Tree stand

I met him three hours ago, and we're good buddies.

It's like, no, that's the guy I've been sleeping on his couch in Deer Stands.

He's with the Iowa State Police.

He's a good friend, and like – it's – It's just a difference.

Remember, we are the resistance.

Last week, we talked about where our roots are planted as a part of a new miniseries I'm calling Lessons from a Tree Stand.

Well, today I've got two hunting stories about what happens when something you're counting on fails, and you've got to figure out what to do next.

And even if you're not a hunter, there is something you're going to get out of this.

So before we head into the woods, we spray this thing down with my Atsuko odor oxidizer.

I was telling him how great this stuff works, but having no idea how quickly it was going to be put to the test made this a lot of fun.

So I've got my portable tree stand on my back.

I got my bow in my hand and we start down this overgrown old road toward this gate where there's this old wire fence.

Thank you.

And I find myself, when I have questions... 'Cause I'm, I'm becoming a tree stand nut, right? Especially-

Mm

... hanging out with the lone wolf guys and, you know, seeing what XOP's been doing and, and just learning more and more about, like, what we really need out in the woods.

Yeah.

I mean, you've definitely been killing it.

And, like, to comment a little bit on the, the drama and stuff in, in the tree stand side of things, like I went two or three years, you know, with Summit, and I never heard anything, right? If anything-

Mm-hmm

So then from there, moved to hunting on the ground.

Wasn't super successful that way, so I began hunting from my own tree stands.

Had better results doing that.

But I had a portion of a property that I was able to hunt, which was a good deer spot, but there were no trees around that made a good tree stand, um, at least none that I wanted to put a tree stand in.

And it was a really good spot.

I had really good results hunting out of that blind.

Uh, as the years began to move on, I began to go more and more into ground blinds and less and less in the tree stands, and I don't think I even climbed a tree stand for the last couple of years.

I have transitioned almost entirely to ground blinds or just sitting on the ground.

definitely.

And with your tree stands, like you had two on that block.

Is that, um, like, was, was you set them up? Oh yeah.

I

So

what, you took a tree stand with you or there was one that was already

there? No, we took tree stands.

All of us took little climb-on tree stands, hang-on tree stands, you know, that put your pegs in the tree.

Rocktober, it is the month of Rocktober.

Have you been in a tree stand yet? Have you hunted from a ground blind yet, as you're hearing my voice? I hope so.

Good luck to you.

Have fun.

So we've had a good stretch of weather.

As I say, bow season is open now statewide.

I will probably not be in a tree stand for the first week or so.

I will probably more likely be in an elevated blind.

those are the hunting accidents that make the headlines.

Nobody wants to read an article that says guy fell out of his tree stand and broke his ankle.

Um, But when somebody gets shot while hunting, especially when somebody gets killed, that story travels.

And unfortunately, we've had several stories involving hunters and firearms making the news recently.

Experience allows us to recognize situations, make better decisions, and operate equipment more effectively.

But experience can also create complacency.

You've climbed that tree stand a hundred times.

You've crossed that fence a hundred times.

Bow season opens next Thursday across the state.

Will you be in the woods that day? Will you be in the woods that morning? Will you be in the woods that night? Will you be in a tree stand? Will you be in a ground blind? What is your setup? Will you be using a recurve, a compound, a crossbow? The best hunts I've ever had were with a recurve.

I hunted with a recurve for a couple of years.

I hunted turkeys.

The website for the Michigan Wildlife Council is here for mioutdoors.org, here for mioutdoors.org. We'll take a break for the top of the hour.

When we come back in our second hour, Jerry Wydner of the Hunter Safety System.

You know, it's kind of a boring topic, tree stand safety.

Be safe while you're in a tree stand.