44Hunter45 semi live climbing stand hunt
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44hunter45
Well-known member
Who you calling old here?
44hunter45
Well-known member
44hunter45
Well-known member
Report from yesterday. It turned into an FML kind of day, but I learned from it. Smiling as I write this.
I moved to one of the other trees which I had prepped. Bigger. I had to let the cables out to the last knob. The manual says 20" is the max diameter tree for the Titan.
Real world I'm going to say 18". See below.
I hurried in after work and some chores. It's about a 45 minute drive to the site.
We've already talked about where I am on the spectrum. I develop ritual methods and like to do them the same every time. Maybe that is why I ended up in IT. Code imitates life. Routines and sub-routines.
The red text is where things went way wrong yesterday.
Ritual for this is:
Park the truck.
Lay all my gear on the tonneau cover.
Open tailgate for stand.
Put on bino chest harness
Put on safety harness.
Tangled mess. Off and back on 3 times before everything is where is should have been. For a stand advertised for "Big Boys", their harness is made for Steve Rogers before the drugs. Not for the barrel chested.
Put paracord, cell phone and sundries in pockets.
Get the stand on my back with the shoulder straps.
Clip inReach to safety harness.
Hike in.
Mount stand on tree.
Tie seat and platform together with backup paracord. The free end is tied to my bow.
Get in.
Put safety strap on tree.
Climb tree
Check and verify all safety.
inReach preset to MRS and son that I am in my tree safely and strapped in.
Realize I left inReach in the truck. Screw it, not going to climb down this tree and go back to the truck.
Pull up bow.
Then realize my grip/release is laying on the ground 15'-20' below me.
Nothing for it but to climb back down and get the release.
Lower the bow back to the ground on paracord.
Realize that in this diameter tree, the platform cable won't let go of the tree going down. Touret's and fighting all the way down.
Finally get the stand to ground level and step out of it, right onto my bow. Bent two of the field pointed arrows in my quiver. These are my last six arrows so I baby them.
My Plan A tree is looking a lot better now. Now we are in the golden hour when I should be as still as possible.
Not going to stack the stand parts together again. Three trips to move the 100 yards to the original tree. Two for the stand and one for bow and gear.
Climb Plan A tree. Waste 10 minutes trying to get Elon Fusk text to satellite to work so I can get emergency messages from work. Try to send MRS text via satellite that
I am safely in my stand. Doesn't work and I get disgusted pointing my phone at the sky.
All settled down now and it about 6:30PM only 35 minutes until legal sunset.
Mr. Blue Tundra pulls in and parks in plain sight of me, gets out of his truck and starts going though his elk call recital.
After he drives off I try to settle down. iPhone keeps vibrating telling me to point it to the sky to find a satellite.
Just about to turn the phone off, but then I can't play solitaire while waiting for deer.
"P'ting! - text from MRS. "OK, we have Panda (Express) here. "
Climb down cursing Steve Jobs, Elon Fusk, and the guy in the blue Tundra.
Reverse ritual getting down and when back at truck.
inReach preset to MRS that I am safely down and back at the truck.
Start home.
Halfway home TPMS sensor says tire pressure emergency. Pull over and kick tires. No issue but a bad sensor. Drive home thinking about the $90 that is going to cost me.
Get home and eat Panda with a boutique bourbon chaser. All while dreaming about getting back out there.
FWIW - MRS and I have town stuff to do today so I won't be heading out there today.
I moved to one of the other trees which I had prepped. Bigger. I had to let the cables out to the last knob. The manual says 20" is the max diameter tree for the Titan.
Real world I'm going to say 18". See below.
I hurried in after work and some chores. It's about a 45 minute drive to the site.
We've already talked about where I am on the spectrum. I develop ritual methods and like to do them the same every time. Maybe that is why I ended up in IT. Code imitates life. Routines and sub-routines.
The red text is where things went way wrong yesterday.
Ritual for this is:
Park the truck.
Lay all my gear on the tonneau cover.
Open tailgate for stand.
Put on bino chest harness
Put on safety harness.
Tangled mess. Off and back on 3 times before everything is where is should have been. For a stand advertised for "Big Boys", their harness is made for Steve Rogers before the drugs. Not for the barrel chested.
Put paracord, cell phone and sundries in pockets.
Get the stand on my back with the shoulder straps.
Clip inReach to safety harness.
Hike in.
Mount stand on tree.
Tie seat and platform together with backup paracord. The free end is tied to my bow.
Get in.
Put safety strap on tree.
Climb tree
Check and verify all safety.
inReach preset to MRS and son that I am in my tree safely and strapped in.
Realize I left inReach in the truck. Screw it, not going to climb down this tree and go back to the truck.
Pull up bow.
Then realize my grip/release is laying on the ground 15'-20' below me.
Nothing for it but to climb back down and get the release.
Lower the bow back to the ground on paracord.
Realize that in this diameter tree, the platform cable won't let go of the tree going down. Touret's and fighting all the way down.
Finally get the stand to ground level and step out of it, right onto my bow. Bent two of the field pointed arrows in my quiver. These are my last six arrows so I baby them.
My Plan A tree is looking a lot better now. Now we are in the golden hour when I should be as still as possible.
Not going to stack the stand parts together again. Three trips to move the 100 yards to the original tree. Two for the stand and one for bow and gear.
Climb Plan A tree. Waste 10 minutes trying to get Elon Fusk text to satellite to work so I can get emergency messages from work. Try to send MRS text via satellite that
I am safely in my stand. Doesn't work and I get disgusted pointing my phone at the sky.
All settled down now and it about 6:30PM only 35 minutes until legal sunset.
Mr. Blue Tundra pulls in and parks in plain sight of me, gets out of his truck and starts going though his elk call recital.
After he drives off I try to settle down. iPhone keeps vibrating telling me to point it to the sky to find a satellite.
Just about to turn the phone off, but then I can't play solitaire while waiting for deer.
"P'ting! - text from MRS. "OK, we have Panda (Express) here. "
Climb down cursing Steve Jobs, Elon Fusk, and the guy in the blue Tundra.
Reverse ritual getting down and when back at truck.
inReach preset to MRS that I am safely down and back at the truck.
Start home.
Halfway home TPMS sensor says tire pressure emergency. Pull over and kick tires. No issue but a bad sensor. Drive home thinking about the $90 that is going to cost me.
Get home and eat Panda with a boutique bourbon chaser. All while dreaming about getting back out there.
FWIW - MRS and I have town stuff to do today so I won't be heading out there today.
Last edited:
WNC2500
Well-known member
@44hunter45 I am not sure what kind of truck you have, but last year my TPMS went out on my GMC 2500, and so when looking into it, the labor to replace 1 was the same as replacing all 4 (at the dealership that is). That is what I did.
I am really wondering if the Blue Tundra guy sees you and is just a piece of work??
Enjoying following along......
I am really wondering if the Blue Tundra guy sees you and is just a piece of work??
Enjoying following along......
44hunter45
Well-known member
Yes and possibly.
2017 K1500. I have them all replaced every time I get new tires. Stuff happens.
Potsie
Well-known member
Hahaha.
This one time, I went up to a friend’s spring bear camp to help glassing. Had a great time, but on the last day after I got set up and glassed a rain storm blew in. I took shelter in my truck, as one does. The rain stuck around, and I ended up heading back to camp.
My friend’s kid found my chair, tripod, and spotter there the next day.
44hunter45
Well-known member
I haven't posted here in a while. I took the climber to a favorite piece of corporate land close to the house. I have good cell coverage there and I can relax more about work calling me out. I learned that my climber doesn't play well with Ponderosa Pine. I kept sliding back down on the pithy bark. I stayed on the ground here. 5 trails meet here and there will be a scrape here in a week or two. There is every year.
More lessons in deer hunting during elk season. After hanging out in a ground blind for a while, Hoochie Mama let loose about 200 yards down slope.
Still beats sitting in front of the computer at home.
More lessons in deer hunting during elk season. After hanging out in a ground blind for a while, Hoochie Mama let loose about 200 yards down slope.
Still beats sitting in front of the computer at home.
44hunter45
Well-known member
Back to my spot Friday and Saturday the 19th and 20th. This being the "golden week" of the elk rut, it was pretty crazy out there. Got the TPMS Sensor replaced yesterday. Only $45. 
Driving in past the USFS fire fighting contractors has become a circus. They have contracted "security" at the closed road junctions. These guys are H1B's or naturalized. They sit in a camp chair in their yellow vests and wave at cars. Out where the USFS road meets the State Highway, there is a guy selling fire merch out of a Wells Cargo trailer. The whole thing feels like a rock festival more than an active fire. They suppressed the burn in one of my favorite drainages. I wish they had let it scour. I admit there is way too much ladder fuel in there. That is why I would like it to see a burn. I (and everyone else) will want to be in those drainages next year to see how the regen is going.
On Saturday I left the work phone at home. MRS45 agreed to monitor it and ping me on inReach if anything happened. She's a GEM. I was talking with her about how much I want to punch this tag. Her response was that we just put a cow elk in the freezer. "Just hunt the tag and enjoy it." I think she might be lurking here on HT without me knowing.
No deer were harmed Friday or Saturday. Saturday there were two trucks parked at the road intersection where I park my truck. I drive in farther and "hide" my rig behind some logging feller/bunchers. I saw one doe skirting the edge as I walked in. That was it.
As I posted in the "What are you reading?" thread, I read Clay Hayes book about being on ALONE Season 8. 146 pages and an easy read while scanning for deer.
About 4pm a red F150 comes by me left to right. I hear them stop by the other two trucks parked near me. There is a strip of timber which divides the two clear cuts I'm using. I sneak through it from my parked truck to my stand locations. Lots of door slamming. Then they 3 point turn and come back to park on "my" clearcut. What I assume is a dad and two boys get out. They flash me their junk while they pee on the road. So I'm guessing they do not see me in my tree. I'm really glad they are 100 yards away. They hike 50 yards up the clearcut where it extends across the road. They sit and start calling. I'm thinking to myself, "Do they really thing an elk is going to come past their truck into shooting range?" After about 30 minutes they pack up and hike down the road. Not long after I hear them calling across the creek on the other side of the drainage. Better, I think. Maybe they will kick a deer toward me. Nope.
I have been busy with life and work all this week. I may get out there this afternoon, but I have to finish deep cleaning Miss T's Weatherby first.
I post a video to IG of a doe and fawn in front of my stand with a car blowing by on the road. I'm always looking for critters, but filming that left me wondering how many I drive by without seeing. This still was take right after that. The doe heard the shutter sound from my cell phone and looked right at me. I froze. She couldn't figure it out and went back to feeding. All the stumps in the clearcut are pre-ranged. They are 20 yards away. The fawn is just losing its spots. Not the deer I'm looking for.
@WildWill noticed I shoot a really old bow. I really do. This was my dad's Hoyt Spectra which was given to him by a contracting buddy in the 1980's. This buddy bought it for a NR elk hunt in the Oregon Blue Mountains. He told my dad he had a monarch bull tearing up a tree at 7 yards. He soiled himself, dropped the bow, and ran. His brother made him go back and retrieve the bow. That Wenaha tag is gold now. There are some real brutes there. Ol' Doug was quite a story teller, so I'm pretty sure there was some embellishment to his tale. I do know he said he would never archery hunt elk again, so part of it must be true. Doug dropped dead on a jobsite not long after he gave the bow to my dad.
The bow is slow by today's standards. But still under-splined with 31" 2413 Eastons. It is just as it came to me except for the TM Launcher, stabilizer, metal release loop, and bow sling which I added. The shelf is too narrow for overdraw so I have to orient the nocks and inserts just right to avoid hitting the riser or arrow rest. It is crazy accurate if I do my part. I have a big wingspan, so it took some doing to get the draw length to work. This is the system where you have to twist the cables to set the draw or adjust the tiller. I have the cables as long as I can safely go and added the metal release loop for extra draw. Every alert deer I've ever pulled on has jumped the string. I shoot it to honor Doug. He used to take me hog hunting on his family's ranch near New Idria in California. I enjoy the bow, but the truth is I'm not into archery enough to upgrade my tech. $2k for a new setup is not something I'm interested in. I'm actually thinking I want to make my own bow and go full trad. I started on Bear recurves and really enjoy them and stick bows.
I think this archery thing is winding down. The season ends on Sept 30th. The last time I saw the bucks I scouted here they were crossing the road 100 yards away and heading up the mountain. I think the elk traffic pressured them out or changed their active hours.
I will can rifle hunt this beginning Oct 10th. I can muzzy hunt it from Dec 2nd-14th. So I may come back to these trees. During the peak rut, there is nothing here with better odds than the ladder stands behind my house. I am hoping to get MissT out with me if school and sports allow. As the days get shorter, I get more hunting time by staying closer to home.
I have a WT antlered only tag to hunt south of here in October. That will be my first priority. I'm taking a week off in October for that.
I enjoyed learning the climber. New gear can be stimulating. It is still possible that I could fill both these WT tags. I have high confidence I can fill at least one with the time allowed. Being off the clock at 1:30PM and able to hunt right out the back door helps when the days are short.
This has been fun. Don't think my dark humor means I am not having fun. My job has taught me that if you can't find funny things in life, you are gonna end up miserable.
Thanks for following along.
Driving in past the USFS fire fighting contractors has become a circus. They have contracted "security" at the closed road junctions. These guys are H1B's or naturalized. They sit in a camp chair in their yellow vests and wave at cars. Out where the USFS road meets the State Highway, there is a guy selling fire merch out of a Wells Cargo trailer. The whole thing feels like a rock festival more than an active fire. They suppressed the burn in one of my favorite drainages. I wish they had let it scour. I admit there is way too much ladder fuel in there. That is why I would like it to see a burn. I (and everyone else) will want to be in those drainages next year to see how the regen is going.
On Saturday I left the work phone at home. MRS45 agreed to monitor it and ping me on inReach if anything happened. She's a GEM. I was talking with her about how much I want to punch this tag. Her response was that we just put a cow elk in the freezer. "Just hunt the tag and enjoy it." I think she might be lurking here on HT without me knowing.
No deer were harmed Friday or Saturday. Saturday there were two trucks parked at the road intersection where I park my truck. I drive in farther and "hide" my rig behind some logging feller/bunchers. I saw one doe skirting the edge as I walked in. That was it.
As I posted in the "What are you reading?" thread, I read Clay Hayes book about being on ALONE Season 8. 146 pages and an easy read while scanning for deer.
About 4pm a red F150 comes by me left to right. I hear them stop by the other two trucks parked near me. There is a strip of timber which divides the two clear cuts I'm using. I sneak through it from my parked truck to my stand locations. Lots of door slamming. Then they 3 point turn and come back to park on "my" clearcut. What I assume is a dad and two boys get out. They flash me their junk while they pee on the road. So I'm guessing they do not see me in my tree. I'm really glad they are 100 yards away. They hike 50 yards up the clearcut where it extends across the road. They sit and start calling. I'm thinking to myself, "Do they really thing an elk is going to come past their truck into shooting range?" After about 30 minutes they pack up and hike down the road. Not long after I hear them calling across the creek on the other side of the drainage. Better, I think. Maybe they will kick a deer toward me. Nope.
I have been busy with life and work all this week. I may get out there this afternoon, but I have to finish deep cleaning Miss T's Weatherby first.
I post a video to IG of a doe and fawn in front of my stand with a car blowing by on the road. I'm always looking for critters, but filming that left me wondering how many I drive by without seeing. This still was take right after that. The doe heard the shutter sound from my cell phone and looked right at me. I froze. She couldn't figure it out and went back to feeding. All the stumps in the clearcut are pre-ranged. They are 20 yards away. The fawn is just losing its spots. Not the deer I'm looking for.
@WildWill noticed I shoot a really old bow. I really do. This was my dad's Hoyt Spectra which was given to him by a contracting buddy in the 1980's. This buddy bought it for a NR elk hunt in the Oregon Blue Mountains. He told my dad he had a monarch bull tearing up a tree at 7 yards. He soiled himself, dropped the bow, and ran. His brother made him go back and retrieve the bow. That Wenaha tag is gold now. There are some real brutes there. Ol' Doug was quite a story teller, so I'm pretty sure there was some embellishment to his tale. I do know he said he would never archery hunt elk again, so part of it must be true. Doug dropped dead on a jobsite not long after he gave the bow to my dad.
The bow is slow by today's standards. But still under-splined with 31" 2413 Eastons. It is just as it came to me except for the TM Launcher, stabilizer, metal release loop, and bow sling which I added. The shelf is too narrow for overdraw so I have to orient the nocks and inserts just right to avoid hitting the riser or arrow rest. It is crazy accurate if I do my part. I have a big wingspan, so it took some doing to get the draw length to work. This is the system where you have to twist the cables to set the draw or adjust the tiller. I have the cables as long as I can safely go and added the metal release loop for extra draw. Every alert deer I've ever pulled on has jumped the string. I shoot it to honor Doug. He used to take me hog hunting on his family's ranch near New Idria in California. I enjoy the bow, but the truth is I'm not into archery enough to upgrade my tech. $2k for a new setup is not something I'm interested in. I'm actually thinking I want to make my own bow and go full trad. I started on Bear recurves and really enjoy them and stick bows.
I think this archery thing is winding down. The season ends on Sept 30th. The last time I saw the bucks I scouted here they were crossing the road 100 yards away and heading up the mountain. I think the elk traffic pressured them out or changed their active hours.
I will can rifle hunt this beginning Oct 10th. I can muzzy hunt it from Dec 2nd-14th. So I may come back to these trees. During the peak rut, there is nothing here with better odds than the ladder stands behind my house. I am hoping to get MissT out with me if school and sports allow. As the days get shorter, I get more hunting time by staying closer to home.
I have a WT antlered only tag to hunt south of here in October. That will be my first priority. I'm taking a week off in October for that.
I enjoyed learning the climber. New gear can be stimulating. It is still possible that I could fill both these WT tags. I have high confidence I can fill at least one with the time allowed. Being off the clock at 1:30PM and able to hunt right out the back door helps when the days are short.
This has been fun. Don't think my dark humor means I am not having fun. My job has taught me that if you can't find funny things in life, you are gonna end up miserable.
Thanks for following along.
Last edited:
44hunter45
Well-known member
Alanis Morissette's Ironic plays....
I got stuck demoing a failed shower enclosure in the basement today. About 6PM I needed to clean out my truck for a drop at the body shop tomorrow after church.
75 yards down the driveway are two 3x3's and a big forky. MRS45's babies. They no doubt grew up eating the crab apples that fall on the front lawn. They couldn't have cared less I was out watching them.
October is coming and Miss T will be in the double wide stand with me for sure. She gets first shot.
I got stuck demoing a failed shower enclosure in the basement today. About 6PM I needed to clean out my truck for a drop at the body shop tomorrow after church.
75 yards down the driveway are two 3x3's and a big forky. MRS45's babies. They no doubt grew up eating the crab apples that fall on the front lawn. They couldn't have cared less I was out watching them.
October is coming and Miss T will be in the double wide stand with me for sure. She gets first shot.
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