Deerbuster.com

I have spent a good part of the last ten years in the tree tops. I hunt from them so often that I don't tell my wife "I'm going hunting" , I say I'm "going up a tree". Here's some pearls.

Face away from the sun. That means facing west for a morning stand and east for an evening stand. This puts the sun in the quarry's eyes, not yours. When the sun is on you, every movement is lit up for the entire woods to see. Face north if you want to hunt it any time.

Don't leave a rope. All it serves as is a huge human scent wick. Sweaty smelly hands pull that bow up, after getting overheated on the walk in......

Carry clothes in, dress when you get there. Stay cool, warm and not as odorous.

Climbers harness for a safety belt. Unparalleled comfort and safety.

Take out the bottom five steps, so it's less likely your stand will have a subtenant when you get there. A thief will have to come prepared.

Those bottom five steps should be unique. I use a Simmons Archery Woodpecker drill to make holes and just slide in hardened steel 8" bolts, it's quiet, fast and effortless (not sweaty work). Anyone trying to screw in standard steps in the holes is in for a surprise.

Put "bright eyes" near the bottom five holes, easy to find in the dark.

Stand up! During "prime time" , when you expect to see deer be standing with your bow on a hook in front of you. Only sit when really tired.

Multiple trunks on the tree. It's so much easier to step on the stand from an adjoining tree. The extra trunks; break your outline, hide your draw, convenient place for your bow to hang, rest your foot on and sometimes lean back on when facing the seat of the stand ( if it's really stable and safety belt is in place ).

Don't dangle. Base your safety belt on the trunk in such a way that if you did fall, you'd end up dangling near a limb or your steps, not out in space.

Have your knife on you. If you ever need to cut out of the safety harness. Or if you run out of arrows (ha ha).

Rake a trail. If you rake a trail to your stand from several different directions, you can approach that last 50 to 75 yards with stealth. The deer will ignore or use your raked path in no time. It also is a way to monitor trails that your raked path crosses. You can see the raked path in the darkness without a light. You'll leave less scent too.

Carry extras. Being up in the air, you may drop something you need. Carry an extra release aid, rope, bow hook, key to the lock on the stand (in case you decide to move it based upon new knowledge), and reversible glove.

Let it rest. I use a stand once a week. This keeps it fresh.

Hunt at least 3 hours. Getting in the stand for only an hour seems a waste because the deer get wiser every time your enter the woods and unintentionally educate them.

If you jump deer, especially a good one, near your stand just walk on by it. If they detect you or your scent remaining in the area, you'll never see those deer again.

Plan for plan B. B stands for be somewhere else. Perhaps the wind is wrong, you've bumped deer, another hunter is nearby, etc.

Tell someone where you have gone, in case you don't make it back.