This past week was the 1st gun season so my weekend was spent working on my house per my wifes request. Since the public land I hunt doesn't allow bowhunters during gun season I gladly cooperated and painted and hung fixtures and installed some new appliances.

I returned to my stand after gun season this past weekend and walked out to my stand...or where my stand used to be. I looked around dumbfounded wondering how I had lost my way to my stand after only a week of not being out there. Then I looked up and saw a tree strap of mine still connected to the tree I was standing in front of. But no stand. Someone had cut my locks, stolen my stand, stolen my climbing sticks and all in all really pi$$ed me off.

For almost 2 months during bow season my stand sits out in the woods without so much of a stray footprint around her and then one week of gun season and she's gone.

What is wrong with these people. I have never been a big fan of gun deer season or those that participate in it. But now I'm convinced that ethics never enter the minds of these people.

Looks like I'm out of commision for a week or two until my new stand gets delivered. From now on I go portable. If it goes in with me it comes out with me. Lesson learned.

And if the jerk who stole my stand is reading this...I certainly would hate to think of you falling and breaking your neck, so be careful...jerk!

I know how you feel, IT PPPP's me off too when that happens.. You get some REAL SLOB hunter during GUN season.. You know, those guys that blow the dust off their rifle, throw on their Orange Jump Suit, Head for the woods and call themselves a "Hunter".. Plus, they buy all the new gimicks on the market... Kinda Funny, I look at them when I see them, and think to myself, These firetruckers have No CLUE..!!

The bow hunting world has more than it's fair share of slobs and thieves too , guys .
Try a narrower brush next time ...

Next time get a better lock , you can find a nearly theft proof one for $20 here: Sportsman's Guide

Do a search for "tree stand lock" , it's easy to find . I bought 2 of them recently , and they beat a cable/chain and padlock any day . It uses an eyebolt and locking collar to secure the stand , so check the regs for public land use . If not allowed then use a climber , or don't leave your climbing sticks on the trunk when you leave . You might also consider climbing spikes , thieves are much lazier than you , especially when you make their job easy by giving them a means to climb .

I know how you are feeling... my home was broken into before bow season. Like a buddy of mine said, every fool with a gun hunts doing high powered rifle season. Man, there isnt nothing worse than a dang thief

That sucks David.

Although more of this type of activity happens durring firearm season I don't think it's fair to blame all gun hunters. Durring the firearm season there are a lot more people in the woods and the tactics are a lot diffrent from that of bow hunting.

Durring gun season there is a lot more wandering the woods and that combined with the added numbers of hunters generally leads to more incidents of theft. There are bad apples in both groups but the general observation of more thefts durring gun season is correct IME. The only stand I've had stolen was durring the firearm season. [:'(]

IMO both theifs and poaches should be hung on site[:@]

it is a damn shame that your stand was stolen and the culprits should be strung up by the nads. BUT TO YOU AND THE OTHER POSTERS HERE DO NOT LUMP ALL GUN HUNTERS TOGETHER . THEY ARE NOT ALL BAD AND THE THINGS POSTED HERE GIVE THE ANTIGUN PEOPLE AMMMUNITION. SO WHILE I FEEL FOR YOUR LOSS I ADMONISH YOU TO STOP PUTTING LABELS WHERE THEY DO NOT BELONG

Check the flea markets ,I see lots of stands every week at our local fleamarkets.and the sellers are not hunters

I'm not DISSING all Rifle Hunter, I rifle hunt Myself, I just dont like when a rifle hunter or BOW hunter, dusts his equipment off the night before and go hunting the next day.

Adams nailed it. I am also a gun hunter and go out out of my way if I see another hunter on post, (sometimes I like to still hunt). But while bow hunting it's straight to the stand, hunt, and back to the truck, so I seldom see another hunter. When gun season opens up it's another story. By the way, I too hunt public land and know of a couple of stands left up far back in the wooley swamps where they think they are safe. Fortunately for these hunters I leave their stands alone, and wouldn't even think of hunting out of them, let alone steal them. There's always another tree nearby. However I have left my stand at the base of my tree, Knowing full well I'll be back the next morn. I intend to go out Bow hunting Sat and leave it in the area for opening Monday. But it will be locked and camoed. If it is stoled ,well it's my fault leaving it on public land. In other words leave it if you must, but expect the worst.[:@] Hey, after all the world is not made up of perfect individuals like you and myself.

Not all people can live in the woods with their bows in hand constantly. Some are too busy, and when they get a chance to "dust off their bows and rifles" and go huntin', they jump at the chance as they should if they enjoy it. I've been that way before, with a schedule that puts huntin' on the backburner. By the way, sorry about your treestand, that's a raw deal, happened to me too.