I've been hunting for years, and maybe I just pay more attention now or worry more, but it seems like to me a climbing stand, put in a pine, makes a whole lot more racket than just about anything. I just don't see, after all the racket they make going up, why anyone even sees a deer hunting out of them. Btw before u ask mine is a cougar claw. Any tips or examples on why this may not be so?

When I climb in a Summit I am quieter than when I was walking in.

I have had deer come in on a string to the sound of my climber. More than once. Scratching up and down a pine tree is a normal sound in the woods IMO. As long as you aren't making any metallic clanging noises I would not worry about it a bit.

If you're making THAT much noise, you either need to slow down or figure out what you are doing wrong...

Spray foam for hollow tubes and cable covers, FlexSeal rubber spray for platform, rubber heat shrink over cables, and felt tape for rails, etc are all things that can eliminate any metal noise. But to me, the most important thing you can do to climb quietly is to take your time and just be quiet. Don't drag the stand across the bark. Pivot it clear of the tree, slowly raise it and repeat slowly.

As long as the metal isn't singing around you're fine. It just sounds like squirrels running around.

I hunt out of my climber 99% of the time. I take care not make any metal on metal sounds and I don’t think the sound of bark being scraped bothers the deer to much. If it does that’s just a price I’ll have to pay for using a climber. IMO the benefits far out weigh the negatives

It's probably me being in too much of a hurry really and I think these cold mornings make it a little worse. 27 layers of clothes probably don't make matters any better either though lol. I think I'll also try using the spray foam and etc. I've read that before but I've not attempted that yet

Climbed a pine the other day and 2 minutes later had deer 40 yards from me, just be as quite as possible and yes it may spook some but so be it

^^^^^^^Same here. I had an older climber that had the metal blades on it that I sold recently. I've climbed with in on public land in the dark and had a deer within 20 yards of me 2 minutes after I'd climbed to my max height.

A cold quiet morning deer can hear a long ways off and I am sure stay away in an area with higher pressure. Might as well stay home in some places instead of educating them on location. Sneak in on days with windy conditions or in bad weather.

Take your time, don't get in a hurry. Best advice I can give for safety and for stealth.

I only use a climber unless I’m invited to hunt somewhere that has stands already in place. The key is to get in early and take your time. If I’m hunting close to where I think deer are bedded I’ll try to set my stand up the day before. You’ll make noise climbing but the set up is where I make the most noise, not the climb. Ultimately I don’t think it bothers the deer as bad as we think. Noise doesn’t travel like many folks think either.

I have considered using a lock on in one spot on public ground for next season. It is super close to a bedding area but waaaaaay off the beaten path. Only thing I would pack in or out would be a couple of climbing sticks. Still not 100% sure if I’ll go this route due to the time it’ll take to get this done preseason and it being on AL public ground (not super convenient due to my current location).

I have always felt the same way as OP about pines and climbers but I will say this.

Think about how loud two squirrels chasing each other on a pine tree can be!

Noises like this are normal. Obviously the quieter you can be the better.

Ive killed big deer literally minutes after getting set down into a climber. I think sometimes they think its another buck rubbing the tree and come check it out. Killed a 130+ 8 point 5 minutes after sitting down just this year. He pretty much walked right to me

Seen a deer while in a pine tree, in Alabama? You are kidding right. Most of the deer I've killed in Bama were from a climber in a pine. Especially bow kills. I've had one lay nearby and watch me climb. I didn't see the deer until I was 12 ft up. You're just looking for an excuse for why you aren't seeing deer. Unless it's metal on metal, I doubt they know what the sound is. Haven't you heard the noise two or more squirrels make playing chase in a pine? I never made that much noise climbing. Hunt safe

no feeling more secure than getting up the perfect size pine tree in a summit, digging those teeth in, and tightening up the Third Hand Archery stabilizer straps.

I hunt almost exclusively from a climber and my results are similar to those listed above. Can't tell you how many times I've had deer around me before my rear-end even got warm in the seat after climbing. I've climbed many pines and have had several bucks come running up to me shortly after climbing, obviously they heard the noise and thought it was another deer. I would do your best to keep noise to a minimum (avoid metal-on-metal clanking sounds) but the noise made from the treestand scraping against pine bark while climbing is insignificant.

Same here



Go into the woods earlier than you normally would so you arent in a hurry.

most relaxed I am during the week, I think.