Night climbing in the downtown sycamore.

I took advantage of this last bit of nice weather tonight. I started up the sycamore just before dark, and not wasting any time, got a nice tree top tie in just before it started getting dark.

I spent about 4 hours climbing and lounging around the tree as the stars came out. All the city lights around me looked amazing too!

Wish I could have taken some pics... the view of town at night from 80' is wonderful


Carl

Sweet

Night climbing is a great experience. It's interesting to see the difference between turning your head lamp (if you have one) on and off in the tree. With it on, your world shrinks to your immediate surroundings in the tree, with it off you get the entire night vista. I've always wondered what it looks like from the ground to see a climber's light up in the top of a tree.
-moss

moss wrote:

I've always wondered what it looks like from the ground to see a climber's light up in the top of a tree.
-moss

We had some of our campers up one pitch (about 40 feet) in a black gum, in the dark, this past summer. Brown Bats were buzzing us to get the skeeters and gnats. We could hear their wing beats and vocal chattering as they zipped between us.

From below it looked interesting, but from a distance away it looked surreal. It was a bit foggy at the time and the headlamps took on an alien-like property. I too had no camera with me. I think I need to buy an inexpensive one to keep in my gear bag.

If you get the chance to do a night climb, do it. It's a very different experience. Try not to blind your climbing partners with your headlamp though:dry:

Moss Wrote:

Night climbing is a great experience. It's interesting to see the difference between turning your head lamp (if you have one) on and off in the tree. With it on, your world shrinks to your immediate surroundings in the tree, with it off you get the entire night vista. I've always wondered what it looks like from the ground to see a climber's light up in the top of a tree.

This particular night there was a half moon, but I think the ambient town lighting would have been more than enough. I never pulled my headlamp out of my camelback.

I have been on some dark dark climbs before in my own backyard and the tree was close enough that my porch light cast a little glow. My headlamp has red, spot, flood, spot&flood settings. Each definitely set a completely different mood in the tree for sure. I stuck pretty much with red though, it took to long to become \"unblinded\" after turning on the bright lights.

Carl