climbing limbless white pine/spikelss

[Adkpk]

I am working on getting up a real bugger of a white pine. I can't get a line on a good branch. It's in the woods and has only little dead branches till the top about 80' up. I'm doing a good job getting all the dead out with the throw line. But have yet to reach a live branch. I would try a trunk wrap but my cambium saver won't make it around the trunk even once and there are too many trees in the way anyway. I am on a good dead branch about 60' up. I am going to use a second rope in a hemlock 5' from it pull myself up on both ropes in case one gives. I also have a 30' lanyard which will hold me to the tree in case they both go. Once I get some altitude I'll try to set something up higher and take it to the top. This is my genius idea anybody on climbing limbless pines without spiking it?

 

[BC WetCoast]

Big shot into the top.

Bow and arrow your throwline.

Climb the hemlock and throw your throwline up from there.

 

[Adkpk]

Ya to the bow and arrow but I don't have one. The big shot didn't work out for me, I sent it back. Hemlock idea is what I had in mind.

 

[jrietkerk]

are you ascending SRT? you can get 80ft no problem with a bigshot, just put the line close to the trunk and you can hang on a 2" limb or less. (just make sure you're over more than a couple just in case) If the throwball won't come down, you can use monofilament to reduce friction. Its not for everyone.

Isolating a limb and climbing Ddrt over a sketchy limb is unnerving for sure. If you can't get a line up that high, you can use a series of webbing loops and just girth hitch foot and attachment holds up the trunk. Tie one to your harness, have another one at foot level (or where you'd step up to) and when you step up on the strap below, just slide the loop attached to your harness up. Hang on it and then repeat. You can attach the foot loop to your harness with some accessory cordage and then reach down and slide it up too, or just take 8 or 10 extras along. Sounds confusing, but its do-able. Depending on how high you can step, you can really move. Have a rope with you to set a falsecrotch on the trunk if things get iffy and you want to get down, or just trunkwrap the rope and bring it up with you for extra support and quick escape. Bring a small throwline pouch and a slinghot, or haul up a long pole once you're high enough to reach up to a good branch and then put in the rope.

I think you should give the bigshot another try - I use it for scenarios you are describing all the time. I think Treebuzz had a good thread on the loop runner technique. Good luck and good on you for not just gaffing up there. Must be a nice tree.

 

[tomtrees58]

some times you have to spike it tom trees

 

[CRN Tree]

I wouldn't trust a dead limb in a white pine. One can usually break a live 2 inch limb with out a problem so the dead limb for me would be out of the question. Sometimes spiking it is the safest. good luck

 

[JeffL]

You guys dont give dead wood enough credit.

Its not like youve got your rope 3 ft out on the limb creating a nice lever effect, its sucked up against the trunk, and loading maybe the first 1/2" of the branch coming out of the tree, assuming its a solid dead limb, and has several below, I've ascended on worse. Then again, this is where being 150lbs comes in handy, and my buckstrap NEVER comes off the tree, so if need be, I end up sucked against the trunk hanging off my buckstrap, and have to shimmy my way back down the tree. But thats just me.

Whats the girth on the tree? The webbing sling idea sounds alot more agreeable than dangling off a brittle dead limb in a white pine. How tall is the neighboring hemlock in comparison to the pine?

 

[Dadatwins]

The big shot didn't work out for me, I sent it back.

Big shot can be annoying first couple of tries, now it comes on every job. Has saved me more than once. Can you get in the hemlock and work the pine from it? White pine can be a sappy mess and the friction from the rope can be more damaging than spike holes.

 

[Nailsbeats]

some times you have to spike it tom trees

Get er' done!

 

[Rftreeman]

some times you have to spike it tom trees

Get er' done!

yep, throw a 24' ladder up and spike it from the top of the ladder that way theres no spike marks at eye level.

 

[Adkpk]

Here's the dealio. I want to dead limb the tree to make a tent site below a little more safe and of course just to get up it. It's in an area of several of these giant white pines and hemlock. At the time I had the big shot I was using slick line. I couldn't shoot a rock 20' higher that I could throw the bag. So for the money I sent it back. 20' would help me here if I could get a throw bag on the lighter weight line (sorry the name escapes me) up there.

JeffL is right about getting the line on the trunk and not a few inches out. I have tried to kick off three inch dead white pine limbs with my boot. Good way to break an ankle. I weigh 180 and I would be careful not to bounce on the line too much. If I tie in to the hemlock with a second line. So as to not hit the ground if all goes wrong I should be alright. I'll get out the binoculars to make sure the branch is solid and make sure I have several other branches involved (or should I use a cambium saver in case the line starts to eat at the limb). My biggest problem should be not getting tangled up in the lines.
I already have a throwline on a branch at about 60 or 70' and it's three inches from the trunk with the climbing line I am sure I can get it on the trunk.
The hemlock will be easy to set a line in. It is only 60' and full of live branches. If I make higher than my line in the hemlock that should be high enough to throw a line to a live branch in the pine and then I'm home.
The girth at the base of the tree is about 45" I'm going to guess. Spiking would be fun but in the spring the tree would be full of sap and I would have to spike all around the trunk to get the limbs off in order to advance the line. My spikes or not really that good either. They work on a smooth barked tree but a big white pine, they wouldn't fly. Or I would fly onto my face. I only spiked a tree once.

 

[Adkpk]

pics

Slick line. But I can set the line higher with the lighter weight throw line. All the limbs in the pic below are dead but just above out of the pic are live.

Smaller tree to the right is the hemlock.

Girth of trunk.

I got much further up the tree today (not shown) with the throw line. Used my lighter weight line. I didn't succeed at setting a line, to cold and windy but next try and I will be set. I did bring home the pics.

 

[JeffL]

Yeah, I say climb the hemlock and re-set from there. Although to be honest, at one point when I was a little dumber and a little braver starting out, I probably would have been ok with a shot over a few of those dead limbs, and getting my rope wrapped around the trunk, so should the limb break, at least a few of the ones my rope hit on the way down will slow my fall.

 

[randyg]

Those branches are all kinda strong so long as you flip climbin line next to trunk. I'd tie one end to another tree, get someone else to hang with you and try and break the limb off. If you can not, climb it nice and easy SRT till you get to "the ladder" and then "ladder up" to live branches, hang friction saver and trim dead all the way down. Now go do the next one.