A Season in the Tree Saddle: Worth it?

Written By JD Larson

You can’t have adventure without risk.

I’ve known risk in a lot of life's arenas. However, the risk required in purchasing gear for a new hobby always sneaks up on me. This was my situation last year when I decided to get back into a high school hobby - bow hunting whitetail in the midwest. It came time for me to make some strategic investments in gear. I had to answer the question: “what will I hunt out of?” 

The options seemed endless: blind, fixed stand, hang and hunt stand…” Out of the fog emerged “saddle hunting.” No, not from horseback, from a tree saddle.  Something about it caught my attention. It seemed both absurd and pretty dope. It felt like my inner child who loves to climb trees, and the wanna-be woods ninja in me locked eyes… nodded.. and said, “hell yes!” 

My Tethrd Phantom Kit.

What is Saddle Hunting? 

Saddle hunting has existed on the fringes of whitetail hunting for over twenty years. Diehard hunters adapted equipment from the tree climbing scene of the California redwood forest. Tree saddles have evolved from fringe DIY to mainstream hunting scene with the emergence of companies like Tethrd and Latitude bringing kits to market. At its core, it's simply a different way to be in a tree. Instead of sitting on some sort of stand, you’re standing (well, leaning) on a smaller platform, tethered to the tree with a climbing apparatus that includes the saddle itself and a tether. Honestly, I thought it was weird at first glance. But, the more I investigated saddle hunting, the more I was convinced I had to take the risk.  

A season in the saddle

I went with a Tethrd phantom saddle. I made some additions (SYS haulers) and some modifications to the rope system and put it to the test for a solid season. After many hours, numerous trees, two different states, two different hunting styles (archery and firearm), and two deer in the freezer… here’s what I learned. 

What I loved

Ultralightweight mobility. I invested in a tree saddle for mobility, and it delivered. Most of my hunting is on public land that doesn’t afford me the option of permanent stands. I needed lightweight versatility. I needed to walk deep into a tract of land 1-2 miles, often to an area I’d never set foot on, and be able to set up in just about any tree I found. The Phantom had the answer for all those obstacles. It packs in easy (mine roles up to about the size of a small dodge ball with ropes and small items in it) and slides on quietly. With the linesmen and tether rope system, I can even get in trees with numerous branches (unlike a climber system). 

Shootability: Before buying the saddle, I asked myself, “how the hell am I going to shoot out of that thing.” After a year of shooting out of it, I feel more deadly than ever. The saddle gives you two key advantages. First, you can anchor your weight in the saddle and tree and swing your bow around for an almost 360 shooting radius. Second, you can hide behind a tree. This advantage came in clutch for me. When I shot my buck this year, I was actually hanging in a tree saddle behind an existing tree stand! From previous hunts in that stand, I noticed how the deer silhouetted me and spooked. I used my saddle to set up with the tree between me and where I thought the buck would come. He came. I drew behind the tree without him seeing me, swiveled around slowly, and put my first saddle buck in the books. 

Safety: It sounds dangerous to be climbing a tree with just a saddle and some climbing sticks (or sticks in my case). As it trunks out it's actually much safer than the traditional method. You are always (if you do it correctly) attached to the tree, with a linesmen rope for ascension or a tether. 

What I don’t love…but have learned to live with

Saddle hunting is not without its drawbacks. First, comfort. The saddle takes some adjustments to get comfortable. Comfort in a saddle is not a matter of if, it’s a matter of how and when. You need to find the settings (bridge height, tether length, knee pads, etc.) that work for you. This is part of the advantage of the highly adjustable phantom system over other systems. Just like jumping on a bike for the first ride of the season, it takes some time for the body to adjust to the saddle. I invested in a back strap for longer sits and a good pair of knee pads. I put long 5-6 hours sit in the saddle. After settling into the saddle, it’s comparable, if not better, than the stand sits I’m used to. 

It can be a noisy and sweaty trip up the tree if you are unprepared. It’s more work to get up the tree in a saddle than it is to slip into a blind or climb a simple ladder. That’s the sacrifice you make for ultralight mobility. It takes some practice to get in quietly and without sweating too much. Each hunter must find the accession system that works for them (sticks, one sticking, etc.), and the layering system for not overheating in the process. Additionally, some investment in a good rope system, including items like the Madrock safeguard and Ropemen, go a long way in increasing ease of use.

Final Thoughts: I found what I was chasing. 

I have two words to describe my final thoughts on the tree saddle - “Yes, dude!”

These words shot out of my mouth when my hunting buddy downed an 11-point buck on public land, on a piece of land we’d never hunted before, out of a tree we’d never been in, out of a tree saddle right under mine. It's hard to convey that elation, the euphoria, the triumph. It’s what hunters like me seek in every challenge we pursue. The tree saddle made moments like that possible for me last season. The tree saddle gave me the adventure I was looking for when I decided to get back into hunting. The saddle comes with its quarks, but if it's adventure you seek, investing in a tree saddle is worth the risk. 

Gear List

My Saddle Set up ( My ascension system is called “one sticking” see stick and )

JD Larson
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