I'm bringing this fine thread back from the dead. A few pages back I posted some pics of the Petzl zigzag, so I felt it would be good to provide an update on it. In short I couldn't get used to it and, not being midline attachable was a huge drawback for me. On top of that I decided to jump into climbing SRT so I sold the zigzag and picked up a hybrid device called the hitch hiker 2. I've put a little over a dozen climbs on it and so far I love it! Made right here in the USA by a fellow tree guy Paul Cox. I can't see the thing ever breaking. Coming from an old school drt background the thing I like most about this thing is it works equally well in a SRT or DRT drt up. So far on removals I like jetting up the tree in srt getting my PSP set and switching to drt to work the tree. Plus it's still hitch based so it feels very solid and familiar. This is where I bought my hitch hiker: Hitch Hiker 2 - RopeTek P.s. yes I'm hanging from my garage rafters in these pics So what's new with everybody?
Pretty easy really. I like it a lot. I practiced a bunch in my garage. Then in the back yard low and slow. I can see using it for pruning and skipping the switch over to drt entirely. I really cannot see myself going back to strictly drt.
I got a Hitch Hiker a few years ago. One of the single best pieces of climbing gear I've ever used. I use mine for all kinds of life support stuff. Like snow shoveling on steep pitched roofs. When I'm spuring up a tree to do a takedown. I chock the tree with a running bowline and run the line thru my HH. Hold the running bowline and the wire core flipline in my hands as I ascend and decend in the spurs. But, if I need to bail out, I just unclip the flipline from either side , kick my spurs out and rife the Hitch Hiker to the ground. It works super for tree to tree transitions on srt with a top choke. Super smooth stopping part way down the tree. Just an awesome piece of gear !!!
Not a very good pic. But u get the idea. Up here we don't have the nice climbing hardwoods y'all do back east. Which is where the HH would REALLY come into its own. But it works great for me none the less.
Your not alone in using the rafters for some testing haha As for what’s new.... work, work, work, basement remodel, work, work..... you get the pattern Although the work part has included a bunch of climbing, just no ropes or fancy equipment.
I've got a pic I uploaded to my Facebook album of me hanging up in the rafters of my arctic entry when I first started learning double rope technique.
Right on. A couple of those pics look familiar from the giant hitch hiker thread over at the treehouse. That thread alone sold me on it! Good to see you over here.
Hello everyone! I haven't been around for a couple months while preparing the late MIL's place for sale. So I thought I would start here with a few pics from a job I did earlier this week. Another dead ash. The house is on one side, garden on another side and a shed behind the tree. After stripping off the lower limbs I came down out of the tree to help clean up the mess I made. One looking straight down when I went back up the tree. Looking out over the neighborhood. And my shadow on the ground.
Well the only answer that makes sense is it depends Seriously though here in Michigan we've been dealing with them for about 15 years now. I've found that the base/roots starts to dry rot and and weaken at around the 4-5 year mark depending on how wet the ground is. It trends more toward wet here. If it still has bark they are usually fairly safe, but I typically prefer to be tied in to a safe tree near by. If they don't have bark I will use something sharp to gouge several spots around the base near to the ground to determine rot. The tops also get really brittle and stuff will not hinge without rigging. I've taken to treating them like cottonwood/poplar/Bass and rig small.
Here are a couple bases of trees that gave up the ghost at about the 5-6 year mark. It's very wet at this location. Watershed is at around 12-24 inches continuously.
That about sums it up. I'll take one of my spikes and jab it into the trunk in several spots before I go up the tree. Then I pay close attention as I'm going up, feeling for any soft spots. Most of the ones I've taken down have been solid enough to climb. I did turn down a couple though. The one homeowner had let it stand there dead for several years and I wasn't comfortable with it. I told him he should get someone with a bucket truck to be safe.
Around here they have made a rule about no climbing any ash. Most of the local guys have invested in backyard buckets that will fit through fences and have 80’+ booms. Same as everyone says above though. If you go back to page 4 of this thread I think I had some pictures of one last December. It was solid wood but stone dead and I tied to a better looking one behind it.
I myself have not put on my gear this summer due to certain circumstances, but what about you guys?!! I’m hoping in another month I can get back at and drop a few pounds in the process!!
Got a big cotton wood coming up next week. Been quite a few with room to just fall them. How have you been doing Joe?
Hanging in there ! Hopefully next month I’ll tear into clearing the ash out of my hedgerow near the house. There’s a ton!! I’ve also got 3 willows a cotton wood and box elder that needs removing this fall/winter. Hope to get some climbing in on them since some of them need some precise disassembly.
We've been pretty busy all summer, I look for any excuse I can get to go climb trees!! Hope you've been feeling better, J. Dirt!