Saddle hunting height

[Plebe]

I walk in a straight line until I cut deer sign. I follow that deer sign towards vegetation and terrain features that correlate with deer sightings. I look around until I find enough sign or actual deer to feel supremely confident they'll be within bow range during daylight. Then, I find an ambush. And from that ambush, I consider if I can draw my bow and kill a deer from the ground. If I can't draw without being seen, then I look up. I find a tree that offers the proper concealment. I climb it. I kill deer.

Sometimes that height is 2 feet. Sometimes its 8 feet. Sometimes its 27 feet.

My computer, SH.com, strangers' opinions, or forecasted wind direction have nothing to do with how high I climb a tree.

lol, this is a little too empirical for me, stranger.

 

[kyler1945]

lol, this is a little too empirical for me, stranger.

I have killed roughly the same number of deer from the ground as I have from tree. Most of those ground kills were with a bow. Some stalking, some scouting, some set up to hunt. Climbing a tree is dumb. I only do it if it offers a better vantage point for gaining intel, or because I can't draw on the ground without being seen. Many folks treat climbing and sitting in a tree as a fixed variable, and the foundation to a hunt. Climbing trees is dumb. And dangerous. Do it because it improves your odds significantly - ON THE HUNT YOU'RE ON. Otherwise, you're just taking an unnecessary risk.

Question 1 - Where are the deer during daylight?

2 - Where can position myself during daylight hours, within bow range, without being seen smelled or heard?

3 - What controls do I need to implement to ensure not being seen smelled or heard?

4 - What tools do I need to implement to ensure not being seen smelled or heard?

5 - What time, and how much do I eat so I don't have to poop during the hunt?

Pre planning the height you climb a tree is confusing to me...

 

[CP3]

I climbed a tree in my yard to try out some new sticks. 18ish feet up and I call my wife and tell her to come outside. When she walked out of the garage I could tell she did not know where I was. I decided to not give away my position.

She walked around looking for me and walked directly under my tree and never knew I was there. I wish I would have videoed it. It was hilarious. If I can fool her, then surely I can fool a mature buck.

 

[kyler1945]

I climbed a tree in my yard to try out some new sticks. 18ish feet up and I call my wife and tell her to come outside. When she walked out of the garage I could tell she did not know where I was. I decided to not give away my position.

She walked around looking for me and walked directly under my tree and never knew I was there. I wish I would have videoed it. It was hilarious. If I can fool her, then surely I can fool a mature buck.

I don't know. Mature bucks got magical powers 'round these parts. They probably sensed you climbing to 18' in your yard, and logged it. From now on, they'll scan your hunting area with eyes set at appropriate angle to catch hunter movement at 18'. I'd plan on 15' or 20+ now...

 

[CP3]

I don't know. Mature bucks got magical powers 'round these parts. They probably sensed you climbing to 18' in your yard, and logged it. From now on, they'll scan your hunting area with eyes set at appropriate angle to catch hunter movement at 18'. I'd plan on 15' or 20+ now...

No doubt man. I was hilarious the look on her face of confusion.

 

[bowhunthard88]

Pre planning the height you climb a tree is confusing to me...

Unless I know exactly where I am going to be, specifically know that I need to be in a tree (and what tree), height is the "fixed variable". 0' - 25' typically, although from a concealability/visibility perspective, most of my bow hunts ARE elevated.

 

[DSInfinite]

There's a vid I saw with some tips on this;Best Treestand Height

Where I'm from, it's flat farm land with a spattering of trees here and there. Very few and rarely significant elevation changes. Cover and scent control are key, absolutely.

The most recent one I took was at about 20' but that's because the tree had a nice Y that I could settle into and blend in. I was fairly comfortable and out of sight with dense hardwoods all around. That's the first I've taken at that height.

 

[Plebe]

I have killed roughly the same number of deer from the ground as I have from tree. Most of those ground kills were with a bow. Some stalking, some scouting, some set up to hunt. Climbing a tree is dumb. I only do it if it offers a better vantage point for gaining intel, or because I can't draw on the ground without being seen. Many folks treat climbing and sitting in a tree as a fixed variable, and the foundation to a hunt. Climbing trees is dumb. And dangerous. Do it because it improves your odds significantly - ON THE HUNT YOU'RE ON. Otherwise, you're just taking an unnecessary risk.

Question 1 - Where are the deer during daylight?

2 - Where can position myself during daylight hours, within bow range, without being seen smelled or heard?

3 - What controls do I need to implement to ensure not being seen smelled or heard?

4 - What tools do I need to implement to ensure not being seen smelled or heard?

5 - What time, and how much do I eat so I don't have to poop during the hunt?

Pre planning the height you climb a tree is confusing to me...

I've definitely fallen less from trees than I have on terra firma. I've only fallen from trees twice. Oh, and thrown off a slide once.

Also, #5 should be #2, don't you think. I don't even want to imagine what a #5 looks like.

 

[Redoak47*]

Depends on cover and wind, usually I am 20-30 feet. This public land I hunt I have seen bucks and doe stop just inside the edge of the thicket and look around and up, not young deers but older ones . A couple weeks ago saw a buck do it again stood there for over 10 minutes .

 

[Torrent]

Man, that's the thing that happens too. These public land deer are walking around with cricks in their necks 'cause they're looking up all the time. I've seen does that do that in a group. If this crap keeps up I'm trading in my saddle for a ghili suit. They won't expect the attack to come from ground level lol.

 

[1simplemann]

Height is all relative to each individual set up. There are no hard and fast rules. However if I had choice from either 15' or 25' and nothing in between I would probably take 25'. When deer are close and your up high, your out of their peripheral vision. That's an advantage. You can get away w/ a lot more movement. Plus your scent will blow over any deer that's close and downwind. At 15', mature doe that's 10 yds away and downwind is going to wind you almost every time. At 25', she most likely will not. With that being said, you want to to try and position yourself so deer can't get downwind of you. However it's happens because that's bowhunting.

 

[katiesmom]

Saddle hunting is 10 to 15 feet high for me. In my climber days it was minimum 20 to 25 feet up and with rifle I'd go 35 to 40.

 

[kidneystones_3000]

From watching the videos like dan infalt it depends at what height do have the most background cover you have. For example if your next to pine tree then maybe don't have go that high. Another scenario if you have 2 trees real close each other a shaped like a v or the trees areparallel with each other that's really good cover. It depends at what height do have the most cover.

At 30ft it changes because the margin error is alot more difficult because the angle your shooting at ( crossbow bow takes less skill so maybe doesn't matter no offense to anyone). You can shoot at 30 feet but you better practice. If hunting hill country you have to go higher because of the wind. If your hunting Marsh habitate if you real high you will be more visible. So hunting lower the ground like dan infalt does probably better. You want stay of the deer provisional vision. A average whitetail deer is approximately 4ft tall so I am guessing at least 10 feet. I am basing most my information from youtube videos and dan Infalt.
.

 

[AttackMode]

I see a lot of people on YouTube. Climbing to 15-20ft is this really high enough I was always told the higher the better to the point where I used to use my climber and get 30-40 feet up usually 40.


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I used to do the same thing with my hand climber...higher the better. Hunting public land mountain deer my entire life I've always tried to be out of sight, whether it be above or behind or in something to shield me. Saddle hunting has given me the ability to hunt lower than I've done in the past. The ability to pivot around the tree is a huge advantage in my mind. I know for certain the last few deer I've killed would've busted me at height if I'd been using my hand climber. So to answer your question, yes 15-20' or even 10' could be high enough. I also have certain areas where 30+' may be the only viable option even with a saddle. It's all relative and no circumstances should ever be written in stone. The whitetails greatest strength is it's ability to adapt and it should be the hunters as well.

 

[AttackMode]

Btw guys saying 30' shot angles are too hard...I've killed alot of deer out of my climber at that height or higher. Aim for the heart, not the lungs. You'll be good.

 

[HappyChappy]

Deer can be killed 100’ up a tree. I’ve killed them 25’ or so.
I’m just nowhere near the archer to attempt shots with a low percentage.
I’d rather give myself and the animal more room for my error lol
So, I tend to hunt lower when a viable option.

 

[1simplemann]

Btw guys saying 30' shot angles are too hard...I've killed alot of deer out of my climber at that height or higher. Aim for the heart, not the lungs. You'll be good.

I agree totally. Guys keep talking about the bad shot angle. Not true. I've killed a bunch of them at 25'. I never lost a single deer from a high shot angle. If anything that low exit hole helps w/ the blood trail. Eberhart advocates hunting high. He's killed a ton of bucks at 30'. He's probably lost count on how many deer he's killed. Look up Troy Pottenger. The guy is a kill'n machine on Idaho public land. I'm talking about 150-185" bucks. Kills them all at 25-30'. These guys have been around for alot of years. If they were losing deer because of the shot angle they would have lowered their set ups years ago. Also IMO they can't duck the arrow as well when your up high. Lot's of advantages to hunting high if you can. Sometimes you can't but wherever possible I'm at least 22' or higher.

 

[HappyChappy]

I agree totally. Guys keep talking about the bad shot angle. Not true. I've killed a bunch of them at 25'. I never lost a single deer from a high shot angle. If anything that low exit hole helps w/ the blood trail. Eberhart advocates hunting high. He's killed a ton of bucks at 30'. He's probably lost count on how many deer he's killed. Look up Troy Pottenger. The guy is a kill'n machine on Idaho public land. I'm talking about 150-185" bucks. Kills them all at 25-30'. These guys have been around for alot of years. If they were losing deer because of the shot angle they would have lowered their set ups years ago. Also IMO they can't duck the arrow as well when your up high. Lot's of advantages to hunting high if you can. Sometimes you can't but wherever possible I'm at least 22' or higher.

That’s a good point about ducking the string. I had not considered that.

 

[Shed84]

I like hunting where the cover is and no higher. that said I've seen more deer when I'm 25' in a tree then I have when I'm 15' in a tree. Can get away with more movement for sure if your out of their field of view. Nothing but spooky deer around me so at least locally the higher the better. I'm not worried about shot angle at all if u know your equipment and practice for it.

 

[Bowtie747]

Anyone here good at math? Specifically Pythagorean theorem? I just googled how to do it. Can anyone verify that a higher shot is always a longer shot? Don’t think it matters much for compound guys. Saw where it might benefit Trad guys to be a little lower as far as shot distance. Think it was a couple yards different in being 15 feet high and 30 feet. Also the with the angle it makes your shot area smaller so maybe trad guys wanna be a little lower? I know then it’s probably even harder to get a shot off. Not a trad guy, not gonna act like I have any idea about it either just mainly wanted to mention it so if someone wayyyy smarter than me which isn’t hard to do could verify? Or see if it’s even worth mentioning or thinking about


If this is dumb be easy on a fella. Online school my high school years and let’s just say I didn’t pay much attention since you could turn a class on and walk away. Then right into the deer woods.