I will start this with the disclaimer that saddle hunting may not end up being for me but...
I grew up in central PA (Altoona area) and since an early age, have loved the outdoors. In the early days, I used to love to knock 'em down from a distance with my .308 while standing by a big oak tree. My cousin talked me into buying a treestand and bow and I instantly became addicted to it the first time I sat in the stand and watched a number of deer mill around under me having no idea I was there. I never looked back and have now been bowhunting for 36 years.
I spent 15 years hunting the mostly flat, bow only reservoirs around Baltimore with my various climbers, then moved to Southwest VA (Roanoke area) 14 years ago and have been hunting the mountains here and in WV for that time. The older I got, the lazier I became, switching to ladder stands and lock-ons and only using the climber on occasion. I have access to several pieces of private land here in VA as well as WV and they are now "littered" with lock-ons and ladder stands. 2 years ago I took a mental inventory of all the stands that I have out, the money and time spent buying and putting them up, and all the hunts that I or my buddies have been sitting in them thinking, "wow, I wish I were over there". So I got my Lone Wolf climber back out and "went over there" and killed my biggest buck to date.
With access to so much public (National Forest and WMAs) and private land to hunt, and the "get more mobile" motto stuck in my head, last year I bought an XOP Air Raid and a set of 4 LW sticks and started watching youtube, reading this and other forums and learning (oh and spending, thanks Dan-O). I first did rope mods then daisy chain webbing straps and added double steps and have really enjoyed all the DIY stuff. I did a lot of hang-n-hunt sits, and had success, but something was still missing, there were still some trees or areas that I couldn't seem to hunt or want to lug the stand to, so here I am, a new member of SaddleHunter.com!
I purchased an Aero Hunter Kite from Ebay that arrived yesterday and I am loving it! I plan on getting a platform and practicing, practicing, practicing... As I said at the top, this might not be for me, but I sure am going to give it my all to make sure.
Thank you to everyone here that selflessly share their experiences, time and ingenuity to help others!
I grew up in central PA (Altoona area) and since an early age, have loved the outdoors. In the early days, I used to love to knock 'em down from a distance with my .308 while standing by a big oak tree. My cousin talked me into buying a treestand and bow and I instantly became addicted to it the first time I sat in the stand and watched a number of deer mill around under me having no idea I was there. I never looked back and have now been bowhunting for 36 years.
I spent 15 years hunting the mostly flat, bow only reservoirs around Baltimore with my various climbers, then moved to Southwest VA (Roanoke area) 14 years ago and have been hunting the mountains here and in WV for that time. The older I got, the lazier I became, switching to ladder stands and lock-ons and only using the climber on occasion. I have access to several pieces of private land here in VA as well as WV and they are now "littered" with lock-ons and ladder stands. 2 years ago I took a mental inventory of all the stands that I have out, the money and time spent buying and putting them up, and all the hunts that I or my buddies have been sitting in them thinking, "wow, I wish I were over there". So I got my Lone Wolf climber back out and "went over there" and killed my biggest buck to date.
With access to so much public (National Forest and WMAs) and private land to hunt, and the "get more mobile" motto stuck in my head, last year I bought an XOP Air Raid and a set of 4 LW sticks and started watching youtube, reading this and other forums and learning (oh and spending, thanks Dan-O). I first did rope mods then daisy chain webbing straps and added double steps and have really enjoyed all the DIY stuff. I did a lot of hang-n-hunt sits, and had success, but something was still missing, there were still some trees or areas that I couldn't seem to hunt or want to lug the stand to, so here I am, a new member of SaddleHunter.com!
I purchased an Aero Hunter Kite from Ebay that arrived yesterday and I am loving it! I plan on getting a platform and practicing, practicing, practicing... As I said at the top, this might not be for me, but I sure am going to give it my all to make sure.
Thank you to everyone here that selflessly share their experiences, time and ingenuity to help others!