Tree Stands

I am of southern heritage and birth. I grew up with tree stands and there is no denying it they work.  Personally I don't much care for em.  It's not my 6'2" 270 lb frame or the height of the stand, it's the anchor.  Yep, I said anchor.   A tree stand locks you into one place without the ability to move.  If a deer or elk comes in at the "wrong" angle you've got no shot.   If you are on the ground you can move to the animal.  Some will argue that staying on the ground increases the chances of detection. Of course things get a little more complicated down here because of wind direction and the fact that you are on eye level with the animal your hunting, but I'm more comfortable down here so I'll take my chances.

When I was a boy we did a lot of squirrel hunting.  Pap Pal loved to hunt squirrels and I loved to be in the woods with my Grandfather.  We would just sit under a tree and he would let loose with an occasional bark to draw in the squirrels.  It was uncanny how many whitetail deer would walk by.  It seemed like we would see 2 or 3 a day.  As long as we remained absolutely still the deer would continue to feed along never noticing us, but as soon as we moved they would immediately pick up the movement and be gone in the flash of a white tail.  When my grandfather hunted deer, he “still-hunted”.  Moving very slowly always looking and watching for movement or something out of place.  He would never have though of building or using a blind although he would use a dead fall or stump for background cover if he thought he had found a good ambush spot.  What granddad was doing was breaking up his outline using what nature had provided for him.  I'm sure that some of the methods he used were passed on to him, but I think he had decided to hunt in a manner that was comfortable for him. He understood where to be in the woods and how to be invisible.   In other words he had experience ,woodcraft.

These days we have tree stands, blinds and all kinds of equipment and gismo's to help us fill our tags.  We live in a world of media bombardment.  This expert says this and that expert says that.  The fact is no matter what advice you receive the only way to test it is in the field.   It doesn't hurt to try and stack the odds by using whatever means available.  Equipment is important but I think the best way to fill your tag is to spend as much time in the woods as possible.   Remember there is no magic formula to hunting in the woods there is only woodcraft.

Robert G Willis

AZOD