Any close calls? Did you fall?

[DoeEyed]

I don't intend to be rude here but it is very difficult to read and understand run-on sentences. If some of you could take the time to add proper punctuation to your posts I think it would be appreciated by everyone. Thank You![:)]

[BerkHunter]

i had a close call the first year i started hunting.  i was using a friends climber and climbing a hardwood tree, the climber didnt have real sharp teeth on it.  needless to say it slipped while i was climbing, scared the crap out of me.  That stand wasn't a stand you sit on and climb, you pulled yourself up.  i went and bought an Ol' Man climber and love it, its A LOT safer.  Gotta take your time, cant be to careful out there. and always wear a harness, it may take a little longer to setup with one but i feal so much more comfortable while 15' to 20' up a tree knowing that i am up there for good even if i dose off.

[Ohio farms]

Long time ago a climber stand slipped off of my feet while climbing down.  Left me hanging on the the treetrunk about 15 feet in the air. Gladly, the diameter of the tree was such that I could shimmy my way down.  Last time that I used a climber. It was a cautionary tale.

[MoDeer]

I have fallen three time . when dad first got us into hunting he would take us out in the woods to find good spots for a stand . Then we would start cutting saplings to build stands out of . we all thought that was a good idea but 2 years later when I was 12 I found out it only takes 2 years ror those saplings to rot . Luckily it only knocked the wind out of me.
 When I was 14 climbers were just starting to come out . My dad & uncle decided they could build those themselves . Seemed like a good idea at the time . They were xtra heavy 35 to 40 lb so we took them out and put them on the trees and left them . the first time I went to mine I got 15 foot up and the bottom turned loose it stopped sliding about 2 foot from the ground . I did not fall off so luckily I was not hurt.
 a few years ago I was using a hang on stand with screw in steps and always made use of any limbs that would help me get up in the tree . I would never use a limb that was not big enough or was not green . I was 10 foot up when I stepped on a limb that gave way . I landed 2 foot from a fence and my knee had popped . My knee bothered me for a couple days but otherwise I was still in good shape . The limb was a good 4in. limb and still green but it had rotted at the base .
 I now only use ladder stands.

[Wild Bill]

Last year I had a harrowing treestand experience myself. I shot a doe and one hour later decide to decend the tree and find her. I lowered my bow and gear and started my decent from eighteen feet with my climber. I always wear a harness and move it up and down the tree ahead of the hand climber. This season I bought a second-hand Loggy Bayou and had used it at least a dozen times before, both testing and hunting.
On my second time breaking free the platform on my feet from its grip on the tree, the cable which runs around behind the tree, slipped out of its retainer clasp on the right side of the stand and dangled from the clasp on the left side only. Dang! Here I am with my weight on my elbows, the harness tether is slack from being lowered to the level of the hand climber and the stand it still dangling from my feet. Huston we have a problem!
A feature of the Loggy Bayou hand climber is a two-inch webbing strap which loops between the two side rails in front of you as you use it. I suppose you could sit in it or run it behind you as you use the hand climber. I did think of removing it because my Summit doesn't have one and I didn't see the need for it. Now I'm glad I didn't. I was able to lift myself up enough to get my right knee into the loop and rest my weight there. Whew! Now what? I then hoisted the bottom platform up with the tether attached between the two pieces and with my left foot still hooked under the toe bar. I then managed to get a hold of the loose end of the cable on the left side of the tree and pass it around behind the tree to the right, where I then struggled to get the end into the frame and re-fasten the retainer clasp over one of the lug nuts.
I would say, in hindsight, the whole episode took ten minutes. I'm looking at installing a webbing strap on my Summit hand climber in a similiar fashion, for just in case.

 

[noreastermma]

1st yr in tree stand.. about 20 ft high. white pine. had bow in one hand and branch in the other pulling myself on the stand.. branch snapped i wrapped both legs around trunk of the pine as i held my ow with one hand and dropped the roken branch on the ground below.. held the trunk tight in my guard placed the bow on the stand base and regained my balance.. lew the area up with all the racket but didnt hit the dirt. D

[extroverted]

Just last year I fell for the first time out of a tree, I was about 16' up the tree setting up a stand for my cousin when I needed to get one more click from the strap and wee oh I went down...

If it was not the dead of winter I think I would have been more sore and broken, but because of the 4" of snow I had a little cushion to fall onto.
I normally use the hunter safety system, but I thought this would be a quick tie up, and boy it was!!!
All the way down, besides the hard hit of my elbow on a limb I was pretty darn lucky.

Just sat there a while to get my composure, and then back up I went.
(Get back on the bike and ride boy)

Lesson learned, always wear your harness and work in it too!!!
Makes since not to fall out!!!

[Jon H.]

Yes, I fell out of a friends box stand! And no I was not drinking. The chair I was in broke, and I fell backwords, through the door, eight feet to the ground! when I got up I had broken my arm. Because I knew your arm should not be bent like that. Now I have a eight year old boy still in the stand, looking at me with very big eyes. Im wondering, how im going to get us home! After my boy came down, I told him to shoot three times to signal to my friends, which are about two miles away. They never came, so I told him to get on the atv an take us back to the truck. Oh did I say it was my right arm and my truck was a standerd! Man! that was a long and ruff ride home. So now I check all my stands very close'ly. And if their is any doubt I wouldn't use them.

[retiredsailor]

Couple of years ago, asked to borrow my son's climbing stand and was politely told that I 'was too old
to be climbing trees'. While he was smiling when he said it, he was also serious about not wanting me
to be using a climber. Therefore, I promptly went out and bought my own......a Summit, but don't know
the exact model name.
Practiced a bit in my back yard and felt pretty comfortable with the climber so took it with me next
time I headed out. Found my tree, hooked everything up like we are supposed to, including using the
safety belt while climbing, and went up to about 16 feet. Got pretty well settled in, then it happened.
As I was trying to make a minor adjustment to the foot platform, it slipped loose and slid down the tree.
Shocked, I sat there for a minute wondering what would be my next move. Then I realized that I had
followed the instructions for using a climber and that I did have a tether cord attaching the two sections
of my climber. Took some fancy leg and foot work, but was able to bring the lower part back up the tree
far enough to get it into position.
Naturally, I promptly but carefully climbed back down and re-thought the whole situation.
Guess I was lucky that nothing serious happened that day (since I was hunting alone), but it also served
as a strong reminder that safety is the number one consideration when using any sort of elevated stand.
I've used that climber a good number of times since that first experience and have never had any
further problems.
Maybe this little experience will help someone else avoid getting into trouble with their stand. Besides,
my son was partially correct.......I might not be too old to climb a tree, but I'm certainly too old to fall out of one.

[KYdeer88]

I took a rather unpleasant ride down a tree when I was in high school. It was wet that day and I went out with my climber and was ascending the trunk of a young poplar tree when the stand lost its bite and I took a wild ride down for about 5 feet. I was only about 8-10 ft up and didn't go all the way to the ground, but it was enough that I checked my britches and hunted from the ground the rest of the day. I have always been careful about the trees I climb after that and stay off the trees with slick bark and am extra careful when it's wet. I am not a fan of heights so I generally hunt between 15 and 20 feet and always wear a safety harness, but I do have friends that refuse to wear a harness. I even gave a buddy an extra harness to wear and he has yet to wear it and continues to hunt from nose bleed heights of 25 plus feet. There's no deer worth spending the rest of your days in a wheel chair or even worse for.