SRT Day 2

Another day in the trees!

We met at 9:00 and watched a video (on computer) about assessing the safety of a tree. We then walked around the woods and looked at different trees and discussed potential hazards and such.

After that, it was up into Pagoda. Pagoda is the name of one of the two main Oak Trees that we train in. We practiced doing higher pitches. First you set your rope, and kind of slip-knot it around the branch ("anchor") then climb up the rope. Once you are up higher you take a weighted sack and some thinner line and throw the sack up to a higher anchor point in the tree. Then you take the other end of the main climbing rope (already attached to you at your belt) and pull that over the higher anchor point and affix it, and then transfer yourself over to this higher rope. Then you undo the first anchor and attach it to your belt.

In this way you can work yourself up the tree to higher and higher anchor points with the same rope, and always have an escape line to the ground.

It's a lot of procedural work, and doing things in a certain order that minimizes the risk of falling or dropping equipment, and it takes a lot of practice. That is why we were hanging from a tree for 6 hours today.

We also practiced installing 2nd anchors to use with a laynard. That allows you to walk out onto the end of branches and basically move through the tree in a horizontal, not just vertical direction.

At the end we installed tree boats (see photo above) way up high, and took a break from hanging in our saddles.

Part of the day was about the "spiritual" nature of climbing. Most (all) of the people who climb as a profession feel a real spiritual connection to the trees they climb. They will relate personalities of the trees, moods of the trees, and the like. Tim told us some amazing stories to illustrate those points. Laying in the tree boat at the end of the day I definitely felt it. You really do feel a closeness to a tree being up in the canopy, trusting it with your life, spending so much time examining it, looking at it, feeling it. Laying back in the tree boat the wind was cool, it was quiet, and the roof of the tree with all it's personality was played out above me to look at. It's part of the appeal of tree climbing. It's not just about the technical pleasure of rigging and climbing ropes, and the adrenaline part of being suspended high in the air on an 11mm thick rope, but the chance to get off the earth, and into another realm that just isn't the same when you're looking up at it as when you're in it. It's hard to explain, exactly, so I recommend you go climb a tree!

Tree Climbing NW

Tree Climbers International

Pacific Tree Climbing Institute

Speaking of the technical side of things (I was, see the paragraph above), Tim is involved in a lot of the design of tree-climbing equipment. The tree boats that we use have a new mosquito covering that is his design, and during today's climb, while we were talking he came up with an idea for a design change in the ascenders that will probably be reality very soon. I mention this only because I was there when he got the inspiration.

AND FINALLY: My reference to Carl XVI Gustof resulted in two hits to my blog from Sweden. So for all my Swedish readers: Hej!