Scott (Dreamer1) referenced the Baker tree stand in another post, and it got me thinking about how far bowhunting and technology has advanced.
For those of you who were born after 1970, you probably don't remember or have never seen a Baker Tree stand. My earliest recollection is from the late 70's when my Uncle Ed gave me his Baker stand so I could start hunting out of trees on public land in LA. I was ten at the time.
There was no hand climbing attachment, you just hugged and shimmied up a tree as best you could. Also, the platform base was made out of plywood and there are countless stories of guys falling thru the stand. If you stood to close to the tree when turning around, the stand would lose grip and slide down the tree.
Back in the day, we never used safety harnesses or safety belts. Just climb 20' and take your chances. The should have called it the "Widowmaker" . Also, you never sat down, you stood up the entire time b/c there was no seat
below are some pics of early tree stands and a funny recap about the Baker which I copy/pasted from the AT archives..... enjoy as this will make several of us feel old
home made stand (probably mid 80's era)
1980's baker tree stand
1974 baker tree stand
(copy/paste)
When I started using a Baker I was 15 and it was nineteen hunnert an 7-8...... A few memories...... and lessons.
1 - "Baker Shoulder". It is major bruising on the front and back of the carry shoulder. The iron "v" that went around the tree is also how you carried it on your shoulder. One stumble at a fast walk while carrying the stand gave you "Baker Shoulder" for the rest of the season.
2 - "Baker Rash" was found on your chest and your forearms. It was an easy way to tell just how serious a hunter you were talking to. I carry scars on my de-nippled chest to this day. The burn scars on my forearms did however grip the tree better than smooth skin so I was able to 'brake' a slide quicker..............
3 - The "Baker Slide and Dash". There is some up side to the "Baker Slide" and that is when it's in combined with the "dash". When I was a younger man I was known to enjoy a bit of bourbon on New Years eve and on into New Years morning. I'd sober up, take a nap and then go hunting..... Well a night of meatballs and whiskey tended to 'smooth' things up in my gut. One New Year day it was snowing and sleeting when a few minutes before light I got to my tree with my rumbling stomach. I climbed up the tree successfully. At the crack of dawn with my poncho covered in snow and sleet I realized that I needed to have both feet on the ground along with my britches PRONTO!........ Without the hindrance of a safety belt or a pull rope I was able to quickly slip my boots into the straps on the Baker, wrap my arms around the tree with the bow in one hand, lifting my feet I had descended from my 30' perch within milliseconds ("Baker Slide"). Just before the stand came to a brutal halt, in one motion, I snatched my feet from the straps, bailed out, landed softly, broke into a controlled sprint (the "dash") all the while pulling the TP from it's dry bag and dropping my drawers................ A properly executed "Baker Slide and Dash" from the point at which lower intestinal is acknowledged to glorious relief can be executed in .236 seconds. My personal record. A "Baker Slide and Dash" that can NOT be executed in less than 1 minute gives a whole different meaning to the "Baker Slide".
4 - Back when the Baker reigned supreme. You couldn't let smooth, hard barked Hickory trees grow at prime stand locations. Because you were eventually going to climb that tree in the rain and regret it! You had to take a chain saw to them or the temptation would be tooooo much.
5 - You could run and gun with a Baker unlike with todays stands........ Because I didn't use a hand climber, a safety belt, a seat or a pull rope I could be out of a tree and on the move in literally a minute. (see "Baker Slide"). Granted sometimes it was unplanned!
6 - I learned to double check to see if a tropical storm with 50 mph winds had shifted course. Sitting in a little poplar tree whipping around while watching trees blow over will make you pay attention to weather forecasts. I learned that sitting 30' feet up in a small poplar the tree will easily bend over to where you can see the entire length of the tree UNDER you! I was tempted to merely slide off the platform when the tree bent over since I was only about 18 inches off the ground............
7 - Not everyone knows that a Baker stand could slip off your feet when you are about 35 feet in the air and fall all the way to the ground without ONCE touching the tree. That is how I learned NOT to lean my bow against the tree I'm climbing!
8 - 70 feet is TOOOOO high with a Baker........... A deer 20 yards from the base of the tree and down hill seems far away when you are 70 (seventy) feet up.
9 - Shooting guns that kick hard, like 3" 12 gauge with buckshot, out of Baker Mighty Mite will teach you to use proper shooting form.......... One handed shots behind the stand with a big gun while kneeling WILL have you praying for at least a second or 2. Feet apart, lean into the shot and preferably have the tree behind you...........
10 - Some folks never get comfortable in a Baker even when they "climb" to their idea of 20 feet and you can still hand them their gun.......
For those of you who were born after 1970, you probably don't remember or have never seen a Baker Tree stand. My earliest recollection is from the late 70's when my Uncle Ed gave me his Baker stand so I could start hunting out of trees on public land in LA. I was ten at the time.
There was no hand climbing attachment, you just hugged and shimmied up a tree as best you could. Also, the platform base was made out of plywood and there are countless stories of guys falling thru the stand. If you stood to close to the tree when turning around, the stand would lose grip and slide down the tree.
Back in the day, we never used safety harnesses or safety belts. Just climb 20' and take your chances. The should have called it the "Widowmaker" . Also, you never sat down, you stood up the entire time b/c there was no seat
below are some pics of early tree stands and a funny recap about the Baker which I copy/pasted from the AT archives..... enjoy as this will make several of us feel old
home made stand (probably mid 80's era)
1980's baker tree stand
1974 baker tree stand
(copy/paste)
When I started using a Baker I was 15 and it was nineteen hunnert an 7-8...... A few memories...... and lessons.
1 - "Baker Shoulder". It is major bruising on the front and back of the carry shoulder. The iron "v" that went around the tree is also how you carried it on your shoulder. One stumble at a fast walk while carrying the stand gave you "Baker Shoulder" for the rest of the season.
2 - "Baker Rash" was found on your chest and your forearms. It was an easy way to tell just how serious a hunter you were talking to. I carry scars on my de-nippled chest to this day. The burn scars on my forearms did however grip the tree better than smooth skin so I was able to 'brake' a slide quicker..............
3 - The "Baker Slide and Dash". There is some up side to the "Baker Slide" and that is when it's in combined with the "dash". When I was a younger man I was known to enjoy a bit of bourbon on New Years eve and on into New Years morning. I'd sober up, take a nap and then go hunting..... Well a night of meatballs and whiskey tended to 'smooth' things up in my gut. One New Year day it was snowing and sleeting when a few minutes before light I got to my tree with my rumbling stomach. I climbed up the tree successfully. At the crack of dawn with my poncho covered in snow and sleet I realized that I needed to have both feet on the ground along with my britches PRONTO!........ Without the hindrance of a safety belt or a pull rope I was able to quickly slip my boots into the straps on the Baker, wrap my arms around the tree with the bow in one hand, lifting my feet I had descended from my 30' perch within milliseconds ("Baker Slide"). Just before the stand came to a brutal halt, in one motion, I snatched my feet from the straps, bailed out, landed softly, broke into a controlled sprint (the "dash") all the while pulling the TP from it's dry bag and dropping my drawers................ A properly executed "Baker Slide and Dash" from the point at which lower intestinal is acknowledged to glorious relief can be executed in .236 seconds. My personal record. A "Baker Slide and Dash" that can NOT be executed in less than 1 minute gives a whole different meaning to the "Baker Slide".
4 - Back when the Baker reigned supreme. You couldn't let smooth, hard barked Hickory trees grow at prime stand locations. Because you were eventually going to climb that tree in the rain and regret it! You had to take a chain saw to them or the temptation would be tooooo much.
5 - You could run and gun with a Baker unlike with todays stands........ Because I didn't use a hand climber, a safety belt, a seat or a pull rope I could be out of a tree and on the move in literally a minute. (see "Baker Slide"). Granted sometimes it was unplanned!
6 - I learned to double check to see if a tropical storm with 50 mph winds had shifted course. Sitting in a little poplar tree whipping around while watching trees blow over will make you pay attention to weather forecasts. I learned that sitting 30' feet up in a small poplar the tree will easily bend over to where you can see the entire length of the tree UNDER you! I was tempted to merely slide off the platform when the tree bent over since I was only about 18 inches off the ground............
7 - Not everyone knows that a Baker stand could slip off your feet when you are about 35 feet in the air and fall all the way to the ground without ONCE touching the tree. That is how I learned NOT to lean my bow against the tree I'm climbing!
8 - 70 feet is TOOOOO high with a Baker........... A deer 20 yards from the base of the tree and down hill seems far away when you are 70 (seventy) feet up.
9 - Shooting guns that kick hard, like 3" 12 gauge with buckshot, out of Baker Mighty Mite will teach you to use proper shooting form.......... One handed shots behind the stand with a big gun while kneeling WILL have you praying for at least a second or 2. Feet apart, lean into the shot and preferably have the tree behind you...........
10 - Some folks never get comfortable in a Baker even when they "climb" to their idea of 20 feet and you can still hand them their gun.......
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