The worst tree you ever hunted from?

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Bonehead
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The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Bonehead » Wed Dec 13, 2017 10:32 am

The worst tree I ever hunted from, also turned out to be, the best tree I have hunted from, ever....at least to this date.

Several years ago I went on a solo rut hunting trip in south east Kansas. I had several properties scattered several miles apart that I had permission to hunt on. However i had never been to any of these places before. One 60ac piece stood out during my cyber scouting for several reasons. It was hard to access, it couldn’t be seen from any road and it looked like it had the ‘MOTHER of ALL’ funnels connecting two very large brushy wood lots!
With anticipation I arrived on a cool windy early November morning, with a very expensive Kansas buck tag in my wallet.
I gathered up all my equipment, which included Lonewolf tree stand, camera arm, back pack, and my bow. I sneaked up to funnel, after snooping around a bit, I was beyond excited! Almost all the deer had to pass through a narrow gap 30 yards wide and 30 yards long (approximately). According to the latest weather forecast, there was no way any of those deer would be able to catch my scent for at least three more days! Let me tell you! the deer sign reminded you of a cattle ranch in places.
The only problem was,.....the tree. The size of the tree wasn’t the problem, even though its height was questionable at best. I would only be able to get 14 or 15 feet off the ground. Not to mention, I might possibly be somewhat silhouetted to the deer that pass through headed in the southerny direction. Those were valid concerns, BUT that wasn’t my main concern.
The real problem was the tree itself. Because this tree just happened to be the nastiest, gnarliest and THORNiest Honey Locust tree that the good Lord ever put in the state of Kansas.
I’m sure there are some of you out there in “the Hunting Beast society” that have had any kind of a experience awith a Honey Locust tree can agree? It’s going to hurt. Am I right?
Someone once said “The thought of killing a big buck” can make some hunters out there make questionable decisions. I happen to agree with this statement. For you see? It was then, as I was taking out my folding saw, that I realized I had left my gloves in the back of my truck a half mile away, and I also decided I wasn’t going back for them. Despite my internal alarms going off, I was going to hang a tree stand in that ugly tree come or high water! Gloves or no gloves! I was after all in Kansas in early November.

A hour and a half later the stand was hung. But at a cost! I was leaking my DNA all over the place. It was all over the tree, tree stand, all over the ground. I had cuts and stab wounds all over my body, face, both hands, one shoulder was really throbbing. Something sharp penetrated my blue jeans into my groin area. Upon inspection. I was relived to see that the damage was minor, I do for some reason remember the cut was right on the seam of my sack. That could have been really bad!
When I was done tending my medical needs. I decided to go back to the truck after all (the irony) and retrieve my buck decoy (which back then doubled as my archery target). I just wanted the deer to focus on something other than the big bloody hunter in the Honey locust tree.
Some of you are probably wondering if I was worried about my scent? I knew I was leaving it all over my set up. But because the wind was howling perfectly out of the northwest at 20 to 35 mph (that’s normal in Kansas aparantly) and was to continue out of that direction for three more days. All my scent would all be carried off the side of the ridge harmlessly over the prairie away from the deer.

As it rarely happens, a huge bodied 150 inch gnarly ten point showed up close to dark that very first evening I hunted it. His ears where laid back and he was mean mugging the decoy on camera when my arrow passed through him. Things rarely go the way you plan for it to, but when it finally does.


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IkemanTx
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby IkemanTx » Wed Dec 13, 2017 10:52 am

Nice. I haven’t sat in a locust tree yet, but I have climbed a Hercules club (aka toothache tree).
My biggest issue with trees is that I am often in river flood plains where cottonwoods dominate. If you don’t know cottonwoods, it doesn’t take much time at all for them to be so big around that an 8 foot linesman belt won’t fit around them. Also, as they get close to that size it becomes dang near impossible to get the linesman belt up the tree. I kind of hate to say that if that’s the only tree that works, I have several times climbed to 15-20 feet without tying in until the trunk diameter narrowed.
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby <DK> » Wed Dec 13, 2017 11:19 am

I have one locust tree that is believed to be a kill tree and I always think about HC bucks dvd. :D Them things are the worst to catch your hand on in winter! Next season will be time to hunt that spot so well see how this goes... hopefully I do a better job and find a better tree...
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Hawthorne » Wed Dec 13, 2017 11:41 am

I sat some bad trees this year. One was a crooked aspen that I realized I wouldn’t be able to draw my bow after i set up without really contorting my body. Luckily no shot that evening
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Jonny » Wed Dec 13, 2017 12:05 pm

I had one this year that my assault kept kicking out on. Would hang, step in, kneel on seat and lift platform, push down on platform and only got one point of contact. Sure was fun :liar:
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Ghost Hunter » Wed Dec 13, 2017 12:53 pm

One word.

Hickory.
I'm reason they call it hunting and not shooting.
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elk yinzer
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby elk yinzer » Wed Dec 13, 2017 1:18 pm

Ghost Hunter wrote:One word.

Hickory.


What's wrong with hickories? Up there among my favorites.

I am extremely sensitive to poison ivy, had to pass up a few trees over the years because of that.

Back when all I had was a climber there was a split trunk maple in one of my best rut spots. I had to setup my platform and do a pullup to get in before climbing it. Major pain the the but in November clothes.

Climbed a few quakies over the years, always hated those. Even summit teeth don't bite well into their bark. Plus they have the tendency to snap off mid-stem, so any kind of breeze I was paranoid of that happening.
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Ghost Hunter
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Ghost Hunter » Wed Dec 13, 2017 1:33 pm

elk yinzer wrote:
Ghost Hunter wrote:One word.

Hickory.


What's wrong with hickories?


Sorry, I didn't finish. Shagbark hickory. One time, one only.
I'm reason they call it hunting and not shooting.
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Wed Dec 13, 2017 1:45 pm

Jonny wrote:I had one this year that my assault kept kicking out on. Would hang, step in, kneel on seat and lift platform, push down on platform and only got one point of contact. Sure was fun :liar:


I set up in a tree on halloween that had my stand kicking out. The bark was hard as a rock and the platform would not bite. I was afraid to stand cuz the platform wanted to rock off to the side if I leaned too much to one side. It was the best tree to set up in unfortunately. :shock: Not the first time I hunted from a tree like that.
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby brancher147 » Wed Dec 13, 2017 1:54 pm

When I used to use a climber (and no safety harness) I had a scary experience in a wet beech tree (smooth slippery bark). And have since had a bad experience trying to climb hickory trees with a climber (teeth won't bite). I haven't used a climber in years. Now it is sticks/screw in pegs and hang-on or sit on the ground. Usually sit on the ground.
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby mspaci » Wed Dec 13, 2017 1:59 pm

shagbark hickory
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flinginairos
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby flinginairos » Wed Dec 13, 2017 2:00 pm

Ghost Hunter wrote:
elk yinzer wrote:
Ghost Hunter wrote:One word.

Hickory.


What's wrong with hickories?


Sorry, I didn't finish. Shagbark hickory. One time, one only.


Been there. Done that. Never again. NEVER. :lol:
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby brancher147 » Wed Dec 13, 2017 2:09 pm

What's wrong with shagbark? I have hunted hickories (bitternut, pignut) from climber and with screw in steps or sticks and they are a pain for sure, but never hunted a shagbark. Just curious why shagbark is worse? Just the bark hanging off the tree? Hickories are definitely a pain for screw in steps, as are sugar maple, and black locust-if you even dare to try.
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby headgear » Wed Dec 13, 2017 2:13 pm

Been in a few dead trees I thought might go down if I jumped on the end of the stand too hard. Wasn't high up and a nice swamp to land it so not a lot of danger but they were interesting.
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Muktown19
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Re: The worst tree you ever hunted from?

Unread postby Muktown19 » Wed Dec 13, 2017 3:19 pm

flinginairos wrote:
Ghost Hunter wrote:
elk yinzer wrote:
Ghost Hunter wrote:One word.

Hickory.


What's wrong with hickories?


Sorry, I didn't finish. Shagbark hickory. One time, one only.


Been there. Done that. Never again. NEVER. :lol:


I set up a stand in a shag bark hickory for my buddy for gun season, and had to steal four steps from one of my stands to be able to get it to the 30' height he wanted it at. Later in the week I went to sit in my stand that I stole the steps from, and I forgot that I used those steps, so I couldn't climb into my stand. He wasn't hunting, so I continued to his stand, and sat in it. That bark loved to grab my clothing and make noise, but I did manage to kill a mature eight point buck that day. :D


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