DIY Sportsman | Climbing Methods Update - Thoughts after the Season

Bobby and Garrett have certainly spent time discussing various climbing methods in past podcasts; however, this time Garrett goes more in depth, reflecting on various methods used now that the bulk of this year's season is now over. While many mobile hunters are totally satisfied with 4 climbing sticks as their end-all-be-all method for climbing trees, there are plenty of guys who push the envelope. Some climb with a single stick. Some climb with nothing but rope and arborist techniques. Others climb with spikes or gaffs. Each could potentially have an argument made in favor of it.

This year in particular, new climbing aider methods to use in conjunction with Wild Edge steps really started to make waves throughout the mobile hunting community. With the ability to bounce ideas off of one another on forums and social media, mobile hunters came up with a couple very unique ways to climb upwards of 20 feet with as few as three steps, equaling close to three pounds. These methods look really good on paper, but are they as good in reality?

Garrett tried a multistep aider in conjunction with steps throughout most of late October into November. In addition, he used his trusty climbing sticks early in the year and again in late season. Reflecting on the season allowed him to make some honest insights about the pros and cons of each style of system, and when one might be better than the other for speed, safety, ease of use, and portability.