Can a Fan Palm be too tall to climb?

[Ogopogo]

so, speaking specifically of california fan palms (not the thicker stemmed, mexican) or i guess something similar with a stem girth of 8-10, is there ever a height when these things aren't safe to climb anymore?

I've heard that when they get overpruned and get the skinny bottle-neck features part way up the trunk, they can fail, but this was hearsay.

the trees I'm looking at are 100 year old 90' palms, good clean stems with no bottle-necks, some have a bit of a butt puckering curve/lean. They are not bucket accesible, and even our 55' boom with 10' elevator and 12' power pole saw probably wouldn't reach anyway.


I would love to hear people's palm stories but I am specifically after any knowledge of if a palm is ever too tall to safely climb.

and yes, I am a palm spiker, i don't give a rat's ass about the tree's health versus my safety when I'm that up that high.

 

[Ogopogo]

I might have gotten mexican and california fan palms mixed up, I'm talking about the skinnier one of the two, but info on both doesn't hurt.

 

[pdqdl]

I am completely out of my league on palms, but here goes:

If you could shoot a rope over the top, you could pre-load it with 2x your weight, shake it, bounce it, and otherwise guess if it was going to hold you.

 

[mikegar]

my policy regarding palms is that i dont do them. It takes a special breed of person to do those tall palms. ive seen and heard of the 100ft palms being climbed. If you think about it those palms experience wind loads that far exceed the forces you may put on the tree. They're probably safe, but thats not the right question, the question that should be asked is " are you a palm tree climber"

 

[jefflovstrom]

You are talking about washingtonia robusta and no, they are ok at any height.
Jeff

 

[beastmaster]

I have climbed a million(give or take) Washingtonias over the years. Once I learned that if others are wary to climb them, I could name my price. I hate climbing the ones that haven't been trimmed ever or for years. Their dangerous as the fronds can come loose and crush the air out of you, penning you to the tree for a slow painful death. Breathing all that stuff found in palms can't be good for you either. It's common for rats, possums, raccoons, owls, hawks, etc. to make their happy homes in them also. As far as height goes that isn't a major concern to me. That isn't to say I don't get scared a little.
Those really tall skinny ones(not washingtonias I think)trim them selfs. I use to do 7 of them at a retirement home,twice a year so the fronds didn't bomb some old lady. I used a 55 ft boom, then climb out and go up another 40 + feet. They had woodpecker hole in them real bad in some spots. I bet if you put a strong enough rope in them you could pull them to the ground like a big sling shot though. Their not going to break..
I was in a tall one in fontana calif. once, and out of nowhere a gust of 60 mph came out of nowhere. I bear hugged that Bit _h, and closed my eyes and rode it out.(not like I had a choice) It didn't break. I had one in a mall I use to do at night, Two or so in the morning, 85 or so feet over the entrance to a monkey wards. It had a hourglass defect up towards the top. I would climb up to that and use a pole saw with two extensions.
Removing those tall skinny 90ft palms is a whole set of problems. They can all be climbed, it's that little sane part of your brain that you have to convince.
If they are really skinny I use a choker type lanyard, One last thing, don't look down:msp_smile:

 

[Ogopogo]

thanks guys, great responses.

I've actually done a couple of 80'ers, but these are taller. The 80'ers were the scariest trees i've ever climbed, but thats part of what keeps me going. I choke my flipline when I get around 70' and keep my 2nd line down around my feet as a backup while i'm cutting.

 

[imagineero]

I'll bite... I've done a couple really tall ones, up around the 100' mark. They were mostly in front of small apartment blocks. There's something about being up one of these suckers, towering 3 or 4 floors above the roof of a 6 story apartment block that sure does get the pucker factor going.

The one I've always heard is that palms never fall over. I've yet to see or hear of one falling over but it's small comfort when you're up there. The ones I've done all had a kink way up high for no reason I can understand. They're often straight and true up to about 70'-80' or so, then suddenly kick of to the side by 10 or 15 degrees. At the head, you caoul put your hands around them and choke them. 5 or 6". I'm 6'2 and 250lbs. Right up at the head those things do get a sway on. They can swing 10' or more side to side in slow motion. You can get motion sickness from it. I should add I'm not afraid of heights at all, done plenty of rock climbing and industrial access work so 100' is nothing at all. Being up these skinny suckers swaying round will give you the willies though.

If you decide to do them, charge a lot. As already mentioned, nobody else will want to do it. I havent said no to one yet, but I think Im going to change that policy soon. I take the time to get a rope over the head. It takes a lot of shots with an 8 oz bag and sometimes you get it but cant get it to settle through the fronds or cant pull the rope through. Keep shooting until you get it right. Getting 30-40' from the base helps. I always spike them, most everybody does in aus. Unless its a removal you can leave your saw on the ground and just take a handsaw.

Shaun

 

[beastmaster]

I've had limited success shooting a line over tall palms. Add wind or power lines and it can be a nightmare of wasted shots. Its still worth the effort on palms that have fronds all the way to the ground for safety reasons. I removed a leaner palm over a house by shooting a line across the top a while back. Would of been a bear climbing and removing fronds on that thing the way it leaned from the ground up. I skidded it using lag bolts to keep the skin from coming off with the rope. Worked out good.

 

[lostcoastland]

If it was tall i guess you could shoot it out of a bucket truck with a big shot. It's hard to throw tall palms because the line gets kinda pinched in the heart and you have to throw way over the top so you can retreieve the throwbag. Ansi133 work practices says your supposed to throwline them if there over three years since theyve been trimmed. of course people still go after heavily skirted palms, after you do one you'll appreciate having a rope in. Better to tie off on a different trunk or immovable object than the base so when your not bothered by a line up against the tree the whole time as in tying off to the base. wear a bandana or respirator..I wonder about the tall pal,s as well..Beasties story about the "60 Mph" wind gust is pretty funny ..palm trees wiggle like a noodle, just doesnt feel right ..watch out for the skirts and trim them within three years...Also..Do NOT over trim palms because it create a smaller diameter in the following years when it becomes the trunk of the tree...Am i correct on that one??