School me on saddle hunting

[Desk Jockey]

Been thinking about trying out a saddle rig for whitetail Bowhunting In the northeast. I saw a few threads on gear but I am more curious about pros and cons of saddle vs traditional tree stands from those that have tried it. I moved to an area where I have more stand hunting time than in past years. I like still hunting from the ground but have used ladder stands, hang ons and climbers. I love still hunting but in the area I am hunting, I have convinced myself the best way to score a bigger, smarter buck is to get elevated. There is just enough hunting pressure to make them smart and wary.

my climbers are OK, but I like the idea of lightening the load and enhancing mobility with a saddle. I have spent some time rock climbing over the years so the whole idea doesn’t feel alien to me.

for those that have done saddle hunting for a while, what are your thoughts - good, bad and ugly.

 

[LCsmith]

This will be my 4th year saddle hunting.

Pros:
- Lightweight
- Less Bulk
- Tree selection
- Concealment behind tree
- Quiet

Cons:
- Not as comfortable as a climber
- Weak side shots can be difficult
- Setup time when you are first starting out

I am using the original Tethrd mantis and its probably one of the least comfortable out there. The year before I switched to saddle hunting, I ditched my climber for a portable hang-on and had the best year of hunting ever. You will not regret going to a saddle over a climber unless you're strictly hunting open timber.

 

[tntrker]

My 4th year as well. It takes getting use to and you HAVE to trust your equipment or you'll never get comfortable or get set up quickly. I would agree with the pros and cons as LCsmith listed. but, it is just another tool to use in your setups. I still have a few hang ons I use in areas I know, but I no longer set up steps. Just use the same as the saddle and climb into it. If you want to go deeper without as much weight or with fewer tree options, the saddle is the "extra gear" that makes that happen. I'm actually going to take it along on my 11 day guided elk archery hunt in a few weeks. The guide had mentioned maybe sitting a day or so on a wallow and I mentioned the saddle and he wanted me to bring it, so it has a place as far as tool options...

 

[DooleyVT]

Pretty much what was said above. Definitely need to trust your equipment which doesn’t come naturally. The only thing I would add is being sure to get some practice in with your bow from the saddle. Pretty obvious but a definite need to do. I’m in a Cruzr XC and it’s been great. I too still have the preset stands and sticks and hang ons but new spots typically go in with the saddle because it’s so much easier.

 

[Btaylor]

If you have experience with ropes and rock climbing, it should be a much easier transition for you. With that experience, I would encourage you to look at some of the different rope climbing techniques for getting elevated, there are several. By going to a rope system, you can eliminate the weight and potential metal noises that come with using a set of sticks to get up a tree. One sticking is another option. I also prefer a little larger platform than a lot of folks. I have a mission platform and really like it. Another option would be something like a .5 or .75 from LWCG for a hybrid type setup that could also be used in traditional lock on fashion. I prefer the extra room for the ability to easily stand and lean against the tree or to turn around for a weakside shot rather than shooting over the bridge.

 

[KHNC]

I use the Cruzr XC with A set of Wild Edge Steps. Total weight is 8-9lbs. I can still wear a pack with saddle and steps hanging on my waist. I use the Chris Kane climbing method. 5 steps gets me to 20 feet. Ive saddle hunted since 2010. Not exclusively though, i still use hang on stands as well. Saddle is the best way to sneak into a spot and setup, or if you have to hike in for a long distance. Cant beat it really. I can shoot 360 on the tree with no issues. I dont really have a weak side on a shot with this setup.

 

[wesfromky]

I found that it takes some trial and error and experimenting to find the setup that works best for each person. It can also be fairly expensive when you add up all the various pieces that are needed.

That said, it is a very flexible way to hunt. I feel like learning to one stick and rappel down is probably the best overall if you are comfortable with it. Or, using 3 super light, small sticks with a movable 3 step aider. But, for me rappelling was for sure the best way down.

 

[scott85]

If I was to hunt eastern whitetails again it would be out of a saddle again. Saddle hunting changed everything for me. Did I loose a bunch of weight over my viper climber? No, but I carried the weight better and more streamline which was a big advantage hunting the thick stuff I use to hunt. It also allowed me to hunt anywhere, I didn't need to find the perfect tree just about any tree will work for saddle hunting. The other weird thing that I can't explain that if deer did spot you while in a saddle they look right through you. If you hunt deep and have the right pack you can pack your deer out, you don't have to worry about making 2 trips.
I always hunted from before sunup to after sundown and had no problems doing it with my saddle. Getting knee pads and a recliner strap helps also making sure your bridge is as long as possible helps with hip pinch and playing with tree tether height and length with also help with all day comfort.

 

[Zdub02]

I tried the saddle set up for all of last season and am not a huge fan. Yes it's packable and more mobile than hauling a stand, especially bush whacking through thick vegetation. I just can't seem to get comfortable being in the saddle. Bending from the waist for shooting is more difficult for me as well. I like a stand as I feel more stable in both standing and seated positions and feel like my shooting form is more sound from a stand. Admittedly, I have less experience than others in a saddle so take my experience with a grain of salt.

 

[Binz17]

I love it. I use three sticks and a small platform, I'm only 12 ft off the ground most days. You look like a limb angling off the tree. You can move to keep the main trunk of the tree between you and the animal. I rarely get busted anymore. I'll agree with above, there is a learning curve but it's worth it. I had several lone wolf sets/climbers that I sold or gifted to other hunters, strictly saddle now.

 

[vthokee]

This is my second year using a saddle. Last night was my first hunt of the year. It took me a lot while to get setup. Mainly my fault because I didn’t use it since January. I love the mobility of it. It’s like anything else we hunters get into. It’s fun, exciting and pricey

 

[Bearwhisky]

The biggest pro you will experience from a climber is tree selection. You can get a saddle in almost any tree thats strong enough to hold you. A hang on will also open up more options for you but not quite as much as a saddle.

Pros: tree selection, lightweight, compact, very safe (if done properly), comfortable, behind tree, can shoot in almost any direction, can be more quiet setting up

Cons: IT IS VERY HARD TO SIT STILL IN A SADDLE. I find myself constantly shifting my weight and gradually swaying around (not as much for comfort, just of boredom mainly). Another potential con is safety if not done properly (same case for any stand), but I honestly think it is safer than any treestand if you follow proper procedures.

I have been hunting almost exclusively out of a saddle for 3 years. I sat in a hang on for the first time in a while last year and realized how much more still i sit in a hang on than in my saddle. I may switch back to a hang on for this reason, which is unfortunate because I much prefer all other aspects of the saddle. But at the end of the day, if you cant sit still, you probably wont see as many deer.


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[Macintosh]

If you are in NE I guess you still have over a month till go time? My advice would be to pick ONE climbing method and stick with it till you have your up/down dialed. Saddle hunting is great but it's so hipster-ish these days that it's easy to feel like you are missing out on the latest and greatest climbing method between one-sticking, SRT, DRT, and 17 other boutique methods that all get your butt up a tree. My opinion is most of these methods have advantages, but also clear disadvantages, and that none are a panacea and none are so clearly heads and shoulders above the others to warrant a strong recommendation above regular-old climbing sticks. With regular sticks, 98% of the time you can easily be up a tree and hunting without making any noise at all in 5min if you are dialed. Just like climbing, if you have a "system"--everything in its place, double-checks, etc so every time you unpack and go up and down a tree it's exactly the same process--you can get very efficient and remain quiet and not break a sweat. Use your scouting time now and actually pick trees, set up your rig to trim lanes, etc, and use that as your climbing practice to figure out where everything needs to go, etc. If you keep futzing with stuff and changing things up in-season before you really have your systems down, it's much harder to feel like you are moving efficiently and remain safe, especially in the dark/freezing cold. Once you have a system down you will find your own likes and dislikes and frustrations--that's the time to research ways to attack that particular frustration and then try something different, again with the off-season scouting being the best place to try that out.

As far as advantages/disadvantages of saddle vs other tree stand hunting, I think your situation sounds perfect to me--you said you like to still hunt, you have a background in climbing. I have a couple spots I hunt that lend themselves to hunting from the ground, or sometimes I am exploring and scouting as much as hunting, and intend to cover some ground, find sign, and may end up hunting from the ground, maybe from a stand, etc. These are exactly the places where I break out my lightest rig, so I can still-hunt or cover many miles totally unencumbered with stand, etc, even though I have a full "tree stand" setup on my back the whole time. Personally, after trying a couple of the "boutique" climbing methods and using one-sticking for a full season pretty regularly, I have come back to using sticks--the short length/double-step sticks from beast gear or novix, probably in combo with at least one aider on the bottom stick and a set of dyneema/amsteel (same thing for the most part) daisy chains to attach sticks to tree, probably being my vote for best initial way to get up a tree if you are gearing up for the first time. However, the situation I outlined here, when there's a >50% chance I wont even get into a tree and the size/weight is helpful to actively hunt while carrying the whole rig-- is the one place I still use my one-stick setup for the weight and packing size. I use a mystery ranch pop-up 18 pack, saddle platform and stick and rope go in the load shelf and all stays inside the silhouette of the pack, and everything together including my saddle harness, a pair of hand-shears, all my gear for the tree, etc weighs about 8lb, so very manageable. I have a set of 4 carbon sticks with aiders that I use most of the time, so if I use those my saddle rig is the same but the sticks go horizontally in the load shelf along with the platform, and the whole rig weighs about 11lb including the saddle harness and everything above. My smallest/lightest tree stand (novix helo) weighs about 5.5lb more than my platform, you can get a few lighter stands but the bulk while carrying and actively hunting while wearing it are the bigger issue sometimes--sounds like that's right up your alley from the way you described your hunting style.

If you are hunting one small area and the stand is for a specific tree or locations or just a couple of them, if it's legal then you might be better off with a fixed stand or three, simply for comfort. You can pull the bottom stick or two if needed to leave them in place and cut your carrying weight.

 

[JimGa]

Last year was my second year using one. I did use a LWCG .5 as a hybrid platform. 90% of the time I sat in the saddle facing the tree with my knees on the flipped up seat pad. This setup with a back band was very comfortable. Year before I had a tiny angled platform and I was uncomfortable. I recently bought a used ESS to try out a 2 panel saddle, will see how it goes. Overall I am happy. I love keeping the tree between me and the compactness and being able to set up in just about any tree. It does require a commitment to learning what works for you.

 

[maleman000]

Very new to saddle hunting myself after tons of research this summer. Really adapting to ease of use and set up. Practicing shots from multiple positions and directions is must. Tons of good advise on here for setup, but I'm learning you will have to experiment for personal preference.

 

[isItFallYet]

Anyone ever use a lineman’s belt or climbing harness as a saddle? Also has anyone tried the Xop harness? I’m not sure saddle hunting is going to be my thing, but some of the areas that I want to hunt (along some rivers and hiking into the NF near me), would be beneficial with a saddle setup I’d think.

If not, what is the most cost effective setup?

 

[MightyWhitey]

I’ve been a journeyman lineman for 15yrs and from the climbing belts and tower harnesses that I’ve seen, compared to a saddle harness those would be terrible, mainly because of weight and bulk. But if you’re just trying to save money to see if you like it, then yes you could get it done.

I don’t like being in my belt or harness at work and I don’t really like being in my saddle harness while I’m huntin, but it has its place. I prefer my LWCG 1.0 but for shorter sets in a new area I find myself using the saddle and a Kifaru Stryker to carry it quite a bit.

 

[shouldabeenhomeyesterday]

how does everyone stay comfy in the saddle? its sweet for public but man sometimes i miss the climber

 

[Binz17]

You can get a recliner for back support, haven't used one myself but other guys rave about them. Biggest thing for me is my feet. Rubber boots don't have ridgid enough soles, I wear a pair of crispis which are stiff as a board.

 

[loganwayne]

Ive saddle hunted a few years. I went back to a lock on and still use a saddle to climb and setup. my lock on is only a little heavier than the saddle platform and i am more comfortable. if i find a tree i want to hunt but its not going to be a good lock on stand placement i still use the stand as a platform and saddle hunt