Rope Retrieval

I'm pretty sure this is not a new technique, but I'm happy I discovered it, so I'm going to share anyhow.

1. Throw the throwline over the branch
2. Hook it up to your rope splice using a carabiner
3. When you pull it over, hook the carabiner onto the other side of the rope
4. 
5. 
6. Then, when you're done, if it's too hard to retrieve by just pulling the throwline, you can just tie a slip knot (that tightens from above) on the throw line
7. 
8. And then slip some spare climbing rope through the slip knot, and tie a figure eight, and pull on the figure eight (or hook up an ascender and pull)
9. 

I commented on your other thread about this setup, but just in case any new folks happen upon this thread first:

I would not use a carabiner this way. Carabiners are very weak in the "fold sideways" direction. (Easier to make this happen than you might think: against a chunky part of bark, an odd shape/lump in the branch, a smaller fork, etc.) Instead of a carabiner, I would recommend a delta screw link. (Even an oval screw link is not quite as good as a delta here.) Either galvanized or stainless, as long as it's rated for over 6,000 lb. (The stainless are rated stronger for their size, but having a smaller gauge screw link is not always an advantage, because it forces the rope through a tighter bend. Personally, I prefer a larger chunky galvanized delta.)

On the plus side, screw links are even cheaper than carabiners!

In direct response to your rope retrieval:
If you find that there is too much friction to pull the anchor down, you might try this variation: remove the throwbag, and tie your throwline directly to your rope. In this case, just above your splice. (Not on the link-side of the splice, but on the rope-side of the splice.) Now when you pull down on your throwline, the link itself will not add any friction to your retrieval, and you probably won't need to do steps 6-9.