Who else gets busted while in a tree stand

[dbHunterNY]

10 minutes ago, Hunter007 said:

Really?  works for me had deer walk right at me  more then once  from the ground they  didn't notice me until I  moved .

you gave good advice about not moving. still if you've hunted enough from a stand you should have had a deer walk in with you motionless, yet it'll look right up at you deliberately. you're not busted yet, but some deer will keep looking back. that's where people usually screw up.  their outline or however they positioned just looks a bit unnatural or stands out to the deer from the start.

[doebuck1234]

5 minutes ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

Same. No eye contact is key though. If I get caught by a deer with my binocs up, it becomes a forearm workout and i'll hold those binocs up to my eyes for 10 straight minutes if need be. Once the deer looks away, i can readjust myself.

Grandfather always preached that to me and it does seem to make a difference.have had multiple deer give me the stare down,stomp a little then walk off slowly and i typically hunt 10-15 foot ladders.some even shorter like pictured below.always have my leafy suit over top of my regular clothes for a better blend in

[BizCT]

5 minutes ago, doebuck1234 said:

Grandfather always preached that to me and it does seem to make a difference.have had multiple deer give me the stare down,stomp a little then walk off slowly and i typically hunt 10-15 foot ladders.some even shorter like pictured below.always have my leafy suit over top of my regular clothes for a better blend in

Just curious.....that treestand is 3-4 feet i assume? wouldn't that put you right at their eye level? i would think you are better off on the ground than 3-4 feet up in the air since it looks like a flat area so you dont need those few feet to see anything different.

[Buckmaster7600]

Just curious.....that treestand is 3-4 feet i assume? wouldn't that put you right at their eye level? i would think you are better off on the ground than 3-4 feet up in the air since it looks like a flat area so you dont need those few feet to see anything different.

Good advice here, I disagree with the higher is better unless you practice air at shooting very steep angles much over 20ft makes the vitals very small!

Another thing I may have missed is the sun! If at all possible put it directly behind you, deer don’t like staring into the sun.

Cover is the most important, staying still helps but you have to move so it only goes so far. Don’t go buying a bunch of fancy camo thinking that’s the answer, I rarely wear any and have plenty of close encounters.


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[Daveboone]

Make sure you are ALWAYS hunting with the wind in your favor. use one of the little windicator puff bottles to be sure...alot of the time wind on the ground appears to be moving in a different direction from where it is 12 feet up.

  Make sure you blend in with your trees/ branches. Do not sit out like a bump on a log. Make sure you are not being basked in light , that it at least is behind you, better yet in shadows. One year when I had a bum hip that hurt, I hung camouflage burlap around my stand to cover my butt wiggling. Make sure your face and hands are covered...white skin stands out. and if you get busted once....i figure the stand is done for the season. Some might think it that is an excessive mindset, but it seems once one deer sees me, all of them know about me!

[doebuck1234]

3 minutes ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

Just curious.....that treestand is 3-4 feet i assume? wouldn't that put you right at their eye level? i would think you are better off on the ground than 3-4 feet up in the air since it looks like a flat area so you dont need those few feet to see anything different.

Can reach up and set my bow on seating part so yes short.the stretch of pines is flat but bordering neighbors property which has a hill the deer constantly travel behind.grandfather put all the stands up i hunt and seem to work well so i just roll with it.had i not been up that few ft i wouldnt have even seen my 2018 bow buck i grunted to me.good point you have though!

 

[Daveynewman]

I always used a climber but I got sick of having to find the perfect tree in the dark. It became a hassle. When i did get the perfect tree i set my stand so that my strong side of shooting was where i felt the deer would come from. 

 

I went from that to a light hang on and sticks so I can get in any tree.

 

Then went to a saddle

Like some guys stated getting high is great but then the shot angle becomes a problem. When I used the climber i tried to aim for transition spots between 2 types of woods for example pines and hardwoods along the edge and had the dark pines to my back.

Edited October 31, 2019 by Daveynewman

[ncountry]

58 minutes ago, Hunter007 said:

Really?  works for me had deer walk right at me  more then once  from the ground they  didn't notice me until I  moved .

Yup, me too. Unless they smell you they rarely bust you if you are a statue. .

I dont think I have it anymore, but I have a video of 5 deer that walked up to my boots and sniffed them . There was nothing between us . I was just sitting on the ground with my back against a tree. With blue Jeans on too.lol. they didnt spook until o es curiosity got the better of him and he circled around the tree. I didnt turn and look but it sounded like he was a foot from my ear when he blew out of their.

[nyslowhand]

Things are different when leaves are still on the trees. When they're off, the tree you select may look like a utility pole out in the open.

Not an expert, but doesn't a deer's line of sight consist mainly ~4'high & horizontally. Makes it challenging putting a stand on an incline, esp if they travel up/down same  incline.

If you can't sit still, fidgeting, standing/sitting - gonna get busted whether you realize it or not. Time to get out of the stand if you can't sit still!

Here's one final phenomena I encountered a couple years ago. Had own property with 10/11 ladder stands placed around it, with many re-located yearly. Never had deer notice me, they even came underneath my stands, bucks too! In last 3yrs after selling old property, it has changed hands 2X with multiple hunters/year/owner. I began to notice while I'm in a stand & on cams, the deer are actually starting to look up at stands that have been in same location for ~8 years on adjacent property I now hunt. New situation..WTH!!! Assuming new hunters are fidgeting around and deer have a "learned response" of checking out the stands. FYI - Just to reinforce this learned response, none of the 5-6 new hunters on that old property have had the success for last ~3yrs that I had when I hunted alone there for ~11yrs! Clearly, I'm no whitetail behavioral scientist, just some deer behavior I've seen that's hard to explain!

 

[Hock3y24]

climbers can be tough with lack of branches and foliage to break you up. but the two main things that get you busting are scent and movement. 

[helmut in the bush]

I always look for a triple or double tree to break up my silhouette, even if I need a couple screw in steps to get up high enough for clearance for the stand. You also need to be more than 5' off the ground

[wolc123]

I got busted and made eye-contact with two deer last year, a 3.5 year old buck and a doe.   With the buck across an open field, I was 7 ft up in the air and had a 3 foot wall for cover, as I sat in a swivel chair.   I won that stare down, from 60 yards away.  I remained perfectly still, only blinking my eyes a few times.  After what seemed like a half hour, he put his head down and started moving closer.   I then moved in super-slow motion and was able to get a bolt thru both lungs when he reached a range of about 20 yards, standing broadside.

The doe was a tougher deal though.  I was on the ground in the woods, in a swivel chair for her, with no cover other than camo clothes.   It was a bit windy, and I did not hear her come in behind me.  I looked behind and there she was, broadside at 40 yards.   I tried to swivel around slow, but was not slow enough and she bolted.  You win some and you loose some.   

[G-Man]

On 10/31/2019 at 2:27 PM, Al Bundy said:

Im thinking I must not have enough cover.  I Have 3 different trees picked out to climb, one has a bit of cover but its right on the trail. Others are straight with minimal lower branches.  I think Ill try the one with some cover and try and blend best as I can. I have a really nice 8pt on cam on this trail, along with a smaller 8 or 6. 

One other thing I forgot to ask. How you guys get your weapon up with a climber. I was thinking tie a line to it and leave on the ground. Get the climber all set up and get comfy then haul up the line with my xbow attached.  Seems a pain to somehow sling your xbow and climb at the same time. Also while Im thinking,  anyone cock the xbow on the ground or up in the climber? Seems better to cock it on the ground and put the bolt in after hauling it up.  

That is biggest problem with climbers , need a tree that fits stand . Not the best tree to kill a deer. Cover and wind direction are most important. Followed by your entrance and exit route.

Yep leave on ground and haul up rope if you tie knots in it at present measurements you will know if your 10 20 30 ft high. Also put a clip on rope to attach ( carabiners) wrap in tape to quiet it. Nothing worse than trying to untie bow when deer is standing under you

[Bolt action]

Take this with a grain of salt... This past season I killed two deer from my climber. Both times I was no more than 8' up. Both times I was scurrying up the tree and pulling up my crossbow as the deer approached and in both cases the deer were within 50 yards while I was making all this commotion. I think that common sense and luck play a big part in success in the woods. 

[Jeremy K]

I always use the tree im using my climber in as the coverage (hunt from the backside). I sat on the ground this past season while 3 doe walked by at 30 yards ,they all took turns stomping at me and raising their noses and never ended up spooking off . Movement is huge ,scent is even bigger and one thing that i swear works but can not prove is to squint my eyes if a deer ever looks at me , i am a firm believer that they pick up on our eyes at a close distance . Again i cant prove it but i will always continue to do it. 

[grampy]

35 minutes ago, Jeremy K said:

I always use the tree im using my climber in as the coverage (hunt from the backside). I sat on the ground this past season while 3 doe walked by at 30 yards ,they all took turns stomping at me and raising their noses and never ended up spooking off . Movement is huge ,scent is even bigger and one thing that i swear works but can not prove is to squint my eyes if a deer ever looks at me , i am a firm believer that they pick up on our eyes at a close distance . Again i cant prove it but i will always continue to do it. 

When deer are close, never look em in the eye!! Squint, use the brim of your hat, turn your head away, look from the side. I primarily hunt from the ground, and many, many times have had deer close enough to touch. But something about when they look directly in your eyes, while up close, they're gone! Even if they can't smell ya.

[BizCT]

+ 1 on the eye squint


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[crappyice]

I too don’t stare at them(especially bucks). I don’t want them to see the nervousness in my eyes!!!
Wind direction!!! I had a few encounters this season where I knew I was gonna be busted when she hits THAT SPOT....and sure enough that’s what happened.
Movement is the other big one. I got busted by a doe 75 yards away this year when she came in from a side I wasn’t expecting. I was standing (as I usually am while in my climber) and moved too fast to just grab my phone not knowing she was there. Flag up! Got me!!! Blew up the woods on me and scatted other deer walked right under me even if they look up as long As I don’t move (or make eye contact)


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[Lawdwaz]

1 hour ago, Jeremy K said:

 Movement is huge ,scent is even bigger and one thing that i swear works but can not prove is to squint my eyes if a deer ever looks at me , i am a firm believer that they pick up on our eyes at a close distance .

100% agreement.....

[Buckmaster7600]

When deer are close, never look em in the eye!! Squint, use the brim of your hat, turn your head away, look from the side. I primarily hunt from the ground, and many, many times have had deer close enough to touch. But something about when they look directly in your eyes, while up close, they're gone! Even if they can't smell ya.

I completely agree, the funny thing is from my experience some kind of tinted glasses completely negates this. I wear sunglasses while hunting and can’t remember the last time I had a deer make “eye contact” while wearing them.


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