Best Saddle for Public Land Hunting

Years ago before I discovered saddle hunting, I was stuck with hauling around tree stands when I wanted to hunt. The challenge was I only had access to public land and the stands were so heavy I never moved it around. Unfortunately my tree stand was stolen from public land a week prior to opening day for deer season. 

Shortly after a thief stealing the only thing I really cared about in this world at the time, I discovered saddle hunting. I dove head first into it, and within my first year of hunting with a saddle, I harvested my first ever public land deer. After many years of using all kinds of saddles and different gear with much success, I can confidently say what the best saddle for public land hunting is. Your preferences may differ from mine, but I'll share all the ins and outs that Ive learned and what has worked for me for many years.

Here are a few things to consider when you are hunting public land and wanting to upgrade your hunting saddle or looking to get into it the first time.

• Are you wanting to be completely mobile and light on the foot?
• Are you wanting 100% USA Made?
• Are you wanting to be able to shoot in any direction out of a tree?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, you have came to the right place! We will now dive into the best saddle for public land hunting.

A saddle gives you some real advantages on public land compared to traditional tree stands. There are both pros and cons between a saddle in a tree stand so here's the honest breakdown for a saddle in comparison of a tree stand.

• Much lighter pack weight: most saddle set ups are lighter weight than hauling a full climbing stand with climbing sticks. That matters a lot when you're hiking deep into the woods on public land.
• Hunt any tree: you're not limited to perfectly straight trees. Crooked, leaning, or weird shaped trees all work.  
• Leaves no trace: saddle hunting gear is extremely packable and can be brought into the woods and out of the woods much easier than a tree stand set up.
• Safety: you are connected to the tree 100% of the time. If you do everything correctly, the worst fall you will take is you falling down and your lineman rope catching you into the tree.
• Mobility: since you are lighter on the foot, you can be more mobile and switch around spots when you please when hunting. Also while you are in the tree, you can shoot 360° around the tree in a hunting saddle.

Now that we've covered why hunting saddles beats traditional tree stands on public ground, the next question becomes what actually makes a saddle good for public land.

Not every saddles built the same. Some are comfortable but heavy. Some are lightweight but lacks support for long sits. Also almost every single saddle forces you to fight with the leg straps the entire walk into the woods. On public land when your often hiking farther, dealing with pressure, and needing to adapt to what ever sign you find, these details matter a lot. After years of saddle hunting public land and building gear specifically for it, here are the key things I believe actually matter when choosing a saddle for this style of hunting. 

1. Packability: There are single panels and double panel saddles. Single panels are lighter weight and less comfortable. But they offer superior packability and more light weight. Double panels are bulkier but offer more comfort. They are not easily packable and uncomfortable wearing into the woods. Single panels win every time for mobility and packability.
2. Durability: It has to be 100% USA made.  Anything else that isn't made in America does not meet my quality expectation and durability that will last for years out in the harsh words.
3. Ease Of Use: Reducing fiddle factor into a hunting saddle and not having to worry about the little things while I am after a target buck.

Those three things will help you tremendously narrow down your choice of hunting saddles 

After years of saddle hunting public land with other saddles, I was able to write down notes on exactly what I did and did not like for each saddle. I designed the El Toro to solve exactly all of these problems mentioned above. Let's dive into the El Toro to see what all of the chatter is all about here in America.

This will be my 3rd season with the El Toro, and it truly has been a blessing and a game changer for how I hunt public land.

2 years ago I was able to for the first time tag out on public land. It was actually the very first time I ever was able to harvest a deer on public land in general. And last year what is the first time I got on the biggest buck I ever hunted, unfortunately I ended up messing up ( Im still learning ). The fact that I was even in position to have that chance of a mature buck on public land came down to the ability of being able to move in roam whenever I need to. For the majority of my life, I was always stuck with heavy Walmart treestands. When you get into a saddle that is an El Toro caliber, the entire world opens up to you. I'm able to move through heavy vegetation, and the steep rugged terrain of southern Ohio without fighting my gear the whole way in. The fold up traverse mode that I designed made a massive difference in those kinds of woods. Any other saddle that doesn't have the capability to do that, I've always opted in packing my saddle in. I never liked that and did not like to waste time putting on my saddle while I'm in the woods at the tree that I chosen the hunt out of. Why do that when you can just wear your saddle in with no restricted leg movement like the El Toro? On a lot of other saddles, those leg straps would've been flopping around or restricting my movement the entire approach. With the El Toro, I hike in comfortably, stay quiet, and actually focus on what I need to do.

For the sits I usually do, four hours or less, it's perfect. It's supportive without feeling bulky. I've never felt like I was wearing a diaper or getting dragged down like I have with some other saddles. When I do need to sit longer, I can tell a double panel design will probably shine more. Especially during the rut while you typically do all day sits. But for how I hunt, the El Toro strikes the right balance.

Now one of the things that has always put a little fear into me when saddle hunting, is just the unnatural uneasiness you feel when you are sitting in something high up in a tree connected to a rope. For the El Toro, I designed the load bearing stitching to be overly built on the critical points of the saddle. It truly eases my mind. It has given me that extra confidence boost to not be so afraid. I specifically remember using a competitor's saddle and seeing the Amsteel rope thin on a certain place on the bridge. It scared the shit out of me, and I made sure to not do anything like that for the El Toro. It just gives you that more of a confidence boost.

Because of everything that I talked about, my confidence has gone way up. Being able to stay light weight and mobile means I can reposition whenever I need to in order to get on deer. That ability has directly led to me consistently harvesting deer on public land year after year, something I wasn't able to do before.

The El Toro didn't just make saddle hunting more comfortable for me. It made public land hunting actually possible.

If you're thinking about making the switch to saddle hunting on public land, you don't need a complicated set up or years of experience. You just need the right mindset, a few key pieces of gear, and some practice before you head into the woods. Here's how to get started the right way. Watch this video for a more detailed explanation.

First thing to do is do your research and watch the video above. Determine what you want and then simply purchase it. Here is a list of what you will need.

• A hunting saddle (El Toro)
• Climbing sticks
• Platform
• Tree tether and lineman rope
• 2 pouches ( Bull Paks )

After you have received the gear that you got for saddle hunting, the most important thing to do is to practice before you actually hunt with your gear. Here are a few things you need to do before you hunt with a saddle.

• Set up in your backyard or a local park and use your gear on the ground level. Get familiar with everything on the ground and at the base of a tree.
• At the base of the tree practice shooting from the saddle, especially your weak side and at awkward angles.
• Practice setting up your climbing sticks and platform at the base of the tree.
• Once you are comfortable at the base of the tree, start working your way up the tree and build your confidence.
• Once you are fully confident in setting up your entire system, start practicing at your ideal hunting height.
• Lastly, practice in the dark once you are fully comfortable during the day setting up your gear.