I have an old ladder stand, it's seen better days, but it's still safe. however, being older it's very heavy, I'd say 35+ lbs. it gets tiresome, and very noisy setting it up. and if you're not in exactly the right area, just adjusting it to another tree is a 1/2 day job. I can't afford a new treestand (out of work) so, what would you do? use the loud tree stand, simply adjusting where need be. or hunt from the ground, until you found a really great spot... or just stay on the ground. for rifle hunting i prefer hunting from the ground, much more mobility, and movement can be kept to a minimum. but for bow... well.... let me know.
I would shoot from the ground. But then again, I hunt in WY and spot and stalk or blind hunting seems to be the way here.
I like to hunt from the ground. I feel that you can conceal yourself much better if you find the right setup, and it's easier to slip in quietly. Just build a nice natural blind (burying yourself in a big downed tree works well) and wear some quality camo (preferably a ghillie suit). The trade off of not feeling exposed in a tree is that you end up with limited shooting angles. For that I drag some scent (usually regular doe urine if i'm not hunting during the rut) to coax a curious buck to walk through my shooting lane. The scent may not bring a deer in from afar but it can pull them a few feet down the right path so that you can stick 'em. It's also safer and cheaper to hunt from the ground.
I'd take the time to put the tree somewhere promising. Might take 1/2 a day but it may take longer to see a deer if they wind you.
I'd put you stand up AND hunt from the ground if the wind is wrong. Why limit yourself. Do both. I'm trying ground hunting without a blind for the first time this year. Tuck yourself into a dead fall.
id do the stand you can see alot farther and u can get ready faster. it depends where u hunt. maybe building a natural blind on the edge of where u think the deer are coming from can be good but where i hunt in the timber i like to be able to see the deer coming in so there not right on top of me.
This!! Build a natural blind out of limbs or use cedar, pine or any other tree parts that are in the area.
ground is the ultimate test. just conceal your body outline and youll be fine.. play the wind though. with the wrong wind your wasting your time
