I don' t own a portable treestand and have only 1 permant one nailed up in a tree on my property. I do most of my hunting from the ground. It' s really a rush to get that close to deer on their level. Like was stated before, you must keep movement to an absolute minimum. As far as comfort, I carry a 5 gal bucket out with me. I use it to carry my camos coveralls in. Then when I get to my blind, I wipe down with some alcohol wipes, change into my coveralls and spray down with carbon blast. I use the bucket to sit on. Works pretty good. I also carry a folding tree saw and a pair of garden shears with in the bucket for last minute trimming. Anyway, welcome to the ground hog fraturnity! Good luck.