Climbing systems & training

One leg of rope is fixed — at a basal anchor or over a redirect — and you ascend the stationary line on a rope wrench, hitch climber or mechanical device.

• Basal anchor keeps the whole line loadable from the ground, so a groundie can send you gear or lower you in a rescue.
• Canopy anchor (top-tied SRS) halves the rope you carry but removes ground access to your system — only use it where a rescue plan still works.
• Ascend with a foot-and-knee system: chest harness or bridge-mounted ascender plus a foot loop, and always a second point that grabs the rope.
• Descend on a rope wrench or friction hitch with a controlled, no-hands-off-the-tail habit.
• Efficient for tall spar work, long ascents and repeated re-entry on the same line.

Watch out: Check that every device is rated for the rope diameter you are actually on, and that the anchor cannot slide down a smooth trunk.

The classic doubled rope: the line runs over a friction saver in the union and both legs move, giving a 2:1 advantage on the climbing side.

• Friction hitch (Blake's, VT, Distel, Michoacán) or a mechanical device such as a Hitch Hiker or Zigzag rides the line.
• Body thrust, footlock or a short ascender set for getting up; from there you advance the tie-in as you move.
• Best system for pruning: easy limb walks, quick redirects and natural swing-out to the tips.
• Set the friction saver so the rope never runs bark-to-rope — you protect the cambium and your line.

Watch out: Every redirect changes your fall line. Re-read your swing before you cut and keep the hitch dressed and snug.

How the rope gets up there decides how safe the whole climb is. Throwline work first, climb second.

• Pick a union that is above your work, sound, and in line with where the load will pull.
• Throwline: cube-set, one- or two-hand toss, or a big shot for high crotches. Isolate a single branch — never a bundled fork.
• Test the anchor with a bounce from the ground, watching the union for movement, cracks or included bark.
• Alternatives: ladder to the first union (secured and angled correctly), SRS on a basal anchor, or a lift for hazard trees.
• Set a second, independent access route in your head before you leave the ground — that becomes the rescue line.

Watch out: Deadwood and hangers above your set point come down on the ground crew. Clear the drop zone before anyone loads the line.

Positioning is the difference between fighting the tree all day and working it. Two points, tensioned, feet loaded.

• Two independent attachment points whenever a running saw is in your hands — climbing system plus lanyard.
• Keep the system tight and lean into it so your legs carry the load, not your arms.
• Set up so the saw cuts away from your rope, your lanyard and your femoral artery, with a clear escape direction.
• Redirects and a false crotch let you stand upright at the tips instead of hanging sideways.
• Swap sides rather than reaching across your body — reach is where control is lost.

Watch out: Never cut above or through your own tie-in point. Trace both lines with your eyes before every cut.

Spikes belong on removals and on palms/conifer removals where policy allows — not on a tree you intend to keep alive.

• ANSI Z133 and ISA best practice: do not use climbing spurs on a tree that will be retained for pruning.
• Each gaff wound punctures the cambium, opening decay and insect entry points that show up years later.
• Spurless movement: footlocking, limb walking, redirects, secondary tie-ins and body-thrust advancement.
• Acceptable spur use: removals, aerial rescue of an injured climber, and species/situations where the standard permits it.
• Train the movement before the season starts — spurless climbing is a fitness and technique skill, not a gear purchase.

Watch out: Spikes on a retained tree is a client-facing liability as well as a tree health issue. Say no on the estimate, not in the canopy.

An advanced climber is measured by how fast they can get an unconscious climber to the ground, not by how fast they ascend.

• Know how to reach a casualty on both MRS and SRS, and how to take their weight onto your system.
• Carry what a pick-off needs: extra line, prusik or rated hitch cord, and two spare locking carabiners.
• Practise a saw-injury scenario quarterly, including the tourniquet and the handover to EMS at the drop zone.
• Every job briefing names the rescue climber, the rescue line and the access address to give the ambulance.

Watch out: A rescue plan that exists only in your head is not a plan. Say it out loud at the briefing, every job.