What Do You Carry While Climbing - Basic Gear?
- Thread starter lxskllr
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Sounds good!
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Climbing conifers back to back: limb it up, top it out and chunk it down, advancing my climbine, rigging limbs, and traversing into to the next tree for another go ... my 60' throwline on a fly-reel, come in sooo handy. Spiderman stuff.
Anybody else?
Anybody else?
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Boom-a-wrang shot, Cory! You don't know the boomawrang shot?
I sure do, sir. I learned it from FGTW of course and I use it often. But of course I use it on limbs that are 6' away, easy stuff!!!
SeanKroll
Treehouser
I haven't advanced to a reel, yet.
I'll pull up a folded cube, or the line and weight, time to time.
I'll pull up a folded cube, or the line and weight, time to time.
No he's deadly serious. Jerry's the mf boss
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Now Stig, if I recall correctly, said one of his apprentice was reaching distances, with clean successful returns, exceeding 30 feet!
I've accomplished farther reaches, but not in a single clean shot. What I mean is you can use more than 1 limb, between you and the target, to work the weight back to you. Again, the more you practice the better you get.
I'm surprised the Boomarang shot is not an event in the ISA-TCC. It should be. Because it's a skill that can make any climber more proficient in the tree.
I've accomplished farther reaches, but not in a single clean shot. What I mean is you can use more than 1 limb, between you and the target, to work the weight back to you. Again, the more you practice the better you get.
I'm surprised the Boomarang shot is not an event in the ISA-TCC. It should be. Because it's a skill that can make any climber more proficient in the tree.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #110
From the book...
!!!
I can give it a bit of English, but I'd be just as likely to fly over and retrieve the line as I would getting it back from 30'!
Benjo75
Treehouser
I keep a fly reel in a bag in the bucket. I'll climb with it if I see I'm going to need it. I have a Mag Throwbag that I'll take up if it's a dense tree and no room to boomerang it back easily.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
It's much easier than it sounds, really. I learned it in the 70's practicing with the throwline. A couple of times, blundering, the weight shot back at me and I thought... how did it do that? Eventually I figured it out.
Now the name 'boomarang' was coined by a friend named Mike Rantala.
Now the name 'boomarang' was coined by a friend named Mike Rantala.
pigwot
M's, Juniper's, Lowen’s, and Inge’s Grandpa
(Caution: More detailed response than necessary, in light of you asking the question John, and the hope that we'll still be able to get together soon and do a rec climb or two and/or a couple small work climbs, since we are not far from one another. I like your interest in climbing and would enjoy sharing the knowledge and skills I have developed to help you along your way).
Pruning: Saddle, foot and knee ascender, helmet with standard ear protectors (no radio - I prefer not to be chatty while pruning in the zone), 4SRT or Didier chestie with XSRE mini-carabiner as a HUT, lanyard, handsaw, blood-stopper pack. Depending on the tree and situation a second SRT device (or hitchcord/Hitchclimber pulley) to rig the tail of my line. In the hot part of the year I'll carry a water bottle on my harness. I have a small bag on the back of my harness. Depending on the day it might have my phone, a few energy bars in case I want to finish and not come down for lunch, a throwline reel, grapple, or a couple runner loops/carabiners for setting redirects, transfers, etc. Saw stays tied on the tail of the to haul up when I need it.
Cabling/bracing: Same as above, but add a second line for setting second system for moving 'to and fro' from one end to the other of the cable pathway, and a bucket for the tools with a second adjustable lanyard for hanging that bucket on 'anything but me', and I haul up the drill, cable-cut-to-length, dead-ends, etc on the tail of a rope. Pretty much the same for lightning protection installation, just the tools and materials change.
Takedowns: Saddle, spikes take the place of the foot and knee ascender, longer lanyard to cover add positioning, the chestie becomes a shoulder strap to better hold the weight of the large saw on my saddle when I get down to the big cuts, helmet with radio ear protectors (for coordinating with the person lowering, and managing the busier flow of material). I start with a 346XP with an 18" bar- take it with me to cut away the branches as I work my way up to where I start disassembling/lowering out the major wood. Sometimes if it's going to get big fast I'll just haul the large pulley with me, rather than haul it up later hand-over-hand. I'll do the same with a tag line if the top doesn't have a definite lean or it's a windy day.
Crane days: Saddle, spikes, lanyard, helmet with radio ear protectors, rope in a bag on my belt, for rope control, Akimbo for the quick midline change from hanging off the hook to positioned in the tree. Saw lately has been the 562XP. Definitely phone in the bag for shots while waiting for the crane slings to come back for the next pick.
Rec climbs: Depends totally on where it is, what we are climbing, whether we're just heading to the top to see the sights, or setting up a large cargo net platform for a picnic, or a zip line, or an elevator high in the tree, or getting multiple kids up in a tree for a first experience, or like we did in the "Charlie Tree" outside Atlanta, where we set multiple lines for ten climbers playing tag...
Pruning: Saddle, foot and knee ascender, helmet with standard ear protectors (no radio - I prefer not to be chatty while pruning in the zone), 4SRT or Didier chestie with XSRE mini-carabiner as a HUT, lanyard, handsaw, blood-stopper pack. Depending on the tree and situation a second SRT device (or hitchcord/Hitchclimber pulley) to rig the tail of my line. In the hot part of the year I'll carry a water bottle on my harness. I have a small bag on the back of my harness. Depending on the day it might have my phone, a few energy bars in case I want to finish and not come down for lunch, a throwline reel, grapple, or a couple runner loops/carabiners for setting redirects, transfers, etc. Saw stays tied on the tail of the to haul up when I need it.
Cabling/bracing: Same as above, but add a second line for setting second system for moving 'to and fro' from one end to the other of the cable pathway, and a bucket for the tools with a second adjustable lanyard for hanging that bucket on 'anything but me', and I haul up the drill, cable-cut-to-length, dead-ends, etc on the tail of a rope. Pretty much the same for lightning protection installation, just the tools and materials change.
Takedowns: Saddle, spikes take the place of the foot and knee ascender, longer lanyard to cover add positioning, the chestie becomes a shoulder strap to better hold the weight of the large saw on my saddle when I get down to the big cuts, helmet with radio ear protectors (for coordinating with the person lowering, and managing the busier flow of material). I start with a 346XP with an 18" bar- take it with me to cut away the branches as I work my way up to where I start disassembling/lowering out the major wood. Sometimes if it's going to get big fast I'll just haul the large pulley with me, rather than haul it up later hand-over-hand. I'll do the same with a tag line if the top doesn't have a definite lean or it's a windy day.
Crane days: Saddle, spikes, lanyard, helmet with radio ear protectors, rope in a bag on my belt, for rope control, Akimbo for the quick midline change from hanging off the hook to positioned in the tree. Saw lately has been the 562XP. Definitely phone in the bag for shots while waiting for the crane slings to come back for the next pick.
Rec climbs: Depends totally on where it is, what we are climbing, whether we're just heading to the top to see the sights, or setting up a large cargo net platform for a picnic, or a zip line, or an elevator high in the tree, or getting multiple kids up in a tree for a first experience, or like we did in the "Charlie Tree" outside Atlanta, where we set multiple lines for ten climbers playing tag...
pigwot
M's, Juniper's, Lowen’s, and Inge’s Grandpa
Jerry,
Do you use the automatic fly reels? I can get between 60 and 72 feet on the one I have.
If a tree is too far for the boomerang, I'll haul up a full-length throwline, send the throw bag over an appropriate limb, drop enough line down to reach back to you, cowhitch the mini-grapple on, and let more line run out till the weight of the grapple pulls the line down to snag the bagged line, and draw it back to you... of course we're dealing with open-canopy deciduous trees out this way which makes those throws and retrievals easier than brushy, coniferous trees.
Do you use the automatic fly reels? I can get between 60 and 72 feet on the one I have.
If a tree is too far for the boomerang, I'll haul up a full-length throwline, send the throw bag over an appropriate limb, drop enough line down to reach back to you, cowhitch the mini-grapple on, and let more line run out till the weight of the grapple pulls the line down to snag the bagged line, and draw it back to you... of course we're dealing with open-canopy deciduous trees out this way which makes those throws and retrievals easier than brushy, coniferous trees.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
Basic Pfluger Medalest 1498, manual, right / left reversible. Full up with 60 ft. of 1.8 Zing-it, figure about 6 oz.. Comes in mighty handy when you need it., and can make you kind of lazy too.
Burnham
Woods walker
No sir...you should be paying close attention.
Burnham
Woods walker
Check this thread out...some good stuff here.
In-tree throwbag/line management
Like more than a few climbers, I have found that 50 feet of throwline can be a bear to deploy and stow up in the tree with any semblance of efficiency. Also like more than a few, I've found that one of the auto rewind flyfishing reels is a slick way to deal with the problem. My question is for...
www.masterblasterhome.com
SeanKroll
Treehouser
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
Ha! And yall gave me words about too much on my saddle at the WCGTG back in 09 
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
Ya trippin. Lol
pigwot
M's, Juniper's, Lowen’s, and Inge’s Grandpa
Yep,right you are.
That was Anders who came over with us in 2009 when we climbed some sequoias and did the Coombs tree and the Goose ridge tree with you.
I just have to turn around to see the pictures you took of me in those trees, they have adorned my office wall since then.
I like for the people who visit my office to know, that this is a tree climbing outfit.
I have seen Anders do a 45 foot shot and return on a rainy day in a large beech tree. Hit that one in first shot, too.
Made a limb walk that would otherwise have been impossible in a wet beech a walk in the park.
As for the fishing reel.
I don't know if you remember but we had our "in the tree" throwlines and weights in pouches back then.
Made for an awful mess, but we didn't know any better.
Hell, back then we were probably the only Danes to ever use a throwline in a tree. Denmark was a third World country when it came to arborist work back then.
You showed us your reel and the next day all 3 of us went to a pawn shop in Willits and bought used reels.
I bet that pawn shop owner still remember the viking invasion.
gf beranek
Old Schooler
45 ft. with a clean return! That's championship throwing there.
I didn't know about the Willits gig. Funny.
I didn't know about the Willits gig. Funny.
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