I thought it was silly and unnecessary at first, until I realized all I needed to do it was a longer piece of rope, an ATC, and an extra carabiner...then I wanted to try it, just because. I had originally made my own tether with 10mm climbing rope and 8mm accessory cord, so I bought 35' of the same climbing rope to use as my new tether/rappel line. I use (essentially) the same method as the one shown in the linked YouTube video by JCline in post #17 above.
When I am ready to come down, I perform the following:
- Send bow to ground with 35' paracord
- Hook other end of 35' paracord to rappel line knot with wire gate carabiner
- Stand up straight on stick/platform
- Throw lineman belt around tree, hook in, tighten up
- Slide tether/rappel line prusik knot down to lineman loop height
- Disconnect carabiner from bridge and connect into lineman loop
- Pull spare carabiner & ATC out of dump pouch
- Push rope down thru ATC, hook carabiner thru rope & ATC
- Attach ATC/carabiner to bridge, adjust/tighten accordingly
- Rappel down using prusik on lineman loop as brake
- Grab stick/platform on the way down
- Once on the ground, disconnect bow from 35' paracord and move it out of the way
- Use 35' paracord to pull rope down out of the tree
It sounds complicated if you have never done it before, but it really is super simple. Once you do it 3 or 4 times, it becomes second nature.