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Whats everyone's preferred climbing method

Funny thing...last season I did one hunt on a big fat tree that was a good hike back and up. I preset the tree a week earlier with screw in steps. I was so happy walking into the woods with less gear.

Well about 5 minutes after I got up the tree, I knew it wasn't a good spot! I stayed up until dark and never even went back and got my steps (will try to get them this year).

But anyway....I don't like not having the spontaneous hunt option
 
There is never one answer for a problem...just like there's never only 1 way to skin a cat.

I have sticks. I love my sticks. I also have aiders, Stepp Ladders, stick ladders, gaffs, ladder stands, and a climbing stand. They each serve a purpose.

In my opinion, the most important thing is that the hunter is 100% confident in his/her setup, no matter what style is chosen.
 
I've gotten pretty good with the SRT over the last few years. It can definitely be a little bit of a pain being limited to a tree with a branch or Y just above hunting height. But, the fact that you can leave a piece of throwline and come back years later, tie your climbing rope on and get setup in a few minutes is pretty slick. Also, rappelling down a tree after shooting a nice buck might just be the coolest feeling ever:). And I've got to imagine it is the safest way to climb as well as you are tied in at all times. I've started wearing a climbing helmet too as my headlamp is nice and secure on it. The latest addition has been ernie's platform which I think is going to make it much more comfortable. I was using a single muddy stick with a few cranford steps around the tree and my feet would get pretty sore even with some padding on the steps.
So I'm wondering how you ascend the tree? I'm looking very seriously at the SRT system but I"m just not sure about how I'll "walk up the tree"?
 
So I'm wondering how you ascend the tree? I'm looking very seriously at the SRT system but I"m just not sure about how I'll "walk up the tree"?
I use a left hand ascender, foot sling,micro pulley and a grigri2.

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In a somewhat similar means I use a ropeman attached to a micropulley above my grigri2 along with a right foot ascender to advance the rope. Slide the ropeman with micropulley up then step up with the foot ascender to pull the rope thru the pulley. Almost as simple as climbing a ladder.
 
So for SRT my thoughts are to use a Ropeman1 for attachment from climbing harness, and below that a second Ropeman1 with a loop for both feet. I will also have a lightweight loop around the chest straps of my backpack attached with a carabiner to help hold me in an upright position. I'm hoping to be able to use a sit/stand-frog movement to ascend. One of my concerns is making sure I can get back to the tree to attach the platform? Any thoughts or ideas are appreciated!
 
Anyone seen or used the Akimbo looked interesting

The akimbo appears to take a LOT of fine tuning. It's slack line engagement requires VERY fine tuning of the eccentric shaft (the adjustment on the bottom arm) to match both the rope diameter, and flexibility, to ensure arrestment engagement. I would much rather use a simpler device such as a GriGri+ and deal with its shortcomings.


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So for SRT my thoughts are to use a Ropeman1 for attachment from climbing harness, and below that a second Ropeman1 with a loop for both feet. I will also have a lightweight loop around the chest straps of my backpack attached with a carabiner to help hold me in an upright position. I'm hoping to be able to use a sit/stand-frog movement to ascend. One of my concerns is making sure I can get back to the tree to attach the platform? Any thoughts or ideas are appreciated!
You would probably be better off having a hand ascender above your harness attachment to hook your footloop into and to use to pull yourself up. However you choose to do it, I recommend taking a lot of time to practice with it and get comfortable with your system in and out. There are many forms of SRT out there to choose from. You probably realize this but since you didn't mention it, if you choose to climb similar to what you said, remember that you will need a separate method to descend.
 
I hunt mainly in the VT hills. Hemlock Is by far my favorite tree to hunt from. If I want to go ultra light I just carry 4 steps. That will get me to the bottom branches in most hemlocks. Other than that I use old school sticks, but would rather not.
 
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