Barry, the only fall I've ever had from a tree stand occurred just as you have described here and although the platform and the ladder of my stand was secure to the tree I panicked and fell a full 14' straight down and feet first.   Although I landed on my feet the fall knocked the breath out of me and caused tremendous pain in my feet, knees and hip joints.  My greatest surprise was that I wasn't crippled for life.

It's ridiculous to expect all of the ladder makers to include pins for the ladder sections so I started wrapping the sections of the ladder with camo or brown duct tape.   I check them and replace the tape as needed and haven't had any problems since that single incident.

[Yellow Dog]

Thanks for the advise. A friend of mine took a tumble a couple of weeks ago, he wasn't hurt but it shook him up pretty good. He told me "remember when we were younger and you took a fall, you popped back up and looked around to see if anybody saw you. It's not like that anymore, it was like you dropped a sack of wheat, just a big thud. There was no popping back up." As I get older I'm spending more time in ladder stands, I'm still young enough to tote them in on my back but to old to be climbing trees like a monkey.

[Bud B.]

Wise words. Good tips.

Thank you Sir!

[bawana bowman]

Good point Barry, I just had one come apart on me yesterday. As I was about to climb down. Fortunately my Nephew was standing at bottom of stand and saw the sections start to separate. He was able to reconnect them before I had all my weight on ladder. Also have to say it was his stand I was using. Stand had been in same spot for 4 months. He suggested I use the ladder while he used his climber. Did kill a doe last night from it, but whole time in it was wishing I'd hung my Loc-on.

[meathead]

Thanks for the tip.  Eugene has another good tip.  We had a strap break on one of ours last week too.