Accidents Happen Real Quick In Tree Stands

[Roy from Pa]

It's that time of year Guys, Bow Season.. For those who hunt from a tree stand, I highly suggest a full body harness and a climbing rope system. I speak from experience here, I've fallen more than once. Was young and dumb back then, but the last time I fell woke me right up. Was up 25 feet when the seat of my stand broke and down I went. I only fell three feet, but the safety belt I had around my waist saved my life. It broke a rib in the process and ended my bow season for that year, but I am alive to talk about it. Safety belts are dangerous and can kill you.

Now I wear a full body harness and use a climbing rope system, so I am attached from the time I leave the ground till I get back down. I love my wife, kids and grand kids and want to enjoy them as long as I can. And I don't want them crying over my casket from a tree stand fall.

Every year since I fell the last time, I have paid close attention to tree stand accidents in the local paper and on the internet. And every year I read about hunters falling, getting hurt, or dieing. Then I read on about how the man had a wife and two or three kids. I never thought I would ever fall, but hey accidents happen.

Just a heads up to all my Tradgang friends. Have a great and safe season. Roy

[wooddamon1]

Good advice for sure. Saddest thing ever to hear about someone leaving loved ones behind from a hunting accident of any kind, especially one that could have been prevented...

[straight_arrow]

Great point.  Why take the risk, be smart about tree stand hunting!  Thanks Roy.

[Bladepeek]

One of the greatest things our gun club did was to add safety harness training to the hunter safety class. They actually practice proper adjustment and use. Gun or bow, it's still a long way down with a sudden stop at the end.

[Roy from Pa]

Another thing that woke me up was when I attended a United Bow Hunters Of Pa Bow Hunters Ed class. They got to the tree stand safety part and asked who wore a safety belt. I proudly held up my hand, thinking I was a cool Dude, and then they explained to me the down falls of a safety belt. Made all the sense in the world to me.... Too soon old, too late dumb, I guess I was.

Thanks for all the positive replies guys. I strive every year to reach out and touch as many Hunters as I can with this. If we can save just one hunter from a fall this season, it is worth our efforts. What hurts is, not everyone heeds our advice.

[jsweka]

Right on Roy!!

I've got two teenage nephews who both think they are Superman (aka - young dumb punk) and both whine and complain about wearing their safety harnesses.  My brother-in-law and I are trying to beat the importance of safety harnesses into their heads.  They wear them when we are with them, but I'm worried that the oldest one, who is now old enough to drive and hunt on his own, will "forget" it when my brother-in-law and/or I aren't with him.  

Anybody got any advice on driving home the importance of a safety harness to a kid who thinks he's invincible?    

[JAG]

jsweka, contact your states DCNR, and ask them for a copy of their reports on treestand accidents.  Have them read every incident and find out what they think, then.
You can lead a horse...., but when they see it first hand, or have someone tell them first hand about their fall, sometimes it will help.
I gave a treestand safety demo, this weekend, at the local Co Op.  Folks were more interested in the prize drawing and the free food.  I had several come watch, and they said they learned alot about using a FBH.
Good luck to all, and be careful in them Trees!
Johnny/JAG

[2hats]

Thanks for bringing it to the table Roy.You can't preach it enough.I switched to the Rescue One and it is alittle on the heavy side but the reaasurance I have is second to none.I hear of many who don't wear FBH or just a belt type and it does sadden oneself knowing that they don't realize the possible outcome.I had my fall 23 yrs ago and I was lucky and all I have to remember it by is the neck pain...Just my .02

[Stump_pounder]

Nice reminder!

Some good advice, for sure!

Bisch

[AR RidgeRunner]

Can't be to careful. Four yrs ago I had just hung a stand, had a safety belt with a linemans loop around the tree while climbing and hanging the stand. Unhooked the linemans loop and stepped up on the stand before reattaching myself to the tree. Like I always did gave the stand a little bounce to make sure it was set and kept right on going. This was an old chain on stand with a turnbuckle and the turnbuckle broke in half, must have hadacracki didn't see. It was funny while I was falling I was thinking this shouldn't be to bad. Wasn't to bad until I hit the ground and had excruciating pain in my back. After I layed there a while I realized I also had serious problems with my left foot. I was by myself as usual and had no cell coverage. Crawled to my truck, luckily I wasn't to far away that day, couple hundred yards since I was hanging a stand on the edge of a hay field to hunt later. Made it to the truck and drove myself to the local small town hospital. Long story short I had a compression fracture in my lower back and had shattered my left heel. Had surgery and several months of rehab and I'm lucky to still be hunting and climbing trees today. I was extremely lucky that day, it's not uncommon for me to be a mile or so from the road. Also lucky I landed on my feet and not my back or my head. I now will not climb a tree without full harness with linemans belt and before disconnecting the linemans strap to step onto the stand I hook up my safety strap above the stand. Before this happened I thought I was invincible and accidents only happened to other people. Sorry for this long winded post but don't take any chances. You owe it to yourself and your family. Be safe and happy hunting.

[joe ashton]

yes! please listen.

[Archie]

I'm only 41, and still pretty strong, but I've pretty much quit climbing trees.  The only stands I get into are rock-solid ladder stands, and I'm careful even in those.  There's just too much that can go wrong, and since I'm a lone wolf when it comes to hunting, I could end up in a lot of trouble if I fell.  One day about 4 years ago I woke up to find out I had become a Type I diabetic, and now every day is (in my case) a volatile balancing act between sugar and insulin.  The last thing I need is to have a dizzy episode and do a Peter-Pan out of a tree stand in the middle of the woods.

[Tom Leemans]

Everyone has a story. That alone should scare you into using a harness. My friend fell asleep and fell out of his stand. He woke up in blinding pain and somehow managed to crawl all the way back to his car and to the farm house for help. He had landed on his side and broke several ribs and split his sternum in two!!! Picture if you will, looking down to see your shirt looking like a pitched tent! BTW you don't "set" a sternum back into place. You take pain killers and wait, then you walk around in a brace for quite awhile. Plenty long enough to think about what happened and how you're lucky to be alive.

[wapiti792]

Fellas I was fixin' to post up in another thread then found this one. Last year on October 22nd I unhitched my safety harness to step onto the stand. The rachet was frayed and it broke. I was able to hang on to a screw in step that impaled my hand and was able to hang onto the stand for a second until a could try and "fall" gracefully. I ended up with open fractures of my right hand, a deep tendon laceration on my left, a broken tailbone and a bruised lung/small intestine that caused a blockage. I ended up in great shape a year later, but it took that long to get my act together. This year forward I will never be "unhitched" and have now found a fondness for shorter ladder stands. Here are a few graphic pics to remind you guys...warning, this ain't pretty: NEVER LEAVE THE GROUND WITHOUT A HARNESS!

 
 
 

[Red Beastmaster]

"And I don't want them crying over my casket from a tree stand fall."

Roy, I won't be crying, I'll be pinching you to make sure you're dead!  

As much as I like treestands, I am always worried about falling. I have a very healthy respect for them and always use a harness.

Thanks for the reminder Roy.

[Roy from Pa]

I love you too, Red..  

Mike, ouch.

I have a friend who works in a hospital emergency room. He says every year they get several hunters admitted after they fell out of a stand. The year I fell and broke a rib, it wasn't but a week or two that, two other hunters within 5 miles of me also fell. Both were life flighted.

I now use a full body harness and a climbing rope system. I hook up on the ground to the climbing  rope and slide the prusik knot up as I climb. When I reach my stand, I attach my tether rope before un hooking my climbing tether. And reverse the same procedure when climbing down. Most accidents happen while climbing up or down the tree or getting into or out of your stand. And stands have been known to break.

[TooManyHobbies]

Good thread. I always wear a harness in the stand, but never do while climbing. Just yesterday, I was taking down a stand to place 75 yards away. The stand was down and the screw in steps up high were removed. But, as I was about 6 feet off the ground, one of the screw in steps failed. It broke the screw part off in the tree. With all my weight on it, I had no time to hang onto anything. Hit the ground and fell backwards over a large rock. Never hit the rock, or the tree behind me. It was like when you were a kid and you had a friend kneel behind someone while you pushed the kid over him. Woke me right up, but no injuries. Just glad it wasn't a top step 16 feet up. Now, I guess I'll need a climbing system. Be careful out there.

[Green Mountain Boy]

My brother-in-law fell last year, didn't get too banged up but did cut up his hand pretty bad and felt it for the whole season.  He did it while he was hanging stands.  He was lucky, thanks for the reminder!

[JEFF B]

oh how i love  mother earth best thing since sliced bread. and even better than the day the pigs  ate my Brother