Climbing Sticks...Tips/Tricks?
Whitetail Deer
Contributors to this thread:
Ok climbing stick experts, what is the best way to make one trip up the tree to set your sticks and stand for a mobile hunt. I just started using this setup, and need a bit of advice (to hasten the learning curve).
I used the sticks this weekend while setting some stands and really like them, but need to find a quiet way to bring 4 sticks up with me and place as I climb....any tips? I figure bundling them together in a tight but easy to release way is best, but havent looked into how to accomplish that.
Additionally, do you leave the stand on the ground with a rope attached and pull it up as you are ready to set it?
Any help is appreciated!
I put the sticks together lean them up on the tree and fasten them as I go up ,always pull the stand up last some people hand a pulley up an pull the stand up from the ground a helper is always nice .STEVE
First practice several times it gets easier each time. I just just hang one on each side of my harness, the first ones up second one in my hand with my stand on my back.
The Lone Wolf sticks are the quietest I have used and you only need 3 to get to a good height. They attach securley to the back of a LW stand as well for hauling in and out. Not sure which ones you are using, but the other ones I have are not the best in terms of being mobile... Great for stands that will be there most of the year though.
I typically keep my stand on my back, hang my first step. I have a shoulder strap which holds my additional steps, the step stay at my side and I un-strap each step as I need it. Typically when I climb down, I just keep the steps I am pulling down in one hand as I descend. If you use lone wolf sticks you can snap the free step to the one still hanging on the tree and it will stay there while you un-strap the other step.
My buddy has to climb up and down because he doesn't trust his linemans belt to do what I do, so I guess you have to be good with heights.
I have the leverage sticks (chose over lone wolf due to double steps....AWESOME to stand two footed at the top of the step).....I have 6 of them, so I can get pretty high....will likely hunt with 4 (maybe 5 if needed).
They will be plenty quiet from my observation this weekend.....I just am searching for an easy way to bring 3-4 sticks and a stand up as I climb.
bungie the sticks together for the pack in (the worst part). assemble the sticks and place against the tree keeping in mind how you prefer to enter the stand and how you want it oriented. I ratchet strap the first one in place then repeat on each one as I climb. A climbing belt makes this safer and frees up both hands for manipulating the ratchet straps. I usually carry the stand up on my back but pulling it up with a rope might be easier for you just tie the rope off to your belt before you climb. good luck be safe
I ditched the bungie setup last year and have a two strap system that fastens my steps to the vertical support bar of the stand. I was finding if you had some thick stuff to get through to your stand and got snagged the steps would then start to shift, flopping around or even sitting on the ground fumbling with trying to get the straps tight enough drove me nuts. With the new system I put the stand on the ground, stack the steps and pull the two straps tight works great and I can move out quickly.
I also was doing the rope for hoisting the stand and with hoisting your bow as well, I always felt like I was gonna get busted so I tried to find a quicker way.
I think the best thing to do is practice with them, take all your gear your gonna have when the weather turns cold and test it that way. Early season seems simple but the extra gear for cold weather makes it much more difficult.
good luck
I also use 3 lone wolf as Nick Muche says. When using 3 you put one up while on ground take two steps up put the next one on, two steps down put the stand on my back with rope going down to my bow and pack climb up put third step on then put stand on and then haul up the equipment. I found it quieter in the long run because u make one mistake and you have noise. Plus overall I really have like 2 extra steps up and two extra steps down as opposed to working out some crazy system. What does that cost me time wise? 10 seconds? Maybe?
In the end it takes me about 4-5 minutes to get up a tree I have never been before. I'm happy with that.
Hmmm....you have a point APauls....maybe the time savings isn't worth the cluster it could created.
Another question.....how do you transiton from a linemans belt on the way up to a harneaa type belt in the stand? I wanted to use the same piece for both but it requires being unattached for a short period.....thoughts?
the way i do it is to place your linemans belt above the height of your seat, hang your stand and step on your platform. I have a second strap i attach to the tree, then connect my harness, and remove my linemans.
Use a lifelibe attached as i climb I also use a linemans belt. Having just a linemans belt wont protect u from a fall.
4 Lone Wolf Sticks and Lone Wolf Assault
Attach bottom stick to tree.
Unwrap the straps from the other 3 sticks and lay them out with the straps extended.
I have a hoist cord that I've put loops in it at specific intervals down the length of the cord.
Thread the adjuster buckle of each step strap through a separate loop in the cord. In other words, each step strap will be attached to a separate loop on the hoist cord.
Hook top wheel of bow to carbiner on bottom end of hoist cord.
Hook carbiner from second cord to bottom cam on my bow and hook carbiner at other end of that chord to my daypack.
Put on Treehopper linemans style belt.
Put stand on my back.
Attach top end of pull chord to my belt.
Climb to top of first step.
pull up on hoist cord until I can grab first loop with second step strap buckle. Unhook buckle from loop and pull up second step.
Attach second step to tree.
Climb to top of second step.
Pull on hoist cord until I can grab the second loop with third step strap buckle. Unhook buckle and pull up third step.
Attach third step to tree.
Climb to top of third step.
Pull hoist cord until I can grab the third loop with the fourth step strap buckle. Unhook buckle and pull up fourth step.
Attach forth step to tree.
Climb onto fourth step and using the Treehopper belt to hold my weight, attach the Lonewolf strap and EZ Hang hook to the tree. Remove the stand from my back, hang on the hook, secure stand and climb on.
Pull up on hoist cord until I can grab my bow. Hang bow on a tree hook.
Unhook second hoist cord from bottom cam on bow. Pull up on second cord and retrieve daypack. Hang pack on a tree hook.
This method allows me to go up the tree and bring all my gear quietly up the tree in one trip.
I wrapped my Lone Wolf Sticks with camo tape for additional silencing.
A couple of years ago a guy had a video of himself putting up his Lone Wolf sticks and stand. I'm sure if you do a search you'll find it. I too put the first step on while on the ground and hang the 2nd and 3rd from my harness ( the rings where the linesman belt attaches) and hang the m as I go up. My stand is on my back.
Wouldn't a rope & grappling hook work better? Catch each step and bow as you need them? Avoiding going up and down the tree and keeping the bulk to a minimum.
I like my climber, but it does limit the tree options.
I wouldn't want to be hanging from the tree fishing around with a grappling hook hoping to hook something.
My method allows me to go up the tree once and everything I need is attached to a hoist cord or on my back.
Mike coild you post a pic of your hoist rope?
Thanks
I have 8 setups. I bind each one together with the straps that go around the tree. I then use my safety rope and create a "handle" (50 ft of 1/2" line) I rigged a set of pack straps with buckles on them and attach them to my stand platform. I wear my lineman's belt and go in with a small pack of extra goodies, like hooks and maybe some extra straps. I simply put the steps together and stand them up the tree, as I climb I set straps around each section. Once to the top I secure my climbing rope as high as I dare reach to the tree. I then attach a D-ring to the loop and snap the other end into a pulley. I can then pull up the seat and control it when it gets in place by tying it off. Once the seat is set, I remove the pulley, and drop the line, it stays there with the setup as my safety line, I put a prusik knot in it and I am done.
I simply hang the first step, then hang the next couple of steps from branchs in the tree, that way I grab one as needed. I have also hooked it onto the step that was already installed on the tree. Stand stays on my back as im climbing, using a linemans belts to stay hands free. To secure stand and ladders together use the belt that you use to strap to the tree. Lay the ladders on your stand, run the strap thur the bottom of stand across the ladders and hook back to stand. You can get it as tight as you want, no bugee cords, no noise.
All my hanger stands have back pack straps on them or I wont buy it. I put the stand on my back just like a back pack and take it up with me as I attach the sticks. When at the top I stand on the sticks or a tree limb and attach the stand. I then reach back to my belt and grab my bow string that I attached to it before going up and then I pull up my bow. One trip up and I am ready to hunt.
Its good to take your bow so you are certain that you have everything just right. There is nothing worse then getting up there later and finding out there is a tree limb you did not notice that's in the way when you are at full draw. I draw my bow back and make sure I can shoot in all directions without and impediment.
If you do it correctly you can do it all in one trip up the tree. The other reason I use stands with the back pack straps is for carrying it into the woods. There is nothing worse then lugging 3 or 4 climbing sticks, a stand, your bow and a hand saw when all you have to carry it is your hands. Its also noisy doing it all by hand. If your stands do not have the straps they can be easily attached to the bottom side so you can carry it on your back. Any cheap straps will do because you are only using them to cart it into the woods.
TBH
I found this video to be helpful. Stand with a rope would finish the ensemble.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewUYYw7Jl1M
Yeah, I'll have to dig out the rope and take a photo.
bigrigNE, Thanks for posting the link to the video. What I don't like about his method is that the steps are swinging around in the air and clanking on stuff while he's climbing. With my method, the steps stay quietly on the ground until I'm ready to pull them up.
Also, at the beginning of the video he said he removed the black strap because it didn't work well and tore loose. I think he was using it incorrectly. He put the step with the black strap on the top of the stack and stretched the strap downward around the stack of steps.
The step with the black strap should be at the bottom of the stack and the strap should be fastened upward around the stack like in my photo to reduce stress on strap attachment point.
CAS_HNTR's Link
My setup looks almost identical to Mike's (Except brands are a bit different)....I dont have a problem getting them from truck to tree as I have them stacked, strapped, and on the treestand (backpack style) as most do.
The complexity comes at the tree.....the video is nice, but I dont like the swinging steps as I climb.
I like the rope idea, but 50' of rope seems like it may be an issue as well, especially when in a "branchy" tree.
I located this video as well, seems like it would work but not sure what to do with the stand then.....seems like you would have to go back and get it or pull it up with a rope. It would likely cause some noise swinging the sticks back and forth with it on your back.
CAS_HNTRs that is pretty much how I do it, however I climb with my stand on my back. I have rubberized and filled my sticks but you still need to move slow and not swing everything around but it works very well. For years I just had my stand on a second pull rope and that works ok.
Cheesehead, that is pretty much the same way i strap my steps to my stand as well, works great.
My system is similar to Cheesehead Mike's.
Another handy tip is to paint the tops of your Lone Wolf steps white. It makes them a whole lot easier to see them when you are climbing down when it is dark.
Lots of great advice so far. While slightly off topic, the Tree Saddle is a great combo with climbing sticks if you are willing and able to give the Saddle a try. You basically are wearing your stand and lineman's belt so you only have to manage the sticks. It's fast, quiet, flexible and damned near impossible to fall out of. There are some comfort sacrifices but most people can figure out a way to stay comfortable for a half day hunt.
Whether using 3 or 4 sections, my method is basically the same. I attach the first section to the tree as high as I can reasonably step onto it.
I then take the second section and attach it loosely to the tree above and off to the side of the first section if I'm using four.
Then I tie my lifeline to my stand at one end and the other end to my harness at the right hip.
I do the same with bow and and small diameter pull rope on the left side.
Then take the two remaining sections and connect both ends of the strap to the versa button. This will allow you to loop them over your head and shoulder with the stick hanging vertical at your side. Put them each on separate sides.
Using my lineman's belt, with pack on my back, I climb the first section. If using 4 I take the one off the side of the tree and reattach it in place. If using 3, I take it off of my shoulder.
Once the final section is in place I pull the stand up with my lifeline. I hang it in place and then attach my lifeline to the tree just above the seat and hook in.
I then take the lineman's belt off and stick it in a cargo pocket.
I climb into the stand, get settled and pull my bow up with the small pull rope.
I've found that it's a lot more quiet to pull your stand up as opposed to having it on your back. That way my steps can't hit it and limbs can't drag across it.
I use the same setup that Alpinehunter suggested,im up the tree in minutes,use 2 screw in to be able to rotate around tree,and its very comfy to me(and im in my middle 50,s)Dont think they make the Saddle anymore,but Guidos Web is about the same.
I use the same setup that Alpinehunter suggested,im up the tree in minutes,use 2 screw in to be able to rotate around tree,and its very comfy to me(and im in my middle 50,s)Dont think they make the Saddle anymore,but Guidos Web is about the same.
Cheese head mike that's the way I do it exactly at first I had two ropes one for pack and one for steps then I attached second rope to last step to pull pack and bow up at same time works best for me!! I'm big guy I use ameristep rapid rails gonna try lone wolf sticks this year though cause there lighter I love the lone wolf stands.