12' is good for some people but in reality if its not a ladder stand right out of the box that's pretty low. All of my stands except for 2 ladder stands I have that are 15', I have 3 or 4 portable stands that are 18'-20' high. One of my stands has the climbing sticks and there are 5 sections 4' high each. The higher the better as far as scent control and vision goes but on the same token, to high is not good especially with a bow because of the drastic angle you must shoot. There is a guy in my hunting club that has every one of his stands 25' high. To me that's just to much. He has taken some beautiful bucks with his bow and had perfect shots but he always says how he always has to double think the shot or how he has less shooting lanes than if he was lower in the tree. So yea id say a minimum of 16 feet.