It depends, I have one stand in a small tree out in a pasture that's only 7' off the ground. I have one stand where I have a creek behind me and I'm 30-35'high but in front and to my left and right 20yds out it goes up hill and I'm only 10' above the ground but from the base of the tree I'm 20' off the ground, weird but very productive area.
I try to never go above 20 because at that point the angle gets so steep that it becomes difficult to get both lungs.. I don't care for super steep shot angles.
I actually tend to hunt higher up in the early season. Now that there is no cover up there... I come down to about 15 feet or so to keep from being sky lined. If I have really good cover then I'll sit at 8-10... but that rarely happens.
__________________ You get what you put in, and people get what they deserve. - Kid Rock
I usually like to be as high as possible. This year though I got permission to hunt a piece of new ground and the farmer had one stipulation- no stands, not even portable andno groundblinds. He said feel free to hunt off the ground next to a tree or in some brush but he didn't want any evidence of having a hunter on the property. I was thrilled at the chance regardless of these limitations, I didn't question his logic and happily obliged as the spot was gold for the specificbuck I was after and it was basically the only chance I had. I did find an old walnut tree in a shallow draw that had a drooping branch that passed next to its trunk about9-10feet off the ground. I could easily step up ontothis branchand use itas a makeshift stand and I used a belt harness for safe measure. When on the branch I only netted being about 4-5feet higher than the field on both sides of the draw. In spite of this in the 10 or so sits there this year I had numerous deer in bow rangeand had 4 different 130"+ bucks in easy bow range. I had my biggest buck to date pass right under me at 5 yardswhichI later harvested out at33 yards after an equipment malfunction at the closer range. I just filled my antlerless tag off the same branch the other night. By playing the wind right and concealing myself next to the big tree trunk with plenty of background break-up, I realized that any height off the ground is better than none at all. I've had no less than 30 deer within20 yards of me undetected. Best spot ever. Best year ever.
It all depends on the tree and surrounding vegetation. In one of my spots where it is impossible for deer come from behind me I am 2 feet off the ground. This puts me just above the bushes I want to shoot over. So far this season I have taken deer from 8ft, 12ft, and 20ft.
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I like big bucks and I cannot lie
How High?
