By Alex Comstock
All across america, deer hunters alike are hanging tree stands this time of the year. Hang on stands, ladder stands, prepping climber stand trees, you name it - it's going up. Part of deer hunting that I love so much is how we can all do things differently, use different gear, or have different opinions on certain things all in search of mainly the same goal - to successfully hunt deer.
One of those opinions that differ among hunters is what to use in regards to get up a tree when using a hang on stand. For bowhunters, I'd argue a hang on stand is the most popular type of treestand. I own a lot of them, and use both screw in steps and climbing sticks. Today, I wanted to analyze the difference between them, and what might work best for you.
Screw in Steps
Advantages: Screw in Steps have a couple major advantages in my mind. First of all, they are small and you can just throw them in your backpack. I actually find this most useful when going in to hang multiple stands in a day way back on public land. If I am spending a lot of time scouting where I want a stand, have to walk a long ways, and don't want to be hauling around climbing sticks, I might bring in screw in steps for those particular stand setups.
Another advantage I've found using screw in steps is that they are more inconspicuous. I actually value this the most when hunting public land, as to not draw attention to other hunters. Usually on public, I'm not where other hunters are spending time, but in the rare occurrence that there is somebody back where I am, I don't want my treestand stolen. These can be harder to see from a distance, and could potentially help prevent theft.
Those are just a couple of my favorite reasons to use screw in steps, but why don't I use them all of the time?
Disadvantages: For the couple reasons that I do use screw in steps, there are a few disadvantages that I don't like about them. My biggest dislike about screw in steps is how long it sometimes takes to actually screw them in and get all set up in the tree. Maybe I'm just bad at it, but I don't like having to screw in a step, go to step up and realize that I screwed it in way too high or not high enough. I then unscrew the step, and screw it back in somewhere that is a more comfortable spot to step up. This can be time consuming, and sometimes I simply just get annoyed when using these.
Another disadvantage of these is safety. The number one thing that you should be concerned about when hanging a treestand is safety. These can get a little dicey if it's raining/snowing and they're slick. Also, it can be somewhat tough to climb in the dark, or climb down after an evening sit. Simply put - with these you need to be careful. I know people that won't hunt a stand if I've got screw in steps put in, because they don't find them safe at all.
Climbing Sticks
When using hang on stands, the other popular option is to use climbing sticks. When I am talking about climbing sticks, I am referring to the small sections where you usually put somewhere between three and five sections of climbing sticks to get up a tree. These are my preference, but that doesn't mean they are for everyone. Here's how I view the advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages: First of all, once you get good at putting up climbing sticks, you can do it awfully quick. I do a lot of hang and hunts, or running and gunning as some people call it, and I like to use a light stand and climbing sticks. If you are doing a hang and hunt setup, you can strap the climbing sticks to your stand, and then develop a system to hang them up one by one without having to go back down to the base of the tree at all.
Another pro that I like about climbing sticks is the ease of use. There are some trees that can be tough to screw in steps, but that's something you don't have to worry about with climbing sticks. Any tree with the right size, you can simply throw the strap around the tree, tighten it down, step on it to secure it, and keep scaling the tree.
Lastly, just how the screw in steps safety was a disadvantage, climbing sticks present the advantage of being a lot safer in my mind. They can still become slick during a rain or snow, but there is a lot more structure to grab on to and step on to. Some even provide a grip on the top of each section. They are also much easier to see in the dark for when you climb up in the morning and down in the evening.
Disadvantages: Climbing sticks can at times be difficult to use if you're trying to get multiple stands up, and you've got to walk a long ways to do so. At times they can be a lot to haul, simply just because they weigh more, and they don't fit in your backpack like screw in steps.
The other disadvantage that comes to mind is that every once in awhile there are those gnarly trees that have big limbs going every which way that provide a lot of great cover, but you can't fit climbing sticks in between all of the limbs. These types of trees are great for screw in steps, but if you only brought climbing sticks, you either have to come back, or will have to get a stand up in a different tree that might not be as good.
Conclusion
Like I said in the opening, almost every deer hunter has a different opinion on something when it comes to deer hunting. The debate between screw in steps and climbing sticks is continually ongoing. My advice to you? Try them both, and figure out which one works best for you in certain situations.
By Kaleb Comstock
I believe scouting is the single most important thing a person can do to help themselves be more successful in the fall. In this blog I am going to dive a little deeper into scouting and what I’m exactly doing and looking for as I scout. I am going to talk about how important and how to use online maps as well as discuss what I am looking for when I have my boots on the ground.
By Jeremy Lopez
Elk hunting is an exhilarating experience that challenges both your physical fitness and mental fortitude. Hunting elk with a bow in hand in the Rocky Mountains of the West is on every bowhunters bucket list. And if it’s not, it should be. But for first-timers, it can be a daunting task. But don’t worry, whether you’re chasing the thrill of the rut or hoping to bag your first elk, there are a few key tips that will help make your first elk hunt more successful and enjoyable. Here are my top 5 elk hunting tips for beginners!
By Alex Comstock
When it comes to bowhunting, there are countless releases on the market. Deciding what one to put to use can be somewhat intimidating. For a lot of people, testing all the different kinds of releases isn’t practical due to time restraints, etc.
By Alex Comstock
When it comes to saddle hunting, a question I get time and time again is how I set up a saddle and do it in one trip up the tree. One of the things I particularly love about saddle hunting is the mobile nature of it, and I can get up trees quickly and efficiently.
By Alex Comstock
When it comes to scouting, there are numerous things you should be thinking about and looking for. When it comes to scouting flatland, it can be rather challenging to not have terrain features to use to your advantage.
By Kaleb Comstock
The 2023 season was shaping up to be far different than I expected/hoped it to be. This past summer in Nebraska, we encountered our third straight drought year, a deer hunters worst nightmare. With a drought, you always run the risk for EHD. Despite a drought, my summer trail cameras looked beyond promising at the river farm with multiple shooters including bucks I called Splitz and Half Rack. Two 5.5 year olds pushing 160” and a handful of great 3 year olds. The anticipation was high going into the season.
By Kaleb Comstock
Running trail cams is such an exciting thing for me. The anticipation of a new giant showing up on a trail camera never goes away. Trail cameras can make your hopes as high as the sky and can also leave you feeling pretty much hopeless for shooting a mature deer depending on what your camera is catching. Late September and early October, in my opinion, is one of the most frustrating times to run trail cameras and my cameras slow down significantly. I think this happens for a few reasons, one being deer have now shed their velvet and are moving into their fall ranges. Over the years, I have learned some things that have helped me get more pictures during this time period.
By Kaleb Comstock
As we turn the calendar into late May, many states still have their turkey seasons open. Here in Nebraska, our season is open until May 31st. Hunting late season birds is a complete 180 compared to hunting early season turkeys. In the past week, I was able to fill my second, and last tag in Nebraska as well as having multiple close calls.
By Kaleb Comstock
Growing up in Nebraska, I’ve been blessed to be able to hunt in what I believe to be one of the best turkey hunting states in the country. Every year, the anticipation ramps up to start chasing gobblers in the spring. It is one of my all time favorite things to do. Over the years and hundreds of hunts and too many encounters to count, I have learned a lot when it comes to chasing turkeys. In this blog, I am going to dive into three turkey hunting tips that will hopefully help you be successful in the woods this spring season.
By Alex Comstock
This winter, we filmed and produce a three part video series covering numerous topics revolving around saddle hunting. In case you didn’t catch them on our YouTube channel, I wanted to share them with you here and provide a thought on each video on what I find to be most important when it comes to saddle hunting.
By Alex Comstock
As we’ve entered into the month of March, for most of the midwest, it’s peak shed season. I would venture to say that March is the most “popular” shed hunting month for most avid antler seekers. By now, most bucks have dropped their antlers and March is typically a great time to walk for antlers because the woods haven’t come close to greening up yet, and in a lot of places there’s little to no snow.
By Kaleb Comstock
Archery can be one of the most rewarding and frustrating things to get into. I have been shooting a bow for as long as I can remember and even shot my first turkey with a bow at the age of 8 years old. I can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t shoot a bow. In this blog, I am going to dig into three tips to help beginner archers. These things will only help you out as you progress in your archery life.
By Alex Comstock
It’s crazy to me to think that in my neck of the woods, whitetail season has already been over for a month and a half. As I sit here in the middle of February, my mind is already racing and coming up with plans to make the 2023 whitetail season one of my best. The 2022 deer season was in large part one of my worst seasons ever and if you want to read more in depth on my 2022 reflection, you can HERE.
In this blog, I’m going to focus on this upcoming year and go over a month by month synopsis on what I’ll be doing to hopefully have more success than ever in 2023 and hopefully you’ll be able to glean some information from it that can help you as well.
By Kaleb Comstock
When it comes to killing big, mature, bucks, we need 150 plus acres of prime ground surrounded with unbelievable food and bedding, right? While that’s certainly my dream property, that’s definitely not the kind of property I have permission to hunt. Instead, I have access to less than 80 acres of nasty, thick river bottom that many people wouldn’t think would hold a big buck. That couldn’t be more false. I am going to dive into three things that I have learned from hunting this small property that has led me to kill four mature bucks in five seasons.
By Kaleb Comstock
Many people around the Midwest say that November 7th is their favorite day to be in the deer hunting woods. While that might be true for a lot of people, my favorite day to be in the deer hunting woods is December 4th. All jokes aside, December 4th has been a very good date for me when it comes to killing mature deer.
By Kaleb Comstock
Cellular Cameras have truly changed the way we hunt. There are many benefits of using cell cams, as well as some cons. In some states, cell cams aren’t even legal. In today’s blog, we are going to dive in and discuss the pros and cons of using cellular trail cameras.
By Kaleb Comstock
One of the most important things that I have learned as a hunter is how to internet scout. What I mean by internet scouting is I have learned how to read maps, topography, and food sources. Being a teacher, I need to maximize the number of opportunities I get to hunt which is why I rely so heavily on OnX Maps and internet scouting. OnX Maps is a piece of technology I utilize religiously, all year long no matter what I am hunting.
By Kaleb Comstock
As the calendar flips over to a new month, that means one thing, we are down to the final month before the season begins. In that final month, there is still a ton of deer work to be done. Trail cameras, treestand work, glassing and shooting my bow is what the next month has in store for me as we inch closer and closer to September 1st - opening day in Nebraska.
By Kaleb Comstock
As we turn the calendar to July, that means one thing. We are one month closer to opening day. In Nebraska, archery season opens up on September 1st. Time is ticking on finishing up our summer prep work to get prepared for the season. This year has us excited as we are tackling another new piece of property. A property we have high expectations for, the property we call “Plan B”. I picked up permission on Plan B in December of 2021.
By Kaleb Comstock
When I first got into hunting as a little boy, turkey hunting is where my roots laid. I can remember being a little boy going turkey hunting with my dad and following his every move, not really knowing what I was doing, I was just happy to be there. I will always remember the first bird I ever shot with my bow at the age of 8 years old. I remember that very first bird I called in all on my own. Turkey hunting has provided me with countless memories that will last a lifetime. As I have gotten older, my passion for turkey hunting has only grown. Throughout the years as I’ve gotten older, I have learned how to use what I learned from turkey hunting and put that towards becoming a better deer hunter. To me, watching a big tom coming straight down the pipe, full strut, spitting and drumming is equivalent to that 150” buck reading the script and walking straight down the trail.
One of the biggest mistakes people make shed hunting is looking for big full antlers with tines sticking up in the middle of deer trails. Truth is, that’s not reality 95% of the time. You pretty much have to “train” your eyes to spot antlers.
By Alex Comstock
As I write this blog post in mid-July, I’m coming off a few days of vacation. During vacation, I make it a priority not to work, as it’s easy for me to work on “vacation” as all I need is my phone to work in many cases. One thing I still found myself doing though throughout the last few days, as I do it almost every day this time of year is to open up my OnX hunt app and pour over maps all over. This past week, I was spending most of my time looking at our new property in Nebraska. Team member Kaleb Comstock and I have gotten access to quite possibly what could shape up to be the best deer hunting property I’ve ever had access to. Time will tell for sure, but based on what I believe, it’s going to be really good.
By Alex Comstock
It’s been awhile since I’ve come out with a new blog post. When WhitetailDNA first started 5 years ago, I had been publishing multiple blog posts per week. As the years went on, I transitioned to focusing most of my attention on YouTube, and publishing as many new videos as possible. As I did that, blog posts fell to the wayside for the most part. From here on out, I’m aiming to get back into publishing new blog posts weekly while I continue to pump out YouTube videos. So, whether you enjoy to watch videos or read (or both!) there will be the best of both worlds. Today, I want to focus on five summer tips for deer hunters and some things you can be doing over the next few months to help benefit what you accomplish in the fall.
By Alex Comstock
Today, I’m going to cover some underrated spots to locate antlers. In the last blog post, I covered some go-to shed hunting areas (which you can read HERE). The go-to spots are great, but these underrated spots can surely produce as well. So let’s jump into them.
By Alex Comstock
Wow, it’s been roughly six months since I’ve written a blog post here on WhitetailDNA. That’s pretty crazy, given that at one time, this was a site where I produced almost daily blog posts. Recently though, I’ve been giving most of my attention to my YouTube channel, where I’ve been producing weekly videos. If you want to go check those out, be sure to visit the YouTube channel HERE. This year, I’ll continue to produce weekly videos on the channel, but I’m going to get back to written content as well. You can look for new blog posts weekly.
By Alex Comstock
It’s amazing to me just how much trail cameras have developed over the years. From film, to digital, to now where a trail camera can snap a photo and seconds later you can be viewing that photo on your cell phone. If you take a second to stop and think about it, it’s fairly mind blowing. There can be some controversy though, over cellular trail cameras and for good reason. We’ll talk more about them this upcoming season, but today, I wanted to focus on three benefits of using a cellular trail camera and how they can help you.
By Alex Comstock
Spring scouting is no doubt important, and it’s a part of the puzzle you must put together to help you be more successful as a deer hunter. I want to make that clear from the outset. But, with that said, I also feel that some hunters out there put too much stock into spring scouting. How? Well that’s what I’m aiming to explain in today’s blog post.
By Alex Comstock
Being that we’re now into April, for most people, shed hunting is just wrapping up as your minds are probably turning to Turkey hunting. For me personally, as I look out my back deck window, all I see is snow still covering my backyard. Up here in Northern Minnesota, I’m typically a few weeks to a month behind most of the midwest when it comes to spring and April is usually my best month for finding sheds. So with that, today, I’m going to bring you ten of my favorite shed hunting tips.
By Kaleb Comstock
April is here, the weather is getting nicer and you might be thinking to yourself what could I do this weekend? A lot of people say your bucks are killed in the off-season. Whitetail season is 365 for us here at WhitetailDNA. We are constantly thinking about whitetails and putting in work to make our falls as successful as possible. In today’s blog we are going to dive into three things you could be doing in the off season to make sure your fall is as successful as possible.