I have yet to stay all day in a tree stand, but I plan on making myself do it in the near future. Just making it to lunch seems miserable most times even when I see deer. Nothing to eat or drink for breakfast or I might not make it to 11. If I stay all day and eat lunch in the stand is food scent going to be an issue, assuming I manage to make it all day without having to go to take a leak. How do you guy's do it, or do you do it at all?

I don't stay all day in my stand. I always get down and take a break, if I am hunting all day. I will get down and eat/drink/poop/pee as needed, sometimes I eat and drink in the stand. But no need to suffer, you should enjoy yourself in the woods. What you are doing is torture not recreational fun hunting. I usuall hunt the mornings and then get down and scout around, I stop when nature calls and look for deer sign and other neat stuff. Then either get back into my stand toward evening or move to a better place. I like to have another stand to move to in the evening. But you should get down and exercise your muscles. Hey lets have fun out there. I have had luck just stumbling through the woods, shot deer while zipping back-up after taking a pee. I have peed out of my tree and had a deer run up to it and shot it within seconds. I don't worry about it I just do it as needed. I have shot and recovered 3 deer so far this season. I got down from my tree last week to shot a pheasant with a shotgun out in a grass field. When I got back into my stand 10 minuts later as I was putting my safty belt on I looked out in the field and a big 12 pointer was walking past at 80 yards, he caugt my movment (set my binock down) or secent (wind was wrong and strong) and move off. Go figure

Staying in a stand all day is sheer hell. Unless it's one of those ones with the microwave and the beer fridge . Unless it was during full rut I wouldn't do it again. I also wonder about creating a "scent pocket" by staying so long. If you do decide to stay all day just dont drink before or during and bring an apple for lunch that is really all you need as you won't be burning many calories (unless it's cold). Leave a big water bottle in the truck because when you get back you'll want a drink for sure.

the chef

I can go 14 or more hours no problem when needed. Being in the woods never bores me. I use one of those water bladders to sip from, I carry some protein bars, and I'll normally just take a squirt right off the stand or in a bottle. You won't keep all the smell down, but you can do away with the BO for the most part by using the scent free aluminum crystal-type of deodorant that kills the bacteria and should last all day. It doesn't bother deer in the slightest.

If the deer can smell the food you're eating, they can smell you. The idea of a hunting stand in a tree is to lift you AND your scent above the deer's line of sight/smell. The longer you can stay up, the more your scent at ground level will dissapate. If you get down, you re-contaminate the area.
I keep my hunting clothes in a locker with cedar chips and usually take a pee bottle in the stand with me. Its a two liter pop bottle with a string tied to the neck so I can hang it from a limb.

quote:

I keep my hunting clothes in a locker with cedar chips

Paw Paw and spice bush leaves give a different scent, too. Paw paw doesn't smell very good, but it's strong. I ground some up with the cedar, spice bush and green moss in the blender and sprinkle the moist particles all over the dirt floor of my blind for a cover scent. I saw the most deer ever after doing that. Didn't do me any good, but i saw them.

Plinker

I have sat in my stand all day on many occasions just to see what goes on ALL DAY in the woods. I have an excellent Warren & Sweat stand that is way too comfortable. I get down at noon to relieve the bladder and stretch. I go pee in a stream so it dilutes and goes away. But I will say I have not seen many deer that way. I have seen more on the days I spend a couple hours during prime time. I bring small amount of water and granola type bars. May try it again during peek rut sometime. But I need to get out to hunt my pointers during midday and back to the stand at night.

Rusty, that's the way most folks do it. Me included often. But think about this, if you can stay in your stand say an extra hour then all of the hunters that are getting down and heading back to camp or starting to still hunt are acting like drivers for you. Same deal if you can get into your stand earlier than the general movement of hunters.