hi all

Hi, my name is Lucas, and I like to hang out in trees! lol

by hang out, i have a campin a camping hammock. (DD modular jungle hammock to be specific!) its kinda the caddilac of hammocks imo.

anyways, i got into hammock camping when looking for a hiking type setup to go campin on my bike. the more time i spend in the trees, the higher up id rather be. long storey short, i have an irrational fear of a moose/deer runin by and tangling me up in thier antlers.. (dont ask, but it almost happened once..i think.. lol)

I also occasionaly tried climbing with climbing (blakes?) hitch and swiss seat. it worked, but I knew there were better ways. I have done plenty of research and such, and for my intents and purpose,im pretty muchlikely to go with a srt, and a unicender.

essentialy im here for a bit more research, and because i've found variationsof the unicender, such as the spiderjack, and im kinda up in the air atm.. hopefully I'll find some info or comparisions here on the various ascender/descender combo units.

theres a few other things i'll be keepin an eye out for too, such as the finer points in settingup a traverse, how to get your ropes back outta the tree.. lol..

No one seems to adress gettin your ropes back..? O.o

anyways, see ya around, up n down!

~L~

Hi glad you're here. I am new to the climbing and have been buying and trying different things. Just been on a couple of climbs with the SAKA by Richard Mumford. Pretty much you can stairstep to your destination using both leg power. Also use the APTA(Potato gun) to set my lines. These devices have made my climbs faster.

Lynx_Gen wrote:
No one seems to adress gettin your ropes back..? O.o

When I take my rope out of a tree I like to lower the rope with my throw line. If you flop a free rope out of a tree all kinds of things can happen to hang the rope up, and it tends to thrash small branches and smaller understory trees on the way down. Lowering reduces damage to the small branches and greatly reduces the chance the rope will get hung up.
-AJ

rob2312 wrote: Hi glad you're here. I am new to the climbing and have been buying and trying different things. Just been on a couple of climbs with the SAKA by Richard Mumford. Pretty much you can stairstep to your destination using both leg power. Also use the APTA(Potato gun) to set my lines. These devices have made my climbs faster.

I've seen the SAKA in action, and have previously subscribed to Richards channel. watched quite a few of his vids. I dont think I'll realy need that much gear tho, at least not to start. for the most part I wana keep it to a minimum, as it'll be comming along with me in a backpack while hiking/riding the bike to go camping. rope and gear adds up quite quickly in wieght and space.

moss wrote:

Lynx_Gen wrote:
No one seems to adress gettin your ropes back..? O.o

When I take my rope out of a tree I like to lower the rope with my throw line. If you flop a free rope out of a tree all kinds of things can happen to hang the rope up, and it tends to thrash small branches and smaller understory trees on the way down. Lowering reduces damage to the small branches and greatly reduces the chance the rope will get hung up.
-AJ

im more confused about how to get it untied/un-teathered while on the ground lol..

Im sure a bit of researching will show me..

Im not too worried about hurting the trees, as mostly around here its all pine sorta trees, and its largely only dead branches for the 1st 10-30 feet on most of em. the real problem is trying to find any good trees to climb, majourity would be the equivelent of trying to climb a power pole..

hunting for a tree to climb is as much of a challenge as climbing it.. lol

thanks for the replys guys!

Moss is sure right about lowering your climbing rope using a throwline. Not only can a falling rope damage branches on the way down, it can also slide against bark and gather a bunch of splinters during a fall (speaking from experience from a time when I saw a guy just let his rope fall to the ground). Another thing that can happen is the end of your rope can unexpectedly whip around a small branch on the way down and lock itself there... not wrapped strong enough to climb, but too strong to pull down. (This happened with my throwline, not my climbing rope, but it is clearly possible with rope.) So you ~should~ worry about hurting the tree, but if that doesn't convince you to lower rope with a throwline, you should also worry about your rope. It'll last a lot longer if you take care of it. (So will the forest.)

As for climbing systems... nothing beats the low-cost light-weight DdRT! Check out the rec kits on Tree Stuff or WesSpur. Equipment list will be:
A helmet.
A light-weight saddle like the New Tribe Yellowjacket or Tree Fox.
A length of arborist rope. (Maybe a hybrid rope like Fly if you know you would like to expand into SRT in the future.)
Two cambium savers.
A few triple-locking carabiners.
Throwline and two throwbags.
Oh, and a copy of the TCI At Home Basic DVD course!
That' really all you need! There's no SRT system that can compete in low-cost and low-weight to DdRT, because every SRT system includes all of that gear PLUS a bunch of other (expensive) stuff.

Remember this, new climbers: with all due respect to Richard Mumford, he is an advanced climber who is exploring brave new worlds in climbing systems. Take your time and get a good handle on the basics before you try to keep up with Richard.

Now, you may say to me, "But Dennis, you have no idea what you are talking about. The trees I climb are SRT-trees! Straight and tall, where the lowest branch is at 80 feet!" If that's the case, I recommend a basic SRT class and climbing Texas-style.

The key phrases that are triggering my recommendations are:
I am new to climbing.
Hammock camping on my bike.
How do I traverse?
How do I get my ropes down?
(If you are asking those last two questions, in particular, then you should not be learning to climb from YouTube.)

I am older than I look. And I probably sound even older than I am. But do me a favor, and consider the wisdom of your old grandpa Dennis. I'm only looking out for you so that we can climb together someday!

Saka is not more gear per se just easier. Approx. 2 foot strap that you can attach to your climbing harness belt. Weights 2 oz.. Use when needed. Costs $120 dollars. I value everyone's opinion and experience but have learned as a contractor I eventually have to make my own decisions on what works and what is too time consuming. This device is non-life support, basically a gadget that makes the climb easier.

Tree-D wrote: Moss is sure right about lowering your climbing rope using a throwline. Not only can a falling rope damage branches on the way down, it can also slide against bark and gather a bunch of splinters during a fall (speaking from experience from a time when I saw a guy just let his rope fall to the ground). Another thing that can happen is the end of your rope can unexpectedly whip around a small branch on the way down and lock itself there... not wrapped strong enough to climb, but too strong to pull down. (This happened with my throwline, not my climbing rope, but it is clearly possible with rope.) So you ~should~ worry about hurting the tree, but if that doesn't convince you to lower rope with a throwline, you should also worry about your rope. It'll last a lot longer if you take care of it. (So will the forest.)

As for climbing systems... nothing beats the low-cost light-weight DdRT! Check out the rec kits on Tree Stuff or WesSpur. Equipment list will be:
A helmet.
A light-weight saddle like the New Tribe Yellowjacket or Tree Fox.
A length of arborist rope. (Maybe a hybrid rope like Fly if you know you would like to expand into SRT in the future.)
Two cambium savers.
A few triple-locking carabiners.
Throwline and two throwbags.
Oh, and a copy of the TCI At Home Basic DVD course!
That' really all you need! There's no SRT system that can compete in low-cost and low-weight to DdRT, because every SRT system includes all of that gear PLUS a bunch of other (expensive) stuff.

Remember this, new climbers: with all due respect to Richard Mumford, he is an advanced climber who is exploring brave new worlds in climbing systems. Take your time and get a good handle on the basics before you try to keep up with Richard.

Now, you may say to me, "But Dennis, you have no idea what you are talking about. The trees I climb are SRT-trees! Straight and tall, where the lowest branch is at 80 feet!" If that's the case, I recommend a basic SRT class and climbing Texas-style.

The key phrases that are triggering my recommendations are:
I am new to climbing.
Hammock camping on my bike.
How do I traverse?
How do I get my ropes down?
(If you are asking those last two questions, in particular, then you should not be learning to climb from YouTube.)

I am older than I look. And I probably sound even older than I am. But do me a favor, and consider the wisdom of your old grandpa Dennis. I'm only looking out for you so that we can climb together someday!

thanks

just to clarify, Its not that I dont care about the trees, I just ment that where im typically going, there isnt realy any branches etc to worry about. the lower parts of the trees are akin to power poles.

I did figure out how to get the ropes down. I was refering more on how to untie/hook/anchor them from the ground, but i got that figured now, and it does involve using a throw line.

In the past i used a double line, blakes hitch method, so the rope was essentialy just looped over a large branch. pretty simple to pull it down. I want to switch over to srt tho, and was a bit unclear on how to get the rope untied up top while on the ground.

I have no illusions of being remotly close to richards skill etc. (Or even close to any experienced climber for that matter. You could probably easily find me a 4-5 yr old child with more exp and skill!)

I do have intelligence tho,and an overly cautious streak in me. Im not about to go out and do something dangerous... thats why I read and watch n research alot. theres lots we do know. its the things we dont even know we dont know that becomes dangerous or troublesome.

I've pretty much got it all figured out now. the main goal is to be able to hang and get into my hammock in the 15-30ft range. essentialy a rope up, and a small traverse across, around 15-20ft, both which can be setup from the ground with a single line.
just gotta track down a unicender and foot ascender.

I would perfer to keep it to a minimul of gear, as it will be getting packed along with a camping/hiking gear. At the same time, I do understand minimum gear could be 2 ropes and a carbiner, but I would like to climb with a certain amount of ease.

I did check out the srt and drt packages, but niether realy appeal to me.

as for training classes, I can watch all the vids etc in the world, but 5 mins hands on would do so much more the better.

There is a rock climbing wall the next town over, and they have instructors and courses, although I know theres alot of differences between rock and tree climbing, it would give me some experience with gear and its use.

anyways, thanks for the reply,and sorry if I ever come across as being some one who thinks they know everything, I'll be the first to admit I most surely dont.
I want to stay safe as do most people, and would love the opportunity one dayto go climbing with some of you more experienced people.

Might be a struggle to get me more than 30ft off the ground tho,but yeah.. hehe

Even I find it funny someone scared of hieghts finds themselves here on a treeclimbing forum! lol

~L~

Hey there LG,

Have you checked out the TCI Climber-Finder tool? I just poked around for you. Not sure where in Alberta you live, but there are a few climbers in Edmonton and Calgary! You could ping them and see if they're up for a climb together. And have you considered trying to make it to this year's Tree Climbing Rendez-Vous? It's in Seattle. Calgary is about 11 hours from Seattle, Edmonton is about 13 hours from Seattle. Down here in Oakland, California, I am about 12 hours from Seattle, and I am hoping to drive up for it. That should be a good time with a lot of climbers of all levels. (And once the climbing begins, they will be AT all levels! Height-wise, I mean!)

Of course if you're ever down here in the San Francisco Bay Area, drop me a note, and we'll go climb!

Sorry for coming off like such a grandpa. I should change my forum handle to, "Shouldn'tYouBeInSchool??" or just "HeyYouKidsGetOffMyLawn!"

hehe, that would be interesting, and sounds like a lot of fun for sure,but its a bit beyond the boundries of my travelling range. maybe meetup with peeps from edmonton one day, but even thats a 3 hr drive. typically go there 2-5 times a yr, altho that usualy involves a kid and doctors.. lol

I am aiming to hit the city in a couple weeks.. got a few things I gotta pick up,climbing gear, campin gear,bike parts and accessories etc.

Im currently on a hunt to find and decide onand sourcea bunch of different things for different purposes, so I only have to make one trip vs several.

I hate ordering stuff online if I can avoid it.somethingsI'dperfertoholdin my hand and look at before purchasing.. especialy if it has any bearing on mine,or my kids safety.

Maybe one day in the future I couldmake a trip of such a thing.. week or two off, ride down on the bike, camp the whole way,do some climbing and hiking etc.. dang that sounds like a nice idea.. I shoud start plannin a trip like that for in a couple years time!