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The Tree, How High, Concealment

Cuar

Cuar

New Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2018
Messages
3
So. I have been devouring as much info as I can on saddle hunting whitetails. But I have a few questions. I've noticed a lot of folks hunt out of some pretty skinny trees with their saddle. I know being higher can help deer not see you. But I guess I am use to sitting in front of a tree with a hang on(usually 10-20 ft depending on tree and location) Do you all feel your better concealed from deer or the same in the trees you hunt out of. When I look at people on videos in their trees with a saddle it looks to me like they stick out like a soar thumb.
 
Look at a few pictures of hunters in traditional stands and note the difference between them and a saddle hunter. Saddle hunters are often times vertical which coincides with nature. Tree stand hunters are rarely vertical unless they are preparing to shoot of just happen to be the types that like standing during the hunt. Edit: I guess tree stand hunters are vertical in relation to their stand but the bigger picture is horizontal.
 
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I think the side profile of a hunter in a saddle looks much more natural. You see limbs coming out of the trunk at an angle all the time just like a hunter leaning in a saddle. I've had deer and other hunters that seemed to look right through me and never locked onto me. I know that I can pick out the horizontal line of a stand from a long distance and i'm sure deer can do the same.
 
I prefer somewhere between 25-30 feet if possible. This keeps you outside peripheral vision and helps tremendously with scent control. Any higher and you start to worry more about shot angle and losing bucks to 1 lung shots.

Sitting lower (less than 20 feet) I strongly prefer a platform over a ring of steps to cut down on movement in close quarter close out.

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I am a relatively new hunter, and new to the saddle for the 2017-2018 season. I have been hunting this season between 25-30ft, and have had herds of deer feeding around my tree, where in prior years I would only see one or two in the entire season. While the leaves were on the trees, at that height, I never had a deer even look up. I don't choose a tree by diameter, but by location, so I have hunted large trees and narrow trees.

However, during the winter bow season, with all the leaves off the trees, (i) the woods are much quieter and any sound can alert the deer; (ii) even with a good back drop of other trees, concealment is much more difficult and (iii) even movement at 30ft can catch a deer's eye.

In these conditions, by way of example, a few weeks ago, I had seven antlerless deer feeding around my tree. It's really hard to avoid seven pairs of eyes when the trees are empty. A couple of the deer either heard me move as I shifted position or caught the movement, and looked right at me. As flinginairos said above, they just seemed to look through me without locking on to me, and went back to feeding. (I was wearing Sitka elevated II, but have had the same experience with a Mossy Oak kit as well.)

I doubt I will ever go back to tree stand hunting.
 
flinginairos said:
I think the side profile of a hunter in a saddle looks much more natural. You see limbs coming out of the trunk at an angle all the time just like a hunter leaning in a saddle. I've had deer and other hunters that seemed to look right through me and never locked onto me. I know that I can pick out the horizontal line of a stand from a long distance and i'm sure deer can do the same.
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Exactly. I feel like I am an extension of the tree. Just another branch coming off the trunk.
 
Kingfisher said:
I am a relatively new hunter, and new to the saddle for the 2017-2018 season. I have been hunting this season between 25-30ft, and have had herds of deer feeding around my tree, where in prior years I would only see one or two in the entire season. While the leaves were on the trees, at that height, I never had a deer even look up. I don't choose a tree by diameter, but by location, so I have hunted large trees and narrow trees.

However, during the winter bow season, with all the leaves off the trees, (i) the woods are much quieter and any sound can alert the deer; (ii) even with a good back drop of other trees, concealment is much more difficult and (iii) even movement at 30ft can catch a deer's eye.

In these conditions, by way of example, a few weeks ago, I had seven antlerless deer feeding around my tree. It's really hard to avoid seven pairs of eyes when the trees are empty. A couple of the deer either heard me move as I shifted position or caught the movement, and looked right at me. As flinginairos said above, they just seemed to look through me without locking on to me, and went back to feeding. (I was wearing Sitka elevated II, but have had the same experience with a Mossy Oak kit as well.)

I doubt I will ever go back to tree stand hunting.
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I've had the same experience several times where they know something isn't right but they settle down if they don't see you move and don't catch your wind. It also REALLY helps when you see them coming from a ways off and you can position yourself behind the tree and peek around at them. It's almost impossible for them to see you that way. And the awesome thing about a saddle is you can just keep swinging around to stay concealed if you are setup to do that.
 
BassBoysLLP said:
I prefer somewhere between 25-30 feet if possible. This keeps you outside peripheral vision and helps tremendously with scent control. Any higher and you start to worry more about shot angle and losing bucks to 1 lung shots.

Sitting lower (less than 20 feet) I strongly prefer a platform over a ring of steps to cut down on movement in close quarter close out.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Yes. X2.
 
25-30 feet is the sweet spot for scent control without a doubt.
 
Hunt Kansas. The Deer never look above 10 feet lol. But on a serious not I hunt around 20 feet.


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As high as the canopy allows me....and then a couple feet more. I tend to hunt higher than I should.
 
18-20’. Anything higher, I don’t like the angles(archery). Background cover and hugging tree goes a long way. Also a big believer in the vertigo type camo once leaves begin to fall. Seems to help with our schizophrenic South Carolina deer.


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SG843 said:
18-20’. Anything higher, I don’t like the angles(archery). Background cover and hugging tree goes a long way. Also a big believer in the vertigo type camo once leaves begin to fall. Seems to help with our schizophrenic South Carolina deer.


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LOL!!!
 
It depends on the woods, the deer, and how far I am from the truck. I never hunt below 20’ unless the tree I’m in or the undergrowth prevent it. When hunting thinned pines I’m almost always 30’ unless there is a tree that gives me more cover. When I first started hunting and killed deer without discrimination one of my best stands was low enough I stuck my backpack on the platform before I climbed into it. I didn’t need deer to feed under or around me. I just needed to see them.
 
Cuar said:
So. I have been devouring as much info as I can on saddle hunting whitetails. But I have a few questions. I've noticed a lot of folks hunt out of some pretty skinny trees with their saddle. I know being higher can help deer not see you. But I guess I am use to sitting in front of a tree with a hang on(usually 10-20 ft depending on tree and location) Do you all feel your better concealed from deer or the same in the trees you hunt out of. When I look at people on videos in their trees with a saddle it looks to me like they stick out like a soar thumb.
Click to expand...

Back cover is everything with the wind in your favor.... I have had literally hundreds of whitetail encounters over the last twenty five years being a mere six to eight feet (to my tree stand platform ) off of the ground and they could not tell what I was. I have also been 25 to 30 feet sky lined with swirling wind and been both seen and smelled..... it all depends on the area you hunt IMO.


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