Public land, public stand? I think not!!! Most of the hunting I do is on Missouri public land so I like to bring everything in and out with me to avoid losing equipment to passersby while I'm not hunting.
I use a hang-on stand that's medium sized. It came with a safety harness and everything. It's just small enough to strap on my back to carry in and out of the woods without being too bulky to manage. I took the metal frame off an army surplus backpack and use the straps from the stand to secure it to my frame. The frame makes it easy to bear the weight of the stand and my other gear. Getting the stand up can be tricky if you don't have climber sticks or a ladderstand. Using a rope ladder is portable, light, and can be managed by just one person. I have a long rope that I throw over a branch at the height I want to hang the stand. It's kind of hard to get right on your first throw but keep at it. I tie one end of the rope to the rope ladder and hoist it up to the branch, tying the loose end of on another nearby tree. For trekking, I roll up the ladder and strap it to the stand on my back to keep my hands free to carry my bow.
Once my ladder is up, I climb it, secure my harness, and pull up my stand with a rope. Setting the stand up can be hard because you have to keep your balance while holding an awkward object. Once the stand is strapped down and I'm sitting in it I pull up the rest of my gear and also the rope ladder to leave as little evidence as possible in the deers line of sight.
I've used this setup a few times this season and it's worked pretty well. Looking forward to cooler weather though. Carrying all that through the woods can be tiring and make you sweat like crazy. From start to finish, setup takes me about 20 minutes. To take it down, I just do everything in reverse order.
No deer yet, but plenty of sightings and a couple close calls. Sooner or later I'll be looking for blood trails...
Hope this helps someone who is limited to public land like me!
I use a hang-on stand that's medium sized. It came with a safety harness and everything. It's just small enough to strap on my back to carry in and out of the woods without being too bulky to manage. I took the metal frame off an army surplus backpack and use the straps from the stand to secure it to my frame. The frame makes it easy to bear the weight of the stand and my other gear. Getting the stand up can be tricky if you don't have climber sticks or a ladderstand. Using a rope ladder is portable, light, and can be managed by just one person. I have a long rope that I throw over a branch at the height I want to hang the stand. It's kind of hard to get right on your first throw but keep at it. I tie one end of the rope to the rope ladder and hoist it up to the branch, tying the loose end of on another nearby tree. For trekking, I roll up the ladder and strap it to the stand on my back to keep my hands free to carry my bow.
Once my ladder is up, I climb it, secure my harness, and pull up my stand with a rope. Setting the stand up can be hard because you have to keep your balance while holding an awkward object. Once the stand is strapped down and I'm sitting in it I pull up the rest of my gear and also the rope ladder to leave as little evidence as possible in the deers line of sight.
I've used this setup a few times this season and it's worked pretty well. Looking forward to cooler weather though. Carrying all that through the woods can be tiring and make you sweat like crazy. From start to finish, setup takes me about 20 minutes. To take it down, I just do everything in reverse order.
No deer yet, but plenty of sightings and a couple close calls. Sooner or later I'll be looking for blood trails...
Hope this helps someone who is limited to public land like me!