Couldn't climb

Talk about being frustrated. I couldn't climb the Norway Spruce, the double stem, since my legs decided not to cooperate. I tried for over an hour to get even one leg over a branch, and it just would not go, not even close. (I only have about 25% use of my legs, sometimes more, sometimes less) With torn rotator cuffs I'm limited as far as how high I can reach so no real help there since the next branches up were too high.

Frustrated and even a bit angry, I went back down the 16 foot ladder (tied to the tree), shed the chainsaw and climbing harness, and went in for a cup of coffee to think. I figure I'll give climbing another shot Friday and if that doesn't work, then I'm getting out the electric pole saw with several long extension cords. The saw extends to something like 12 feet. Add my ladder and that should get it up to about 26 feet since I need a couple of feet to hang onto. Then add about 4 feet (me - no, I'm not that short, but that would be about my shoulder height) and remove whatever branches I can reach. It's a thought, though I'm not sure how well it will work, but where there is a will there is a way. The more branches I can remove, the better. (less resistance and less weight will mean more control)

I went back out to the tree armed with a bow saw and cut off as many branches as I could reach that way (standing on top of a 16 foot ladder) leaving 12 inch nubs in the event Friday I am able to climb the tree. I won't fell it then simple because of the expected winds. However, Sunday once the cold front passed would be ideal. The next window would be Wednesday. So IF I can climb the tree Friday, then I should be able to fell the tree in the ditch on Sunday. If I can't climb it, I'll have to lay the tree diagonally across the road.

I'll have to use another open faced cut to help control it to the ground. I don't want it to take out the power lines or any of my young arborvitae.

There will be pictures both Friday and Sunday evening!

 

I know you will, but just please be careful.
Last time I remember climbing a tree was about 50 years ago.

 

Please get someone to be around as a spotter in case you run into problems. It's just not worth getting into trouble or hurt, good luck!

 

Well, good luck but, - sounds like you're being a bit of a stubborn butt-head. Why take those risks when you can possibly top it @ 16'. then deal with the rest at ground level?
Sooo you block the road for an hour? are the travelers going to b* tch or get out of the cars and help??
I hope you think this one through. JB

 

x2

 

I guess I probably missed it, but is there another reason it needs to come down this weekend beyond convenient timing? If not, then Id at least wait until the injuries heal a bit. Climbing trees and using chainsaws over your head are dangerous activities even for someone in peak physical condition. Could give you some time to think about other options.

Removing extra branches is usually not necessary - in fact they can act like a "parachute" for the crown. But if there are nearby utility lines I'd be calling them first. In many cases they will do the removal for free. And that's way cheaper than paying for repairs if something goes wrong, because they will sue.

 

Ahh, No to topping it at 16 feet. Remember, this is a Double Stem or Trunk. Both have separate leans, and both are entwined. Felling each stem individually is out of the question because no matter how I made the felling cuts, either stem would not go in the desired direction because the stem would have to pull away from the other first which would send either into areas I would prefer they not go. One, my young arborvitae or two, the power lines across the road. And, in both cases I would have to be on the leaning side or the stem to begin with, which would mean that stem could come crashing down on top of me. Since I would be secured to the tree with my safety harness, I would be history.

"Think this one through" yep, you can bet I have.

My original line of thinking was to climb the tree to within 15 or 20 feet of the top. From there I would decide whether or not to top it or leave the top intact. From there I would commence removing the branches on the way down. Since I don't have gaf's, spurs, or spikes as they are sometimes called, I felt this would be the best giving me plenty of foot room on the branches. The other option would have been to leave nubs all the way up which is quite a bit of double work because those nubs will have to be removed in the end. Add to the fact that when the tree would fall, it would perforate the ground wherever I decided to fell it.

My objective is to Not do any damage or at least minimal damage.

 

If you're bound and determined to tackle this, and if its necessary to remove high branches, another option besides climbing might be to rent a lift.

Please be careful, whatever you decide to do. Start from the ground and see what you can get done from there.

 

Well, not really convenient timing, but more for window openings when the winds aren't blowing more than a few MPH. I won't fell any tree when the winds are blowing, especially like they have been today. (gusts up to 40 mph) Even then sometimes depending on how accurate I need to make the fell, I prefer the winds to be coming in the direction of the fall.

Waiting for my injuries to heal would be a long wait. Torn rotator cuffs, especially ones torn as bad as mine require surgery, of which I refuse. Since I've NEVER us a chainsaw to cut above chest height (other than a pole saw), it's really a non issue. But it is a PITA when I have to reach for something above my head or for that matter comb or brush my hair. My back which was broken had left me paralyzed from the waist down. The first surgery left me with a scar on my back with no real results. The second surgery which was a double (front and back entry through separate incisions) gave me about 25% use of my legs. For that reason I sold my gaf's some years back, but that really hasn't stopped me from climbing up into quite a few trees. And, I don't have full use of my left hand even though I am left handed. I may be 65 to 70% disabled (according to the government and doctors) but that hasn't stopped me. (I'm 30 to 35% enabled! )

Now as for removal of the lower branches, it is to keep the branches from hitting, damaging or even destroying my young arborvitae. The pictures below I took this morning to give a better view of the actual layout. On a final note, I have felled hundreds of trees over the years, some between apartment buildings with 20 feet between them, some between houses with maybe 30 feet between them, back, side, and forward leaners. Some in excess of 200 feet. All brought to the ground with no damage to anyone's property including my own. And about half of them in the condition I am in now. BTW, the cause of the broken back was not tree related!

 

Well I hope you don't take any of this as a challenge to your abilities. And that certainly would be an impressive display. I appreciate the desire to show off, trust me. But that's not a very good reason to risk personal or financial injury.

For what it's worth, a call to the power co would have it down quickly. They'd even chip the branches and leave you the mulch if you asked them to.

 

I know most Arborist's tend to frown on using ladders when associated with trees, but honestly, used properly that are an additional tool. I have watched many videos of people using ladders for limbs and even felling, and all I could say was "Why?" There is a proper way to do everything including removing a limb. Usually I use a ladder to help place a tie line on a tree that doesn't have branches at the height I need. So I'll go up the ladder and then use an extension pole to push the line up as far as I can get after looping it around the tree. Once as far as I can get it, I'll pull the loop tight and that's it. Remove the ladder and tie off the tree using a power pull and another tree. Sometimes I have used a ladder to get up into the tree, but usually never to cut from.

In the last tree, also a Norway Spruce, I did use the ladder and did do some cutting before I entered the tree. The branches were so dense, I could hardly get the bar of the chainsaw into the mess, let alone myself. It was climb a few inches, cut some more, climb and cut, climb and cut. Finally I figured I was high enough that if I chanced the direction of the fell a few degrees further I could clear my young arborvitae. My original intention was to do the same as I had planned for this tree.

With the ladder, I do plant the legs several inches or more into the ground and use a lanyard to secure it to the tree. Some will also secure themselves to the ladder, but I prefer to secure myself to the tree itself, but I suppose different situations require different strategies. When I say I was on top of the 16 foot ladder, I do really mean on top. Usually only with one foot, the other is on a branch, and I am making full use of my safety harness, which has two safety straps rather than one. This way, if I am climbing a tree, there is always one in place in the event of a slip.

Back before I broke my back, I was very familiar with gaf and rope ascension. I'd also rappel down, but my legs these days don't want to cooperate. As I mentioned in my previous post, I have felled hundreds of trees, so basically this isn't my first go round. My accuracy in directional felling is usually within inches though there have been occasions where I have been off as much as a foot. I'm not just some silly woman homeowner with a big chainsaw that says "I think I'll go cut that tree down!" without a second thought. I do tend to study all the trees I'll be felling, sometimes to the point of taking a lot of pictures so that I can study them even more so that I can plan out the best strategy that is also the safest causing the least and hopefully no damage.

I'd love to be able to have several groundies like I had before I broke my back, but these days even when I plan well in advance, the weather changes those plans in an instant. The people around here have jobs and schedules to keep so I get what I can. I will say I am always careful in anything I do. I have to watch how and where I walk since a simple fall could be detrimental to my heath. That plus it's a PITA trying to get back up.

 

I'm sure there are many that question my abilities, but I would never take that as a challenge. I am confident in my abilities, but not so much that I might become careless. I know what I can and can't do, and I know my limitations. Sometimes I have to improvise and/or adapt, but with extreme caution!

I'll check with the power company, but I don't believe they would feel this is a "Risk" tree. I don't think I would want them to chip up the branches if they feel otherwise. These have some pretty dense heavy wood, so I've been cutting the branches into kindling and firewood. I have a separate rack just for that. Some of the rounds are about 4 inches across (from the last tree, same species) The remains will end up going through my chipper.

 

Just don't be like these guys.

Oh my...

 

Now that is just insane!

You've heard of Dumb and Dumber! Well, this is Dumbest!

 

I promise, cross my heart, that I will use every safety precaution necessary including lanyards and other safety straps (attached to my safety harness) with this and any other tree I'll be felling in the future where I'll need to be more than a few feet off the ground.

 

I would error on the side of caution here and have hired someone from the start. For me any tree that can hit a power line is something that I won't touch. One mistake or over site can turn into a very big problem very quickly.