[Gabowman]

IMO I think any camo pattern is better than nothing but I also feel that which tree you pic is WAY more important. In a bare tree without cover stuck out in the middle of the woods you'll get spotted much more quickly than one with green cover all around a tree tucked back away from the trails a bit. Being 25-30 yards back away from the deer signs isnt that far for crossbows.

Just do your homework figuring out the deer's patterns and pick a tree with cover. Then pay close attention on how youre getting to/from your stand. And remember.....be still! Ha!

 

[Inspector98]

Predator Fall Gray, ASAT and now WTF camo (Whitetail Forensics) are my favorites.
ASAT never really caught on since it was not designed to "catch" hunters like Real Tree and a few others.
That sh*t just flat out works! I have been using an ASAT jacket and WTF bottoms for most of this season....most times it's moving around that'll screw ya!

And yes, ALL BLACK inside a ground blind! It kills me to see these clowns all gussied up in full tilt camo inside a dark (black) pop up ground blind...
It's dark in there you dopes🙄😂

 

[Spot-on-arrow]

I use what is comfortable, quite, and try to avoid hanging out in naked trees. I guess a can of white spray paint could add snow if needed.

 

[archer36]

I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. 😏

 

[Tnmtns]

My uncle was a carpenter and would get in from work, head out in the woods in his Carhart tan pants and red flannel shirt, to go hunting. Most times he came back with a deer. He always said, hunt the wind, you don't need all that fancy stuff, LOL.

 

[rt2bowhunter]

Put a big black trash bag full of leaves in your stand when not using it. That way they are used to the blob.

Try a smallish cedar tree. Pull it up with a rope and tie it off out of your way. It gives them something to see plus gives off pretty strong scent for a very long time. You can break a limb every time you hunt and release even more. If you keep everything you wear or carry in the woods in a tote except your bow it too if you have some where. With cedar limbs in the tote. Your chances of killing an adult buck just increased a good bit. If there one around . Kinda like prescenting an old blind and leaving it out .

 

[pine marten]

The sitting still pattern?

 

[darby13]

Several years ago I used to get so frustrated when hunting from my hang-on stands, the deer would notice me standing there even when I was perfectly still. I thought how do they see me with all this great camouflage I’m wearing? I got to thinking that if the deer are color blind, I need to think black and white. I was doing a photography class at the time and I was doing some black and white photos which gave me an idea. I hung my different camo patterns on the clothes line, I lay down on the ground and took black and white pics of each one against the sky. Wow, what an eye opener, they all made a perfect silhouette against the sky.

This all happened in the early 90s when different new camouflage patterns were starting appear on the market. I started searching for a better camouflage for tree stand hunting and found one called Predator Deception. This pattern has a lot of large white patches that break up the silhouette. I took some pics of it hanging on the clothes line, I was impressed with how well it broke up the silhouette.
That was a game changer for me, I rarely got picked off except when one would catch me moving. This pattern has also been very good for ground hunting.

Now days there’s a lot of good camo patterns available, I have good luck with Kuiu’s vias camo pattern.
But I still notice a lot of hunters going to the woods with camo that has all dark shades and no white patches. The camo with larger patches of white seems to work best for me.

I have been using skyline for years and it's the best i have found they don't pay attention and if you move slowly they don't spot you up in the tree even at lower heights like 12 or 13 feet.

 

[thomaskelley]

I always have worn camo, but I’ve seen an old buddy I know that wore blue coveralls and always shot a deer.🤔

 

[Sunset]

Predator Fall Gray, ASAT and now WTF camo (Whitetail Forensics) are my favorites.
ASAT never really caught on since it was not designed to "catch" hunters like Real Tree and a few others.
That sh*t just flat out works! I have been using an ASAT jacket and WTF bottoms for most of this season....most times it's moving around that'll screw ya!

And yes, ALL BLACK inside a ground blind! It kills me to see these clowns all gussied up in full tilt camo inside a dark (black) pop up ground blind...
It's dark in there you dopes🙄😂

It makes sense because when we use to fish on the flats in the Keys for bone or tarpon we’d wear light blue shirts or white. Dad use to say, so we’d look like the sky to the fish. How about that…

 

[rt2bowhunter]

As far as camo goes if i had a favorite it because i liked it. Back when i started bowhunting we went to the army surplus store and bought woodland. Then i think there was treebark then it blew up after that and you just had to have this or that. I fell right in line lol and drank the koolaid for many years. I still wear camo because that's about the only way you can buy decent quite bow hunting clothes.

A Ghillie suit is the best camo i ever wore hunting the ground ASAT leafy wear is great and probably better for treestand hunting. Climbing isn't wise with a full ghillie suit on imo.

The main thing and here i go giving what i call a crackerjack box answer or the same old response you hear every time a lot of times your question don't even matter kinda like now lol. Is to set still or stand still. When i hunted trees i would set until i could just start to see. Then i would stand up as long as i could when i was a young man i could stand all morning. Latter on after when i got tired i would set no longer than i had to to stand again as long as i could. Reason i did that was less movement as i shot standing up. So if a deer come in i was already standing. It was only much later i even used a bow holder.

When i started getting busted or seen in the trees i went higher after i got a lock on then a climber man did killing deer get easier .

Anyway i wouldn't sweat the camo pattern. If it gives you confidence by all means use what you like. But the deer don't care one bit.

 

[Onlyaspike]

ASAT....All Season All Terrain.....best camo that I've worn period....Ever.

 

[Pic-N Stick]

I think a good set up will trump any camo pattern. If you're hunting from a blind, wear black!

I own a couple crossbows now, but I have taken all of my deer with a vertical bow (past 37 seasons). I like to have my entire body above 20' in a tree. Most of my climbing sticks are 20' and the base of my hang-on stand will be at the height & my body above that. A large diameter tree (no one calls me skinny) will help, but being within the branches or the backdrop of the other nearby trees will also help.

I would never buy my clothing based on camo pattern, but some are better than others. The laundry detergent you use is more important. You would notice the UV brighteners in some when walking past a trail camera at night.

I have camo jackets that I can't wear because of the noise they make when it is cold. I have others that are awesome. The camo pattern itself is somewhat irrelevant to me. I really could care less. I would take a flannel shirt over a noisy or improperly washed piece of camo.

The old vintage Trebark camo would probably still be my favorite. I would pick that over anything on the market today.

Yes! Elevation, branches and backdrop and the lack of UV. Probably a decade ago I was wearing mix and match camo. When I saw a trail cam pic with the IR flash on, half my body was glowing. I still use the UV killer spray on my clothes and equipment.

 

[Bowwild]

I am very picky when it comes to picking a tree for tree stands. I have many large cedars on my farm. These are my favourite trees for hanging stands because of the cover. After that a limby hardwood or hardwood with multiple boles. Of course this means I'm mostly hunting the edges of cover rather than interior woodlands, but deer like edge as well.

 

[No1Rackmaster]

i never thought too much of any camo until i landed on real tree edge. Its the first time i ever had mature deer look at me and just keep going with out any head bobbiing or a foot stomp. This has been the case multiple times with deer as close a about 20 feet up to 30 yards away. I became a believer with this camo in the north eastern hard woods and swamp areas.
The environment you hunt and amount of light your sitting in has lots to do with this too as well as tree stand back ground cover. The mentioned camo here was with no back grounds cover just in a ladder stand at 16 feet or on the ground on very low stool.

 

[Iron Duke]

I put ... a skirt that you can't see through on all my stands. That takes care of everything from mid-chest on down, including movement. Above that camo or solid doesn't really matter much. Mostly greys, blacks and/or brown solids on torso, black or tan gloves, always a hood and partial face covering. When it gets cold, I use Sitka Incinerator because it's warm and quiet. Last couple years I've seen a noticeable difference using a Ghillie head covering only. Not sure why, but it does seem to make a difference.

 

[dynamo61]

Best camo i have found unless your in a lot of evergreen trees. Is snow camo with a few limbs in the pattern

I agree, especially when leaves have fallen.

 

[dynamo61]

Makes sense to choose your camo according to the terrrain, or trees if in a tree blind.

 

[in. pred]

""I think when most deer look up and see a big blob in a tree they notice it’s not natural looking. They definitely know their surroundings and can detect changes very quickly and accurately. Good camo can help but you are still a blob in a tree that wasn’t there last time they were.
Bill ""

there was another thread about leaving ground blind in woods for deer to get used to. maybe we should make some dummies to put in our stands? lol i bet it would get the CO out to have a look if called as poacher. lmao

 

[Iron Duke]

""I think when most deer look up and see a big blob in a tree they notice it’s not natural looking. They definitely know their surroundings and can detect changes very quickly and accurately. Good camo can help but you are still a blob in a tree that wasn’t there last time they were.
Bill ""

there was another thread about leaving ground blind in woods for deer to get used to. maybe we should make some dummies to put in our stands? lol i bet it would get the CO out to have a look if called as poacher. lmao