Well they do make those systems where you hang a rope and are hooked onto it when you leave the ground. They're pricy but work. An alternative that I use is leave a belt on the tree. I own and have owned a lot of treestands. Almost all come with some type of belt. When I hang a hang on I sometimes put a belt around the tree just above the stand so that when I get to the top of my climb I can slip the belt over my head and under my arms before attempting to swing into the stand. These stands with cables and things running from the seat bracket to the platform to hold the platform are very dangerous I think. I'm always catching a foot on the cables in the dark. With the belt I just reach up through one arm at a time and at least I'm somewhat secured. If you have a harness then snap it on once in the tree. When climbing ALWAYS have 3 points of contact. That is, 2 feet and one hand while the other reaches or two hands and one foot while the other steps up. I always make sure to add a couple steps or something to grab ahold of to swing in. An extra step here or there can make a difficult entry safe and easy. It beats the heck out of a tumble.

P.S. I always try to have steps right up to the level of the platform so you're stepping on to it rather than UP to it. If you only have two points of contact and one slips you're going to fall. With 3 points you got a chance to catch yourself.



Edited by - davidmil on 11/20/2002 10:02:11