The first mistakes I made with climbing sticks were not practicing the climb, forgetting something, and making too much noise. All three come back to the same thing. A climb you haven't rehearsed is a loud climb.

The good news is that quieting a stick setup is one of the cheapest jobs in saddle hunting. You don't need a new set of sticks to stop the clanking. Here is what I run and why.

What actually makes noise on the climb

Most of it is metal touching metal. Sticks bump each other on the walk in and while you hang them. Carabiners tap against sticks, the platform, and each other. A boot slips off a step and rings the aluminum. None of it is loud in a garage. In the dark woods at first light, it carries.

Outdoor Life's 2026 climbing stick test puts it bluntly: any metal-on-metal contact still makes a noise that can spook nearby deer, and the reviewer recommends tape or silencing strips on contact points even on premium sticks.

So the job is simple: put something soft between every pair of hard things that can touch.

My sticks

I climb on a 4 pack of Hawk Helium aluminum sticks. On Hawk's current Gen 2 listing, each stick is 20 inches long with a 10 inch step width, weighs 2.5 pounds, and is rated to 300 pounds. With my full setup I end up at about 20 to 25 feet of shooting height.

Hawk also builds noise control into them: overmolded tree attachment hooks and a nesting system for carrying. Those specs were last verified on Hawk's page October 10, 2026. Owners have reported broken plastic stacking buttons on earlier Helium sets (Archery Talk thread), so check yours. Bare aluminum still rings when a boot or carabiner hits it. That's where the cheap fixes come in.

Bungee shock cord on every stick

I cut pieces of bungee shock cord and put them on each stick. That's my fix for climb noise. The idea is to have something soft on each stick so bare aluminum isn't the first thing that touches.

If you have a spool of shock cord in the garage, you can do this tonight. If not, a spool of 1/4 inch marine grade cord like this SGT KNOTS shock cord is cheap and will outlast your sticks.

Stealth Strips on the sticks

On top of the bungee, my sticks are wrapped with Stealth Strips in the Strata camo pattern. It's a peel and stick fabric made for silencing hunting gear. Stealth Outdoors sells it in three roll sizes: 2 1/8 by 60 inches, 2 1/2 by 60 inches, and 4 by 72 inches.

It's a small cost compared to the sticks themselves, and it covers bare metal with a soft, quiet surface.

Hockey tape on every carabiner

If you're on a tight budget, this is the cheapest place to start. I wrap all of my carabiners, and any other metal touch points, in Renfrew patterned hockey tape. Mine is the 1 inch camo cloth tape on a 25 meter roll.

A roll of hockey tape is cheap, easy to find at sporting goods stores, and goes a long way. Wrap the parts that bang into things, and leave anything that moves (gates, locks, buckles) free to work the way it should.

The aider

I use a ZIVOXIA climbing stick aider. An aider is a short rope ladder that hangs off a stick and gives you an extra soft step or two. It's light, it packs small, and a rope step doesn't ring when your boot finds it.

Like everything else here, it only helps if you've practiced with it before you need it in the dark.

Practice the climb

Practice can make all of the difference.

Hang your sticks a few feet off the ground in the yard or on a tree you have permission to use. Clip in, climb, set the platform, and come back down. Then do it again. You learn where each piece of gear lives, what clinks, and what you forgot. Every noise you find in practice is one you don't make on a real hunt.

Things to listen for in practice:

  • Sticks touching each other while they're stacked on your pack
  • Carabiners tapping on sticks or the platform
  • Your boot slipping off a step or catching the edge of one
  • Anything loose in your pack shifting as you climb

When something makes noise, cover it, tie it down, or change how you handle it. Then practice again.

Where to spend, and where to go cheap

On life-support gear I would rather pay once for quality, but that doesn't mean every part of a climbing setup needs to be expensive.

Spend on anything that holds your weight. Sticks, the saddle, the tether, the lineman's belt, the rope. Buy from makers that publish weight ratings and instructions, and follow them.

Go cheap on the silencing. Bungee cord, hockey tape, and a roll of silencing fabric cost very little and do most of the work of making a climb quiet. This is the easiest place on the whole setup to save money without giving anything up.

Budget vs premium silencing

Job Budget Premium
Stick to stick contact Bungee shock cord pieces Sticks with built-in nesting and quiet hooks, like the Helium's Silent Stack
Covering bare metal Cloth hockey tape Stealth Strips silencing fabric
Carabiners and touch points Hockey tape Hockey tape. It's hard to beat here
Extra steps Rope aider More sticks, which add weight

I run a mix: bungee and Stealth Strips on the sticks, hockey tape on the carabiners.

Quiet climb checklist

  • A soft piece of shock cord on every stick
  • Bare metal on the sticks covered with silencing fabric or tape
  • Every carabiner and metal touch point wrapped in hockey tape
  • Aider practiced at ground level
  • Full climb, platform hang, and descent practiced low before season
  • Gear in the pack tied down so nothing shifts or clinks

Stay safe on the way up

Noise matters, but staying attached to the tree matters more. Be connected to the tree from the time you leave the ground until you're back on it, using a lineman's belt, tether, or lifeline the way the manufacturer tells you to. Read the instructions that came with your sticks, saddle, and platform, stay inside their weight ratings, and check your gear for wear before every season. Practice low before you climb high.

Other good options

This section is researched, not first-hand. These are well-supported alternatives to what's above, with sources.

  • One stick and an aider. Instead of a full set of sticks, some saddle hunters climb on one or two sticks and move them up, or use one stick plus an aider for more steps per stick. Tethrd's One Sticks are built for this. It's lighter and quieter to carry, but slower to climb and takes practice.
  • Ropes-up (rope climbing). Climbing with ropes instead of sticks cuts the most weight and noise, but it's a technical skill. Learn it low with someone who knows it, and follow the rope and saddle maker's instructions.
  • A lifeline. A Hunter Safety System Lifeline stays on the tree and lets you stay clipped in from the ground to the top.

Safety first

This part is researched, not first-hand. The Treestand Manufacturers Association safety guidelines call for a full-body fall-arrest harness every time you leave the ground, including the climb up and down, attached the way the maker says, inspected before every use, and replaced after any fall or past its expiration date. They also recommend practicing at ground level, carrying a way to call for help, and having a plan for getting down after a fall. For saddle hunters, Tethrd's Saddle Hunting 101 guide says the same idea in saddle terms: be connected to the tree from the moment you leave the ground. A lifeline or ropes-up system, like the Hunter Safety System Lifeline, keeps you clipped in from the ground to your hunting height. Tell someone where you'll be and when you'll be back.

FAQ

What is the cheapest way to silence climbing sticks? Cloth hockey tape and pieces of bungee shock cord. Both are cheap and handle a lot of the metal on metal noise.

Stealth Strips or hockey tape? I use both: Stealth Strips on the sticks, hockey tape on the carabiners and other metal touch points. If you're on a tight budget, start with hockey tape.

Do I need an aider? No, but a light rope aider gives you extra steps without carrying another stick. Practice with it first.

How do I stop gear clanking on the walk in? Cover bare metal, strap everything down tight, and listen for noise during a practice run so you find it before season does.

Sources