I went and carried my ladder stand off the Rockaway River WMA this morning. Its been out there since the last day of permit shotgun.

Saw some tracks right where I park (15 yards from the house)... then some more about 40 yards from my stand (same as when I whacked that buck)... then some more tracks walking right under my stand! The deer do that on purpose!

I have a hang on stand with 10 quality steps and a pull rope that has been in the tree since September and it is still there, I hunted out of it this morning with my flintlock. It is on private property but a good number of guys sneak thru trying to push the deer out quite often, the property is not posted, so they feel welcome somewhat. I always tie the rope a certain way to the lower steps when I leave, so I can tell if someone has squatted for a hunt in my stand. I doubt anyone would think to memorize the way it was tied. No body has touched it. We always hear of the thieves but never the number of honest guys that are out there. Or maybe I am just lucky. I'll fetch it out of the tree in the next few weeks.

Consider yourselves lucky. Several years ago I had two portable stands stolen in back to back seasons. It made me sick to my stomach. I almost lost a 3rd. Some guy tried to shoot my stand out of the tree by shooting the strap that holds the stand to the tree. Fortunately, the stand was also hanging by a "T" screw. Now I primarily hunt out of a climber so it comes out of the woods with me when the hunt is over. If I know I will soon hunt the same location again I leave it, but I've invested in a quality tree stand lock to secure it to the tree.

I fell asleep in my chair this morning in the woods.When I woke up the first thing I did is check weather not someone stoled my pants. thats how bad it is around here

I built a new one a few years ago with treated lumber, put it up on a Sat. afternoon, went back on Thurs walked right by the location, and said wait a minute thats where I put up a tree stand , and it was gone, not a trace of it . Put the word out to a local hunting club, nothing, just vanished in thin air. Was pi$$ed.... Now with the price of lumer it would cost about $120. to build a decent stand, just go to Dick's Sporting goods and buy a metal one for $99.

I painted my ladder stand black then went over it with a rusty brown. It looks like the stand is 100 years old and about to fall apart. I paint right over the dirt on it so it looks like layers of metal are rusting off. Nobody has tried to take it yet! It doesn't look worth the effort! My father had a stand about 150-200 yards away and someone tried to get it but couldn't get through the cable lock with thier knife! Little stab marks in the rubber coating and some minor cuts in the cable was all they could muster!

nj hunting and stolen stands seem to go hand in hand. I have averageds one lost stand per year - for the last 5 years - and that is all on private property. Even with no snow, it fairly easy to see when someone has been in your stand -

I always tie my rope a different way, or bend a trees step sidways or in one directin -no one ever knows, and it tells me everytime.

People see big bucks, they park their car and walk in a hunt. If they find the stand - all the better for them. You have to press charges. I have a direct line to the game warden in our sector. I have caught people in my stand, and called the police and game warden while the guy was still in the tree. 2 tickets and he lost the rite to hunt for 2 years. no more simply asking him to leave. IF you do that, he will be back.

you get more people gun hunting - but the bow hunters are sneekier

Like I said, I rig my rope so I know if someone was in it. My Dad was SITTING in his ladder stand one morning when a guy came up from behind and turned to start climbing up the ladder. It was still somewhat dark and dreary and my Dad has alot of branches stuffed in and around the top for cover. The interloper was in a hurry to leave as all you could see was his behind running over the hill and my Dad yelling obscenities at him. We figured out that this guy would sneak in during the week for a hunt, thinking the owner of the stand would be working. He didn't realize my pops is retired and loves to hunt weekday morns. The guy been there several times as my Dad had noticed his rope was just hanging loose several times. He rigs it a certain way so he can tell if someone has squatted.

I have a couple ladder stands and usually have one setup all season long in different places so I can hunt depending on the wind direction. When I get down for the night I loosen the saftey strap ratchet buckel then climb down and pull the support that runs back to the tree in the middle of the ladder and take it with me. More than once I've come back to it to find someone tried to climb it. 2 yrs ago there was snoew the last week of archery and I found where some sneak fell flat on his back out of the stand while climbing up as the top shifted. Hope he was hurt real bad,ain't my land it's on but SGL can't sue me.