# Attention Hunters: Wear your safety harnesses! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 11, 2013, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644 "2013-11-11T15:06:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/21 "2013-11-12T14:46:10Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > As mentioned but to be clear you’re not so much ‘climbing a tree’ as going up an in place ladder or steps secured to the tree so that you can have a lofty perch from which to observe and fire your weapon. Most tree stands also have a seat so you can patiently wait for the game to appear after arriving early before their normal browse time. What’s wrong with one of [these](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/A_rised_hide_closed_quadrat.jpg/250px-A_rised_hide_closed_quadrat.jpg)? You find them all over Sweden. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/22 "2013-11-12T15:06:34Z")
I think it’s all going to depend on the vegetation and terrain characteristics of the specific land you’re hunting. I often hunt from a stand like that you pictured when it’s out in the open like that and you gain long avenues of view through the forest or brush, down here called 'senderos." It could be that in your picture the trees are too thin to be suitable to support the weight of a hunter and a stand or the overall forest could be too thick and you have to get out away from it a bit to view game from any distance. If it’s too thick a deer could walk right up on you before you’re aware of it and that’s not good. Also, if the trees are suitable a stand can be far more portable than what you show. A stand can be a few boards to be used as steps and a few more across branches to sit on. A stand can be a metal pole with steps lashed to the tree with a seat about 15 feet up. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/23 "2013-11-12T15:33:06Z")
Of course, with my evil, vindictive sense of humor, if I DID find a treestand on our property, in obvious violation of our no trespass / no hunting signs, I would be tempted to not just remove the treestand, but also smash it into unusable shape, and maybe go grab my chain saw and cut down the tree it was attached to, just to send a message to the trespasser Oh, and just to twist the knife a little, last night I counted TEN deer out in the fields and woodlots on our property, there may be more… … Now come to think of it, I’m a tad concerned about possible overpopulation issues down the road, how many deer can 50 acres sustainably support, without them eating our gardens ( grazing on the tomato plants and other veggies ) Maybe it’s time to learn to hunt after all, Dad never taught me, and only went hunting a couple times himself before hanging up his rifle I can check at home to see wether mom would be opposed to a responsible bow hunter harvesting a deer, she’ll probably say no though, she sees the deer as wild-pets I see them as _tasty_ wild pets 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/24 "2013-11-12T15:56:39Z")
How far of a drive from Portsmouth are you? Or a strong pair of hands to help out with something? Do you need cash? Ever thought about a hunting lease? ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/25 "2013-11-12T16:03:12Z")
I have four tree stands on my property. One of them is 15 feet tall. On Saturday evening I was up in the 15 footer, and the wind was really blowing. The tree was swaying all over the place, and I felt pretty… nervous, to be honest. ☹ I kept thinking about the guy who recently fell out of his tree stand. Getting in and out of the seat is the most nerve-racking. I do it _very_ slowly, and make I am always grabbing onto something securely. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/26 "2013-11-12T16:06:21Z")
A length of rope is always handy in this situation. You can safely tie it to your rifle or bag, climb the stand with both hands, secure yourself in the seat and then easily pull your tied items up. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/27 "2013-11-12T16:09:40Z")
> [@DragonAsh](#): > > Most of the yahoos in our neck of the woods would be up in their treestands with a 12-pack. You’re up in a tree with a gun, now the idiots want to add alcohol to the mix… Drinking before hunting – and especially while hunting – is pretty dumb, IMO. Not only does it increase the chance of falling out of the stand, but how does one take a piss? You can’t pee in the hunting area, else the scent will scare off the deer. A pee bottle? Yuck. ---
**Author:** ![Algher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Algher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algher)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/28 "2013-11-12T16:42:57Z")
I grew up hunting on some shared land, and we didn’t use stands - we built tree houses during the off season. Awesome platforms, some with stairs, making it as safe as possible. Also a great way to ensure that our older hunters got the easiest ascents. Finally - we could justify weekends in the woods building tree houses! ---
**Author:** ![Depakote\_Chopra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/919ad9/32.png) [@Depakote\_Chopra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Depakote_Chopra)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/29 "2013-11-12T17:35:15Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > I know a friend online whose brother sustained a severe head injury after falling out of a tree stand. He now requires full-time care in a nursing facility, leaving his wife to raise his two young sons on her own. “Payback’s a bitch, uh?” - The hunted animals ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/30 "2013-11-12T17:57:09Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Drinking before hunting – and especially while hunting – is pretty dumb, IMO. Not only does it increase the chance of falling out of the stand, but how does one take a piss? You can’t pee in the hunting area, else the scent will scare off the deer. A pee bottle? Yuck. It gets worse. I use a pee bottle. Gatoraid works the best because of the large opening and perfect size. Last year I was going through all my gear in advance of hunting season. Emptying out my bins and backpacks and going through every item. Guess what I found in the side pocked of my pack? That’s right. A nine month old pee bottle. …and that’s not even as gross as when I inadvertently leave piss footprints in the basement because I sprayed estrous doe piss on my boot and forgot to take it off. The things you do as a hunter. ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/31 "2013-11-12T17:58:20Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > I have four tree stands on my property. One of them is 15 feet tall. > > On Saturday evening I was up in the 15 footer, and the wind was really blowing. The tree was swaying all over the place, and I felt pretty… nervous, to be honest. ☹ I kept thinking about the guy who recently fell out of his tree stand. > > Getting in and out of the seat is the most nerve-racking. I do it _very_ slowly, and make I am always grabbing onto something securely. But you wear a harness, right? Seriously, if you want one, PM me. I’ve got a half dozen of them. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/32 "2013-11-12T18:14:55Z")
> [@Depakote\_Chopra](#): > > “Payback’s a bitch, uh?” > > - The hunted animals This is a warning for you. Our number one rule here is “Don’t be a jerk”, just so you know. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/33 "2013-11-12T22:41:41Z")
> [@Algher](#): > > I grew up hunting on some shared land, and we didn’t use stands - we built tree houses during the off season. Awesome platforms, some with stairs, making it as safe as possible. Also a great way to ensure that our older hunters got the easiest ascents. Finally - we could justify weekends in the woods building tree houses! I’m with you! **Debaser** , this “Never make or get into a homemade stand” is the only point I’m going to disagree with you on, because my homemade tree stand is really safe. A huge tree fell on it last winter and it only cracked one board, that’s how overbuilt I made this thing. It was fun to make and it is large and comfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/34 "2013-11-12T23:53:16Z")
> [@Debaser](#): > > But you wear a harness, right? No. ☹ But perhaps I should. To be honest, I do not think “falling off while sitting there” is a big risk for me. I think _getting into the seat_ and _getting out of the seat_ are the most dangerous tasks. Is a harness worn when these two tasks are performed? I have always assumed a harness is not worn when getting into/out of the seat, but perhaps I have been wrong about this. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/35 "2013-11-13T13:37:13Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > To be honest, I do not think “falling off while sitting there” is a big risk for me. Getting up there well before dawn, sitting still and quiet… I’ll be the first to admit I’ve drifted off briefly before. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/36 "2013-11-13T20:55:42Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > When asked the location of the kill so I can glass the field to verify, or offer to walk them to their alleged kill, they get all evasive and drop the subject, some have even attempted to sneak on to the property via our side of the marsh I’ve never heard the expression “glass the field to verify” before. Does it mean check through binoculars to make sure it’s there? ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/37 "2013-11-13T21:23:37Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > I’ve never heard the expression “glass the field to verify” before. Does it mean check through binoculars to make sure it’s there? Ayuh (Yes, in midcoastal Maine dialect) ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2013, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/38 "2013-11-14T15:14:57Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > Ayuh > > (Yes, in midcoastal Maine dialect) Okay, thanks for the info. ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/39 "2013-11-18T14:12:35Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > No. ☹ But perhaps I should. > > To be honest, I do not think “falling off while sitting there” is a big risk for me. I think _getting into the seat_ and _getting out of the seat_ are the most dangerous tasks. Is a harness worn when these two tasks are performed? I have always assumed a harness is not worn when getting into/out of the seat, but perhaps I have been wrong about this. This is a tricky part of it. The official rules per the treestand safety association are that you are allowed to get into a ladder stand without being attached while climbing. But that’s it. Tree steps or climbing stands you are supposed to be attached the whole time. There are a couple of ways to do this. You can use a lineman’s belt, which goes from your hips around the tree. This gets unattached when you climb into your stand and hook your safety harness onto the tree. Another option is to use a rope with a prussic knot to have you attached while you climb. They sell those at [Cabela’s](http://www.cabelas.com/product/Hunter-Safety-System-Treestand-Lifeline/713008.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26fsch%3Dtrue%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dprussic%2Bknot%26x%3D-787%26y%3D-51%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts&Ntt=prussic+knot&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products) I mostly hunt from a climber these days. I just keep my safety strap a bit above the top of the climber, so I’m always attached. ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644/40 "2013-11-18T14:16:21Z")
Update on my hunting season: I had done all my scouting and had two great spots. One for me, and one for my buddy who was coming up to try and get his first deer. I dropped him off on opening morning and walked him into the woods and pointed out the tree that had the ladder stand. I then headed out to my spot. He calls me ten minutes later. The stand was stolen. They left the top third hanging out of reach on the tree, but took the bottom two thirds. Scum. I told him to hunt from the ground and I kept driving to my spot. I get there to see posted signs, far as the eye could see. It wasn’t posted the previous Sunday. So either on Monday or Tuesday morning the owner must have gone out and bought the signs. A passing driver helpfully stopped and told me that he’s an anti-hunter and I shouldn’t bother asking permission. Damn! Well, no matter. We pressed on to our backup spots and I ended up passing on a couple of does. My buddy shot his first deer the second day, a button buck. So it ended up working out. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-hunters-wear-your-safety-harnesses/673644.md?page=3)