Dangerous situations?

Moss wrote:
Even climbing the best possible tree you're going to have potentially dangerous things happen as part of your learning process. Note that I'm not saying that dangerous situations might occur, I'm saying they will occur.

Well, this seems worthy of a long discussion. What are the best examples to begin with?

OK, I'll bite. There's a long list. I'll start off with the simplest ones I can think of.

Getting hit with a throw bag while not wearing a helmet.

Getting bark or other foreign matter in your eyes

splinters/abrasions

Hangers falling on you while you clim.

Bees, ants, caterpillars, and any number of other venomous creatures.

Throw line burns.

Falling from a limb - tied in. Make no mistake, it still hurts when you swing into the trunk or nearby branch.

Unexpected weather, including lightning.

Batteries go dead in your headlamp while climbing after sunset.

That should get us started. Who's next?...

Poor selection of your TIP that will break dropping climber to the ground. It happens quite frequently to arborists too!
We take all precautions to make sure our gear meets all types high standards but very few climbers really study how to select a proper TIP.

oldtimer wrote:
Poor selection of your TIP that will break dropping climber to the ground. It happens quite frequently to arborists too!

Well, I'm not sure if this is a risk in Moss's \"best possible\" super healthy trees, but it suspect it is real enough in ordinary trees. It makes me wonder if those ring-ring false crotches or something similar could be safer than a simple tube FS. I think they might be if you could wrap them around the spar, but you couldn't wrap them from the ground.

I can certainly see Baker's points about limb-walking, getting hit in the face by anything you've thrown, and bees/wasps/hornets. I think getting bark dust in my eyes will be a reoccurring problem.

As I re-read my post I realized that this topic may have a two sided effect. It, obviously, could benefit new climbers by making them privy to some things more experienced members have experienced, BUT it does have the capability to make a new climber think twice about getting into a tree in the first place. I wouldn't want that to happen. EVERYONE should experience the joy of climbing. It is no more (far less) dangerous than any other outdoor pastime like skiing, motorcycling, hunting, jogging, whatever.

I would like to point out that tree climbing risk does not have to mean danger of injury. Life is full of risks. You could risk losing a girl/boy friend because you refuse get out of a tree to go the the movies with them. You could risk getting fired because you decided to take an extra hour on your lunch to climb. You risk not beating the high score on some video game because you were outside enjoying nature instead of sitting on your sofa getting fat, indoors, etc., etc., etc.

Climbing in a tree carries risk. Learning and following a good safety protocol lowers the risk considerably. I started a thread here to talk about some basic concepts around climber safety. If a climber is not aware of or does not follow basic safety practices they have the potential to get into very dangerous situations, there are infinite possibilities.
-moss

Davej wrote:

oldtimer wrote:
Poor selection of your TIP that will break dropping climber to the ground. It happens quite frequently to arborists too!

Well, I'm not sure if this is a risk in Moss's \"best possible\" super healthy trees, but it suspect it is real enough in ordinary trees.

I don't know of any \"super healthy trees\". But that's besides the point. You can select a poor TIP in the healthiest possible tree.

As I mentioned in the previous post, it's about your safety protocol, it's all about reducing your risk. Choosing trees in poor condition raises the risk. If you go into the woods and find a really fine looking tree with a solid trunk and solid limbs in a healthy crown you will notice dead limbs in the tree. Healthy trees have dead limbs, it's part of the normal life process of a wild tree to have dead limbs. So, it's best to look for the best possible trees to learn how to climb. The more you climb the more you understand tree structure for different trees and how to recognize hazards and avoid them in the best possible trees.
-moss

moss wrote:
Climbing in a tree carries risk. Learning and following a good safety protocol lowers the risk considerably. I started a thread...

Ok, so if you have a death wish...

1. Don't thoroughly inspect and assess the tree.
2. Don't bother using rated rope and gear.
3. Select a TIP less than 6\" diameter.
4. Set your rope far away from the trunk.
5. Don't bother wearing a rated helmet.
6. Don't bother inspecting your gear.
7. Don't worry about remaining tied in while in the tree.
8. Try climbing above your tie-in (see item 11).
9. If you perform a switchover then detach from the first tie-in before testing the second tie-in.
10. Don't use extreme care or redirects while limb walking.
11. Think of your arborist harness as a fall-arrest system.
12. Work when you are tired.
13. Don't bother to stay hydrated.

Moss wrote:
Note that I'm not saying that dangerous situations might occur, I'm saying they will occur.

I don't think I'll be climbing above my tie-in. Which of the \"death wish\" items are most nearly unavoidable? Climbing down while tired?

Like moss wrote there is always some risk even if you follow all the rules every single tree is different.

The most important rule for me is \"never climb alone\" or be alone out there while climbing!

- martin

woodjob wrote:
The most important rule for me is \"never climb alone\" or be alone out there while climbing!

Oh, that one would be difficult for me.

Recent experience brings another item for the death wish list...

Blindly feel around hollow branch collars and other openings.


...I've never seen a squirrel freak out like that before, and I DON'T think I want to see it like that again

But man, those things are the masters of the trees.

Carl

Culinarytracker wrote:
Blindly feel around hollow branch collars and other openings.

...I've never seen a squirrel freak out like that before...

Ok, so a squirrel won't stand still for that?

That squirrel freaked out and did a frantic diving style climb up and out of there on limbs smaller than a pencil, all at a dead sprint. There was no concern of falling 60' to the ground at all for this squirrel. I'm just glad that it chose a branch route instead of using my arm as an escape route. The rope scared the thing, and my arm was right by the hole it was in. (On second thought, I'm sure the squirell knew quite well that my arm was an invading object. It is his home after all)

Wildlife really is a concern though. This isn't my first close call, and I've been climbing less than a year.
My climbing buddy stuck his hand in a hole for a handhold a while back and the hole was full of momma +4 baby racoons. Scared the bujeebies out of him.

Carl

Well strange things can happen. I remember when I was a kid one Winter day I saw my dad jumping around in the back yard. A mouse had run up inside his pants leg. Now can you imagine being in a tree and having a squirrel do that?