Ring of Steps vs One-Stick Climbing

The short answer

One-sticking is the safer default for most hunters, mainly because it is legal almost everywhere — the strapped-on stick leaves no mark, so it works on the public ground where screw-in hardware is banned. A ring of steps is the lighter, lower-profile kit and it shines on private land where screw-in steps are allowed, but its legality problem sidelines it for a lot of hunters. If you split time on public land, one-sticking wins. If you hunt your own timber and want the most minimal footprint possible, a ring of steps is worth learning. The rest of this page walks through each trade-off so you can match the method to how and where you hunt.

The two methods defined

These are both mobile, minimalist ways to get a saddle hunter up a tree without hauling a stack of gear. They get you to the same height, but they do it in opposite ways.

A ring of stepsrelies on screw-in tree steps — small threaded pegs you twist into the bark by hand. You screw in a step, stand on it, screw in the next one a little higher, and climb the tree one peg at a time. At hunting height you place several steps in a loose circle, or ring, around the trunk so you can stand on them and pivot to shoot instead of carrying a platform. It is a spare, quiet-in-the-pack system with almost nothing to it: just a pouch of steps and your saddle.

One-stickinguses a single climbing stick paired with two aiders — webbing or rope ladders that give your feet extra rungs above and below the stick. You strap the one stick to the tree, climb it and the aiders, reset your tether higher, then move that same stick up above you and repeat, leapfrogging your way up. Because you carry only one stick instead of three or four, the load is tiny. Our how to one-stick guide breaks the full sequence down step by step.

Weight and packability

Both systems are built to cut weight, and both are far lighter than a full set of climbing sticks or a hang-on. Between the two, the ring of steps usually packs the smallest and quietest. A handful of screw-in steps drops into a bag or a dedicated pouch, rides flat against your pack, and does not snag on brush the way a long stick can. There are no straps, buckles, or aiders to manage, and nothing to clank on the walk in if the steps are padded or bagged.

A one-stick setup is still light, but a single stick is a longer, more awkward shape to carry than a fistful of pegs, and the two aiders add a little bulk and a little fuss. It is a fair trade for many hunters, but if your only measure is smallest and lightest, the ring of steps edges it out. Where one-sticking pulls ahead is against a multi-stick setup: dropping from four sticks to one is a real weight savings, which is a big reason the method exists at all.

Speed and noise

Neither method is fast, and honesty matters here because both take practice before they feel smooth. A ring of steps is a screw-by-screw job in both directions. Twisting steps into hard, dry wood takes grip strength and time, and you repeat the effort on the way down as you back the steps out to pack them home. The upside is simplicity — there is no complicated rope work, just turn and stand.

One-sticking is methodical in a different way. You climb, reset the tether, move the stick, and climb again, and rushing any of those transitions is how people get hurt. Most hunters find one-sticking gets noticeably quicker and quieter with reps, since a strapped stick can be set gently and the aiders are soft. Screw-in steps, by contrast, can groan and creak as the threads bite hard bark, and that grinding noise carries in still timber. Give either method a season of practice and both become quiet; out of the box, a well-drilled one-stick climb tends to be the smoother of the two.

Legality: the deciding factor for many hunters

This is the trade-off that ends the debate for a large share of hunters. Screw-in steps pierce the tree, and a great deal of public land — national forests, many state forests, and countless wildlife management areas — prohibits any device that penetrates the bark. On that ground, a ring of steps is simply not an option, no matter how much you like the system.

One-sticking sidesteps the problem entirely. A climbing stick straps to the tree and leaves no lasting mark, so it is generally allowed on the same public land where screw-in steps are banned. That legal flexibility is the single biggest reason mobile public-land hunters gravitate to sticks. Rules do vary by state and even by individual property, so check your regulations before every new area — we cover the broader step-versus-stick legality question in screw-in steps vs climbing sticks. If there is any chance you will hunt public ground, plan for the strictest rule and lean toward the stick.

Safety and staying tethered

Elevated hunting carries real risk regardless of how you climb. Wisconsin’s DNR reports that roughly one in four bowhuntershave fallen or nearly fallen from an elevated position, and the vast majority of falls happen while climbing, descending, or moving at height — exactly the moments both of these methods put you in. The rule that keeps you alive is the same for either system: stay connected to the tree the entire time. Use a lineman’s belt or rope around the trunk on the way up, transition to your tether before you commit your weight at height, and wear a full-body harness from the ground up. The Tree Stand Safety Awareness Foundation frames it as never being unattached — three points of contact and a connection to the tree at all times.

Each method has its own failure mode to respect. With a ring of steps, the danger is a peg that has not bitten solid wood: a step twisted into soft, punky, or dead timber can spin or pull under load, so you must set each one in healthy wood and test it before you trust your weight to it. With one-sticking, the danger is rushing the transition — moving the stick or resetting the tether while momentarily out of position. Slow, deliberate movement and a disciplined lineman’s belt beat both hazards. Neither method is safe if you cut corners, and neither is especially dangerous if you never unclip.

Which suits whom

Choose a ring of steps if you hunt private land where screw-in steps are legal, you want the absolute lightest and lowest-profile kit, and you value a simple turn-and-stand system over rope work. It rewards hunters who set up on known trees and do not mind the screw-in, screw-out effort, and the ring of steps at the top gives you a solid stance to pivot and shoot without a separate platform.

Choose one-stickingif you hunt public land or move often, you want gear that is legal nearly everywhere, and you are willing to put in practice to make the leapfrog sequence smooth. It leaves no trace, adapts to almost any tree, and pairs naturally with a run-and-gun saddle style. If you are not sure one stick is enough for your comfort, the honest middle ground is a multi-stick setup — more stable to learn on, still fully legal, and only a little heavier. We compare those in one-stick vs multi-stick.

The verdict

There is no universal winner, but there is a clear default. For the average hunter — and especially anyone who touches public land — one-sticking is the better pick, because it is legal where screw-in steps are not, it leaves no mark, and it adapts to whatever tree the wind and the sign send you to. Its cost is a learning curve you pay off with practice. If you hunt only private ground where screw-in steps are legal and you prize the lightest, simplest, quietest-to-pack kit, a ring of steps is a genuinely good system that many hunters swear by. Whichever you choose, the safety rules do not change: stay tethered from the ground up, wear your harness, and test every point of contact. If you decide the stick route fits you, start with our best climbing sticks picks to build a setup that climbs light and legal.