Safety lines on deer stands

[Rubberhead*]

Dad will be 83 this deer season and has decided to start using some ladder stands instead of always climbing. It's kind of blessing and a curse. I certainly think a climber is safer from a "falling out of the tree" perspective but walking in and out of the woods with a gun cradled in his arms and climber on his back adds a degree of difficulty especially with two bionic knees, a stainless steel hip and a new reverse shoulder replacement.

So, the question is do any of you use the treestand safety rope things? Is there a better system? How do I get a cantankerous old man to actually use the harness and safety rope? I think this system is meant to completely "lock-up" in case of a fall so I've wondered about using a repelling type clevis that would slide him to the ground instead of hanging him there. I'm trying to go with him as much as possible but he still goes by himself a good bit.

[beech]

Check out the hunter safety system. That should take care of it. It's very easy to use and you can get multiple stands ready so all he has to do is throw on the lightweight harness and hook up when he gets there.

[MC]

I use the ones like you have pictured there. I prefer a rock climbing harness for myself, but my sons wear a traditional harness. They are not difficult to get used to.

The ones that have the slow descend feature like they use at a rock climbing wall would be great, they are just expensive.

As far as getting him to wear it, it's pretty simple, either he wears it and has some level of protection, or he falls without it and suffers the consequences. I came to the realization several years ago that I was one of the only guys in my circle of hunting friends that had not fallen, yet. I'd like to be climbing trees when I'm 83, so I wear a harness and stay tethered to the tree when my feet are not on the ground.

[Frank1]

83 and still hauling a climber in the woods? Damn I hope to be in that kinda shape when I hit 83, good on him. He should use something, at his age a fall could be the end of him Good Luck!

[Palmetto Bug]

I have those rigs an every one of my stands. Once you get used to them, you feel naked without one. They give you much more confidence in the tree which helps when you need to take a shot from an odd position.

I too use a rock climbing harness instead of a vest or body harness. I have a short rope connected to my harness that also has a prusik knot with a carabiner so it can be used as a lineman's loop or an easily adjustable connection to the permanent safety line.
safety rope.JPG

I like the safety rope version that has reflective rope. It comes in handy when you are trying to find the stand in the dark and especially when you are blood tracking near a stand and need to get your bearings.

Don't forget to add a small line to each stand for pulling up your rifle or bow. Climbing with a weapon is dangerous too.

I have a few friends that have either crippled themselves or spent long stints in the hospital from falling out of tree stands.

[mudflat]

What PB said! My brother had a WTF moment when his flashlight hit that reflective rope I installed.

[3 1/2" MAGUM]

Get a controlled descender to go along with the safety rope and harness. Definitely don't want him hanging for any length of time. Like others, I've moved to a rappelling harness but most I've seen required stepping into and pulling up over the legs, which is a little harder than using QD buckles.

I may have a descender from in my garage that I'll give you. PM me a number to send pics if interested.

Mike

[Gone South]

I go to eBay and buy 12mm climbing rope and use 8mm prusik cord to tie the prusik knot just like the HS safety rope and then a climbing carabiner for a quick connect.

[Palmetto Bug]

I built my own one year and found the prebuilt ones aren't much more expensive and they're already put together. They also have the reflective rope option.

[Sportin' Woodies]

I'd convince him to use a ground blind.

[Tha Dick]

I'd convince him to use a ground blind.

Yep. I bought 4-5 ground blinds to my dad. It was a hard sell, but better safe than sorry.

[StrutnBPS]

I've been looking into these.

https://treestandwingman.com/


https://www.primaltreestands.com/pri...descent-device


I used to have the Hunter Rescue One vest that has a descent system built into it, but I only used it a year because the rope was very uncomfortable to lean back on.

[Bigtimber2]

I have the primal never had to use it. Seems like it weighs more than 2lbs. It is kind of loud bumping the tree but I like the security.

I use a rock climbing harness for a face tree the stand and life line on fixed stands.