Hi, I'm Alan. I'm a middle-aged ("pushing 50") nature and landscaping geek. For my "day job," I train new transit employees how to operate buses, so safety is something I think about ALL the time. I've been climbing for about six or seven years since I took a two-day class with Bob Wray of Blue Ridge Tree Climbing, LLC. He teaches a "minimal hardware" double-rope (DRT) approach to recreational climbing. The only hardware I have used (until this year) is a set of triple-lock carabiners, a figure-eight descender, and a New Tribe Harness. Everything else is ropes - the primary line, split-tail, and secondary lanyard - and knots! And Bob Wray insisted we know them cold and by feel! The Blakes Hitch is the main friction knot, and it is the lifesaver! Get that wrong and you've got a quick trip to the floor! The highest I have ever been is about 70 feet, but I'm usually in the tree by myself with a friend on the ground. The friend I took the class with has not been available to climb with me for a while. As a Christmas gift to myself this year, I bought myself my first foot ascender - a double cam setup by Notch that's kind to rope - and boy does it rock! After using just a foot-lock loop technique (i.e., just the rope) for several years, the solid grip of the foot ascender on the rope was amazing. I don't consider it "essential," because I've mastered the foot-lock technique, but it has substantial slip, particularly when you don't have a lot of rope-weight beneath you.
At my age, I don't ever think I'll be a master arborist. I've thought about getting ISA certified - just for the education and knowledge - but I'm too old (and a bit overweight) to be a working climber. I've got my belt handsaw for light pruning, but wielding a chainsaw in a tree is beyond my limits of comfort. (I can fell a tree on a dime from the ground, though - I just prefer to have both boots on the ground when the chain is moving at 60mph !)
I think what I really enjoy about tree climbing is that it requires skill and bravery. The 20-30 feet height is when I really get freaked out, but then I just focus on the mechanics and problem-solving of getting to the next crotch, and the fear subsides. Being in the top of a tree and being able to hand climb or just rest on a limb is the best feeling ever!
I'd like to eventually learn SRT and limb-walking, and some day I might even try to sleep in a hammock in the tree-tops. I don't know if I'll ever get to that comfort level, but it's a dream.
I live in the shadow of Virginia Tech, which is Virginia's top arboriculture college. I've helped with some champion tree measuring. I just don't know a lot of folk that do climbing recreationally. It would be nice to find some local friends to climb with!
Thanks for reading!
- Alan
(p.s. the attachment is a picture of a *Juglans nigra* in my back yard. I'm up near the top.)
