Well you guy's that don't wear harnesses ,I hope your first fall doesn't make it your last if you know what I mean .Your lives got to be worth more than 20 or 30 buck's.

nubo

Hunting from a tree stand without a harness is like bow hunting without a bow. Let me ask you non-harness wearing people this: while hunting in cold weather you must put on extra layers of clothes, socks, gloves whatever - right? Not as comfortable as early fall light coat only type weather is it? Kind of a pain to put on all those layers and makes moving harder. BUT, common sense says that if we dress for 60 degree weather when it's 10 out, we are going to freeze our nuts to the tree now doesn't it? It's as common knowledge as gravity isn't it? Why leave a chance out there to get hurt then?

I have a hard time understanding hunters who don't wear a safety belt or only strap in when they get to altitude. I love my seat-of-the-pants, and consider the extra few minutes it takes to climb up or down strapped in as "insurance" - a nominal investment to ensure that I will be able to walk into the woods and hunt tomorrow. There isn't a deer in the world worth sitting in a wheelchair the rest of your life or worse. If there is any doubt in your minds, go volunteer to help out with a handicapped-hunter program...
A friend fell ~14 years ago, cracked his pelvis along with other injuries. My friend said he never felt he needed a belt because he went up "only" 14 feet and was "always" careful. - gee, I guess he wasn't careful enough, duh...
-fsh

I know it's stupid but I don't put on my harness till I get to the top... It's so slow and the noise lasts so much longer if I take the time to move the harness up the tree as I go [:@]
One time as I was going up my climber (2 point system) hit a lump in the tree and slipped off. I was left dangline with the top portion of my climber under my armpits. Luckily it wasn't just my hands on my climber or I would have been gone! After regaining my composure I remembered that my lower end was tied onto the top end and it was just high enough that I could snag it with my foot and bring it up.

It's happened to me a few times worse than that but luckily it was while I had a buddy or two right below me...

Never fell but when I was putting up a ladder stand this season, since stolen, I spun around a tree like a squirrel being chased by another. Dang thing shifted on me when I was wrapping the ratchet device around the tree. Boy I learned some quick lessons: always do it with a helper. always make sure legs of ladder are very level and set on solid footing(use a couple of buried cement terrace stones, etc. always wear a safety belt.

I've posted info about a safety system that I use in combination with a full body harness that makes it practically impossible to fall from a stand from the time you leave the ground until you climb down again.

i couldn't have said it any better myself!with the exception that i never fell and i alway wore/wear a harness!