Hunting Saddle

What a hunting saddle is, and what it isn't

A hunting saddle is the part of a saddle setup you wear. It's a seat of fabric with leg straps, and a rope called the bridge runs across the front of your hips. The tree tether clips to that bridge, and that's what holds you to the trunk at hunting height.

What it isn't: a stand. There's no frame, no seat and nothing to stand on. You still need a platform or steps for your feet and sticks or steps to climb. The rest of the system, and how a sit works from the first stick to the last, is on our saddle hunting guide.

Here's the thing. Most of the money and most of the comfort in a saddle setup live in this one piece. A bad platform is annoying. A saddle that doesn't fit makes every sit a short one. (Jess's take: "The saddle is the chair, the seatbelt and the coat hook. Buy it like it's all three.")

The table on this page lists hunting saddles, lightest first. It shows each one's type, panel design, saddle weight, weight rating, waist fit and what comes in the box, as the maker states them or, where the maker is silent, as the Amazon listing does (marked as listing values). A blank means neither lists it.

What to look at in a hunting saddle

These are the columns that decide it, in the order I'd read them.

Panel design sets the fit and the all-day comfort

Saddles come in three or four shapes, and the makers use slightly different words for them.

• Single panel: one piece of fabric, no moving parts. Field & Stream points out its width is fixed from top to bottom. One saddle maker's FAQ calls it the lightweight, simple, budget option.
• Expandable or pleated: a single panel with an extra fold of material. The same maker describes it as having an "expansion chamber" for comfort, with two settings, pleat open or pleat closed. It's comfortable but doesn't pack as small.
• Two panel: two separate pieces joined by straps or ropes. Each panel adjusts on its own, so you can tune the seat width and move pressure points during a long sit. That maker says two panels can be locked together in a compact mode for the walk in, then separated in the tree.
• Hybrid: the table's label for a design its maker describes as mixing these ideas; read the maker's own description

Game & Fish calls the saddle the heart of the system and leaves single or double panel to preference. That's fair. The saddle maker whose FAQ describes all three shapes says the independent panels help fit different body types, and that all-day sits are possible and common. So the panel question is really about your body and your hours in the tree.

Saddle weight is the saddle alone, not the kit

The Saddle weight column is the bare saddle. If a listing is a full kit and the maker only gives the weight of the whole system, that number goes in a separate Kit weight column instead. Don't compare one against the other. That's measuring a board with the sawhorse still under it.

Light is the whole pitch. A MeatEater writer puts even the lightest stands at about 15 pounds heavier than a saddle. Bowhunter's saddle-versus-hang-on debate says saddle platforms weigh a third to a half as much as most lightweight hang-ons. But the saddle is only one piece you carry, so a few ounces saved on it matter less than the platform, sticks and ropes you strap to it. The platforms are on the saddle platform page.

Weight rating is the one number not to round up

The Weight rating column is the most a maker says the saddle is built to hold. It's the one number on this page tied to your safety, so it's the one I'd never round up.

Do the arithmetic honestly. The rating has to hold you plus everything on you. Clothing, pack, water, bow and the ropes all count, and none of them weigh what they did in September. Step on the bathroom scale in November clothes with the pack on. That's the number to compare.

A saddle's rating is the saddle's alone. A platform or a rope with a different rating doesn't change it, and the lowest number in your setup is the one that counts.

Waist fit comes from the maker's chart

The Waist fit column shows the waist range each size is built for, when the maker or the listing lists it. Charts differ. One maker sells its two-panel saddle in two sizes split by waist measurement and gives both sizes the same weight rating. Another brand's numbers may not line up with that at all.

Rule of thumb: measure your waist the way the maker tells you, then check the chart for that exact saddle. If the maker gives a hips measurement or a note about clothing, follow it. You'll wear this over a lot of layers in late season, and a saddle that fits your September shirt won't feel the same over a November coat.

Field & Stream's advice for getting it dialed is plain: practice in the backyard about a foot off the ground. That's where you'll find out about the leg straps.

The bridge is where the tether pulls

The bridge is a short rope across the front of the saddle, and the tree tether connects to it. Game & Fish describes the bridge as a rope from one side of the saddle to the other, attached with prusik knots, carabiners or both.

On some two-panel designs the bridge lets you set the top and bottom panels separately. One maker's product page shows bushings that let the panels float freely, and you can take them out to adjust the panels by hand.

Noise matters here too, so listen to it at home before you trust it in the woods. A bridge that creaks every time you lean is a bad bridge for a deer hunter. It's the squeaky hinge of the whole system.

Type and In the box tell you what you're actually buying

The Type column sorts the listing. A saddle only is just the saddle. A saddle kit adds a platform, sticks or both. This product group also includes harness-style pieces and lifelines, so read the Type before you compare weights.

Then read In the box. Makers list bridge, tether, lineman's belt, sticks and pouches as they ship. The Platform included column is a straight yes or no from that list. One saddle maker's starter kits include sticks, platforms, saddles and ropes; a bare saddle includes none of that. One maker's two-panel saddle ships with the saddle, a manual and the bridge bushings, and sends you elsewhere for the lineman's belt and tether.

If the box doesn't hold a tether and a lineman's rope, you can't hunt from it yet. Full kits are on the saddle hunting kit page.

Camo or color is the last column for a reason

Camo / color is listed for the record. It's a text field, not a filter, and I'd let it break a tie and nothing else. Deer have never asked me which pattern my coat is.

Two panel hunting saddle or a single panel

On paper the two-panel saddle wins on comfort and the single panel wins on weight. In practice, it comes down to how long you sit and how far you walk.

Pick a single panel if:

• you walk a long way and sit a short morning
• you carry the saddle in a pack instead of wearing it in
• you want fewer straps to adjust in the dark

Pick a two-panel or hybrid if:

• you sit long rut days
• you've had hip pinch in a saddle before
• you want to move pressure points during a sit

If your hunts are three hours, the lighter saddle may be all the comfort you'll use. If they're dawn to dark in the rut, the adjustable one earns its extra ounces.

Comfort comes from adjustment. A MeatEater writer lists leg straps, back straps and several waistline adjustments, and says knee-on-tree positions call for good knee pads. He also compares the sit to sitting sideways in a small hammock, easier on your rear than a hard stand seat. In Bowhunter's debate, the hang-on side said his groin and hips hurt after four hours in a saddle. Both can be true. Fit decides which one you are.

Hunting saddle vs a tree stand, a climber or a hang-on

Here's what changes when the saddle replaces a stand, by stand type.

Against a climber. Outdoor Life's 2019 test found a climber climbs quickly with no platform to hang, but it needs a straight, limbless trunk and can scrape noisily on the way up. A saddle doesn't care much about a crooked or branchy tree. A saddle maker's how-to lists crooked, branchy and leaning trees as workable.

Against a hang-on. Both use climbing sticks, and the same test says both work on nearly any tree. Its author still preferred a standard treestand seat for all-day sits. A MeatEater writer says the saddle sets up quicker and quieter and lets you swivel into shooting positions, though shots over your shooting-hand side are harder.

On the scale. Outdoor Life's 2019 test weighed complete systems: 14.1 lb for the saddle kit, 7.5 lb more with sticks, 23.9 lb for the hang-on and 24.2 lb for the climber. Its platform comparison was 3.3 lb for a saddle platform against 12.2 lb for a hang-on base.

On comfort. One saddle maker admits a box blind beats a saddle for comfort, since you can stand and stretch. I appreciate a maker who says that out loud.

If you mostly want a seat and a rail, the tree stand page is the better place to start.

Fitting it, practicing in it, caring for it

A saddle is a skill before it's a seat. Field & Stream calls getting comfortable in the saddle critical, and one saddle maker says feet may be sore for the first few hunts each year, with boot choice making a difference. That matches what I've watched from the ground at Hemlock Run: the first sits of the season are short, and they get longer.

A short routine:

1. Fit it at home in hunting clothes, then adjust the leg straps and bridge.
2. Practice low, a foot or so off the ground, until the tether and the lean feel normal.
3. Inspect it before every hunt for cuts, tears and heavy abrasion, as one maker's how-to says.
4. Check the stitching where the bridge and leg straps attach.
5. Take it home at the end of the season.

A saddle maker's FAQ also advises confirming that the maker has third-party tested its saddles, ropes, platforms and sticks. That's a fair question to ask before you buy, and a good maker will answer it.

Saddle safety

Stay connected to the tree from the moment your feet leave the ground until they're back on it. The Tree Stand Safety Awareness Foundation's checklist says a saddle is for hunting from a saddle platform and should never replace a full-body harness in a tree stand. Inspect the saddle and every rope before each hunt, retire anything cut or worn, and follow the maker's instructions for tether height and setup. Rules on tree saddles, stands and climbing gear vary by state and property, so check your state wildlife agency.

Who should skip a hunting saddle

• You hunt the same stand every season and like it
• You want a seat and a shooting rail for all-day sits
• You won't practice the rope work before opening day
• You'd rather have a heater and a window, in which case a box blind is waiting

That last group includes me most mornings. The saddle's a fine tool. It just asks you to learn it before it pays you back, and at 63 I spend my learning budget on grandson questions.