Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Treestands: Preferred hunting height & why?

Used to be nosebleed high when I was a young buck, it's funny now, I'll climb in the dark (summit stands), after a while I'm thinking I'm waay high so I sit down, it gets light and I'm 12 feet up....

I've heard too many stories of guys falling out of them or getting hung by harnesses to go too high anymore.

Most of my lookout ladder stands are 15'.....my ideal tree is a mature magnolia or holly.

I have fallen 20 feet out of one. Hurt like hell

depends on the area. I have hunted as low as about 7 feet and as high as about 25 feet. In some areas, if I got too high, I was shooting back down thru a bunch of tree limbs (so I hunted lower). In some areas (around more open areas) I hunted higher. I let what I could see and what I would have to shoot thru decide my height I hunted at.

About this high, about 18 feet to eye level. Metal towers are 30 to 40 years old. Oldest was built in 1982. I weld the date on them. I’ve built my last one I believe




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Completely depends on the context surrounding the setup. I want to put myself in the best position to make a kill so I'm looking at shooting lanes, cover to hide from the deer, wind currents, etc. I have stands as high as 38 feet and I've hunted out of my saddle with my feet less than 4 feet from the ground.

About half of the deer I’ve killed I’ve been on the ground. That being said my ladder stands are typically 16-20 feet and I’ll go 25 feet or so with a climber if it lets me see a little farther. Being in a stand above their line of sight gives you a definite advantage though for sure. This past season I was moving a stand and the bottom ladder was rusted and rotted out so I decided to take that section out and put the now 10’ tall stand up and hunt out of it anyway. I had 5 deer around the bottom of that stand the morning I decided to hunt out of it. It felt like I was standing about back level to them and they milled around for 45 minutes or so. Made me a huge believer in getting above their line of sight.

Haven't hunted in a stand for many years but when I did it was rarely more than 10-12' when bowhunting and many times no more than 8. Rifle was almost always out of a ladder stand so whatever those go to. 16' or so I think. Sometimes I'd leave the bottom of the ladder off if it wasn't needed.

I make the ground blind. Often it is with just natural materials.

I have built platforms in the upper big branches of oak trees when I was young. I could smoke with deer right at the base of the tree and they never knew I was there. Now 15 feet is as high as I get. I have a tripod and ladders now no climbers.

I liked to hunt high...now the body can't handle it. Do the same people that wear a safety harness while hunting also wear seat belts while in a vehicle? Or wear life vest while fishing because they might fall overboard? Don't ride motorcycles or horses and damn sure don't go out in the rain because they might catch a cold. Sheit happens, live life like your dying..... because you are.

I don't believe I'm smelling what you're cooking here – please elaborate.

Bizarre

I hunted high and wore a safety rope
I wear seatbelts that save me twice.
Rode Motorcycles with proper gear
Ride horses, only lazy plodding ones.
Been in 2 plane crashes.
Can't always avoid all risks.

Same thing around here, the height is almost always dictated by the surrounding trees. I like to go higher but much more than about 20' and visibility decreases. I only maxed out the 30' pull up rope one time this year.

My preference is to find an evergreen and go from there judging height. Can't always find one in a suitable place where I'm at now tho.
Height wise, same as most others, from dirt to how high the tree will hold me.

I've discovered that I really don't like heights but I also realize that there's not a huge difference from falling from 18 to 25 feet, it's about the landing and I don't want to find out. I hunt from a climber mostly and I believe it's safe unless there's a mechanical problem but my all welded climber seems generally safe. I started wearing a climbing harness this year, like the ones rock climber wear, and I keep the leash pretty short, just enough to be able to sit and stand but short enough to not "break my fall". I hunt mainly in the pine timbered south and you often have to get high up to have decent visibility. I hunted in KS for the first time this year and sat behind hay bales, I much enjoyed being on the same level as the deer, kind of changes your perspective being on the ground.

More comfortable than I thought, didn't really get in the way.

https://www.rei.com/product/162868/black-diamond-momentum-harness-mens

With a bow I like to go about 20 feet high so my angles on shots aren't too steep. With a rifle, I'll go as high as possible since the shot angle isn't as big a deal.

I always wear a safety belt. I had a climbing stand bottom slip out from under once and was thankful for the safety strap keeping me from falling. An uncle of mine didn't wear a belt and had a fall a number of years ago. He could barely walk for the rest of his life.

Most of my stands are 12 ‘ at base. The most productive is only 7’ . The 7 ‘ has been amazing, however, I don’t hunt stands if the wind is wrong.

GreggH