SRT Climbing - Anchors, Hitches, Configurations

[mtsrunner]

What’s your thoughts on these ropes? That platinum sure is purty.

Well, I think I am going with a hybrid SRS/JRB technique this year and not using any mechanical devices. Basically climbing a single strand with a Michoacán and rapelling with a Michoacán and a Munter hitch. I did try Platinum with my Safeguard and it was too jerky for my liking. I was liking the Platinum with some old 8mm accessory cord (Michoacán) until I tried Rescue Tech with Sterling 5.9mm Power Cord (also Michoacán). That is my favorite so far because it is smooth and light and not bulky.
The Platinum will probably last for decades, though. You can just tell it’s quality. If they made it in 8 mm, I would never look for another rope.

 

[gcr0003]

Well, I think I am going with a hybrid SRS/JRB technique this year and not using any mechanical devices. Basically climbing a single strand with a Michoacán and rapelling with a Michoacán and a Munter hitch. I did try Platinum with my Safeguard and it was too jerky for my liking. I was liking the Platinum with some old 8mm accessory cord (Michoacán) until I tried Rescue Tech with Sterling 5.9mm Power Cord (also Michoacán). That is my favorite so far because it is smooth and light and not bulky.
The Platinum will probably last for decades, though. You can just tell it’s quality. If they made it in 8 mm, I would never look for another rope.

I have just enough rescue tech to rappel on and I haven’t been overly impressed with it but I don’t have anything else to compare it too. I’m using beal cord and it’s just ok. Maybe I should try some of the stuff you are using and see if I like it. I climbed SRT on it the other day and it wasn’t the best but doable. I can see where JRB climbing it would be nice.

 

[STL]

@gcr0003 @STL - Looks like while I was laying out my ropes for their photo op, @mtsrunner beat me to it! Since I went to the trouble, I'll post the pics anyway. FWIW, my personal preference for SRT climbing is currently the Teufelberger Platinum 10.5mm. I like that it's a smidge larger than the Sterling C-IV Canyon 9mm, and I really like that it stays round and won't let the core milk up or down the jacket under repeated climbing and rappelling.

Here are the pics I took to help you visualize the size and packability differences. I included 20 fl.oz. Gatorade bottles for another size reference. I no longer have 40' lengths of Sterling OpLux or Teufelberger Rescue Tech, so I can't include those in the bundled rope photo, but they're almost the same size as the bundle of C-IV Canyon rope - they just compress a bit more because the rope isn't as stiff as C-IV Canyon. Hope you find this helpful.

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Very helpful and great reference! Thank you for taking the time to do that.

 

[MNFarmHunter]

I'd say the biggest benefit I've had from this site and group is the variation in techniques. Coming from the rescue world, I know what I remember (which seems to be fading) and along comes someone else with a different technique that's easily adaptable or running it in a way I had never even considered.

Take anchors. Canopy is simple and uses the least amount of rope but you have to be choosy with some locations. Base anchor solves some of the choosiness but takes double more rope. It then dawned on me last night why not make a hybrid of the two, limb anchor off a lower limb as you would a canopy anchor but continue it up and over like a base anchor.

It's those simple little things where I find myself thinking, "Why knew that so why didn't it ever occur to me".

 

[gcr0003]

I'm so conflicted. C-IV, platinum, or good ole predator... decisions. I plan to SRT and JRB some with mostly friction hitches. I know predator is about a lb heavier/100ftt and a good bit bulkier but it's tried and true in my mind and I like the in-hand feel. I could also probably pick up some used. C-IV versus platinum is the other tilt I'm not sure who would win. Rope isn't cheap either so It's me spending $100+ on a climbing method I likely will not be able to use every.

I am thinking 75-80' to support JRB, MRS, and Basal anchor SRT if desired. I toted 75' of predator on a few hunts last year, it's not awful.

 

[gcr0003]

Yes, that’s called the alternate lanyard method, easiest is to climb the branches, if too big a gap than climb with the help of rope, either Moving Rope, or SRT.

For tree work I now use Yale’s 11mm Kernmaster for a climb line, because of its smooth cover for easy hitch operation, and Bluewater 9mm Canyon Line for a lanyard, used 10mm HTP before the Kern. For recreational climbing I used 9mm HTP for climb line but recently switched to the Swift Pro Protect, which doesn’t harden up like the HTP. Also use dynamic ropes, theres stretch but they’re not bungee cords, also twin 6mm to change it up. I really like the Elite for staying flexible unlike most statics. No Platinum for me, it’s not sliceable!

I don’t hunt so no platform, I have been thinking about using one or two of the aluminum steps for use when needing something to stand on to make a cut in tree work, can use a loop but not very stable.

That Yale Kernmaster isn't that expensive at all. Would you recommend it over say predator or platinum?

 

[Brocky]

I haven’t tried those two, but the Kernmaster has a 48 strand cover, making hitches and devices slide easier. From what I’ve read it also stays firm, doesn’t flatten like the other two. Different vendors offer different color schemes, one might be camo-like.

 

[MNFarmHunter]

Here's my thoughts on a hybrid base anchor system. Hopefully my drawing skills will make sense.

To start, let's say this is the tree I want to be in with the circle indicating where I want the canopy turn to be:


The first throw of the throw line would be through that fork like normal while not worrying about what limbs you go through on the way up or down:


Then, take your throwball and tag end and throw it over the lower limb (shown in orange):


With the line from the second throw, pull your rope up and around to create the "canopy" anchor without forgetting to set your retrieval line. Once that's done, pull your rope with the line from the first throw up an over the canopy turn. In essence, it's still a base anchor but the anchor attachment is higher in the tree. That way, you solve the issue of multiple limbs without needing extra rope.

 

[Brocky]

No worries about deer with it up there! This is also a good practice when doing tree work with suspect ground workers, they can’t accidentally cut it, or get it tangled in brush and send it through the chipper.

 

[MNFarmHunter]

This opens up alot of possibilities as I know I passed on trees to preset due to similar situations. This also opens up the possibility for public land or other non-preset areas. My original thinking was to not SRT in those cases as I didn't want to find the right tree or try and fish the throwline around multiple limbs. A hybrid approach like this would allow me to be less choosy without buying yet another but longer rope.

 

[MNFarmHunter]

Pic heavy post.

I tried out the hybrid-hitch setup and honestly, it was easier than trying to pick out a particular limb. Setup was fast, easy, and I really like it for a no-preset type SRT setup.

Tree in question. The circled area is the high point I wanted to climb to.


Standing on the right side of the previous pic, this is where I threw my line. The 2nd pic has the throwline traced out.



I then took the tag end of the throwline and threw it over the large limb to the right. Again, the 2nd pic will have the line traced out.



I then took the line from the 2nd throw to pull the standing end of my rope up and over, passed it through my rigging ring as a girth hitch.


Taking the first end of the throwline, I tied that to my rigging ring and pulled the rope up and over the high point in the tree. 2nd pic is traced.



End result standing where I took the 1st pic from.


Overall, that was probably the easiest SRT setup aside from a single, lone branch way up. Teardown was just as easy. For reference to the last pic, this is 40' of rope and could have never done this with a true base anchor as I wouldn't have had enough rope.

 

[FrankNess14]

Pic heavy post.

I tried out the hybrid-hitch setup and honestly, it was easier than trying to pick out a particular limb. Setup was fast, easy, and I really like it for a no-preset type SRT setup.

Tree in question. The circled area is the high point I wanted to climb to.
View attachment 50946

Standing on the right side of the previous pic, this is where I threw my line. The 2nd pic has the throwline traced out.
View attachment 50947
View attachment 50948

I then took the tag end of the throwline and threw it over the large limb to the right. Again, the 2nd pic will have the line traced out.
View attachment 50949
View attachment 50950

I then took the line from the 2nd throw to pull the standing end of my rope up and over, passed it through my rigging ring as a girth hitch.
View attachment 50951

Taking the first end of the throwline, I tied that to my rigging ring and pulled the rope up and over the high point in the tree. 2nd pic is traced.
View attachment 50952
View attachment 50953

End result standing where I took the 1st pic from.
View attachment 50954

Overall, that was probably the easiest SRT setup aside from a single, lone branch way up. Teardown was just as easy. For reference to the last pic, this is 40' of rope and could have never done this with a true base anchor as I wouldn't have had enough rope.

Spectacular, genius, and stupid simple… thanks [mention]Brocky [/mention] for the lesson and [mention]MNFarmHunter [/mention] for the detailed demonstration!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[gcr0003]

Pic heavy post.

I tried out the hybrid-hitch setup and honestly, it was easier than trying to pick out a particular limb. Setup was fast, easy, and I really like it for a no-preset type SRT setup.

Tree in question. The circled area is the high point I wanted to climb to.
View attachment 50946

Standing on the right side of the previous pic, this is where I threw my line. The 2nd pic has the throwline traced out.
View attachment 50947
View attachment 50948

I then took the tag end of the throwline and threw it over the large limb to the right. Again, the 2nd pic will have the line traced out.
View attachment 50949
View attachment 50950

I then took the line from the 2nd throw to pull the standing end of my rope up and over, passed it through my rigging ring as a girth hitch.
View attachment 50951

Taking the first end of the throwline, I tied that to my rigging ring and pulled the rope up and over the high point in the tree. 2nd pic is traced.
View attachment 50952
View attachment 50953

End result standing where I took the 1st pic from.
View attachment 50954

Overall, that was probably the easiest SRT setup aside from a single, lone branch way up. Teardown was just as easy. For reference to the last pic, this is 40' of rope and could have never done this with a true base anchor as I wouldn't have had enough rope.

I guess I am not understanding what this achieving. If you hit the branch/crotch you want to climb the first time then why are you climbing up to a lower branch before climbing on the main crotch? What am I missing?

 

[MNFarmHunter]

I only climbed to the upper branch.

The chief advantage of doing a base anchor as opposed to a canopy anchor is that you don't have to worry about all the other branches in between. With a canopy anchor, there can't be any branches between the ground and the anchoring branch. Otherwise, the girth hitch loop will get hung up.

The chief disadvantage of doing a base anchor is that you need twice as much rope compared to a canopy anchor.

The pictures I posted is a hybrid of the two. When I threw my throwline over the upper branch, I didn't worry about any of the lower branches since I wasn't doing a canopy anchor. Yet, by anchoring to a lower branch, I didn't need the rope length I would have needed if I was doing a base anchor.

In essence, this would be considered a canopy anchor since I didn't anchor to the base of the tree. However, by anchoring to a limb lower that the side I was climbing, I didn't have to take extra care to not get my throwline around other branches.

 

[MNFarmHunter]

Since everyone is impressed by my computer mouse drawing skills.

When there are multiple limbs close together, a canopy anchor can be difficult as you have to fish your line through the limbs so that it only wraps around the single limb:


A base anchor resolves this since it doesn't matter how many limbs are in the way. However, this comes at a cost of needing more rope:


The hybrid way I showed in the pictures borrows from both. By anchoring at a low, easy to reach limb, you effectively move you "base anchor" higher up in the tree. Then, you throw your line up and over your target height limb without having to worry about fishing it through the limbs:


In hindsight, I'd probably do what I did in reverse. I'd throw over the lower limb and set my anchor first then throw over my target height limb. That way, my throw line should stay on the same side of the tree I'm on with less walking around.

 

[gcr0003]

Since everyone is impressed by my computer mouse drawing skills.

When there are multiple limbs close together, a canopy anchor can be difficult as you have to fish your line through the limbs so that it only wraps around the single limb:
View attachment 50987

A base anchor resolves this since it doesn't matter how many limbs are in the way. However, this comes at a cost of needing more rope:
View attachment 50988

The hybrid way I showed in the pictures borrows from both. By anchoring at a low, easy to reach limb, you effectively move you "base anchor" higher up in the tree. Then, you throw your line up and over your target height limb without having to worry about fishing it through the limbs:
View attachment 50989

In hindsight, I'd probably do what I did in reverse. I'd throw over the lower limb and set my anchor first then throw over my target height limb. That way, my throw line should stay on the same side of the tree I'm on with less walking around.

Ok, yea I clearly see the advantages of a base anchor I just didn’t see the benefit to your hybrid method. Saving rope make sense. Thanks for taking the time to clarify for me.
So you a 2TC or alternating lanyard climbing to that first crotch in which you’ll use to creat your base (canopy) anchor?

 

[MNFarmHunter]

No, in the end this is still SRT. All I've done here is moved the anchor to a point in between the canopy and base.

This does take (2) throws of the throw ball from the ground but in so doing eliminates the need for a longer rope.

Give me a minute and I'll take a picture of another tree in my yard.

 

[gcr0003]

No, in the end this is still SRT. All I've done here is moved the anchor to a point in between the canopy and base.

This does take (2) throws of the throw ball from the ground but in so doing eliminates the need for a longer rope.

Give me a minute and I'll take a picture of another tree in my yard.

OHhhh youre hitting the short limb first and canopy anchoring to it. Then you are throwing your ball to the limb you want to climb and connecting the rope that is already anchored and pulling it over the limb you want to climb. Got it!

 

[MNFarmHunter]

Exactly.

In this first picture, I've circled to peak where I want to get my rope through. In a "classic" canopy anchor, I'd have to fish both end of my throwline through all of the limbs so that only that top, single limb was wrapped by the throwline.


A base anchor resolves the fishing since it doesn't matter how many limbs are between the base and the peak since you're girth hitching around the base. As mentioned, the downside is that it takes double the rope. In a hybrid setup, you set you anchor on a lower, easy to reach limb (rectangle) then throw over your target limb. Since your anchor is set lower that the peak, it doesn't matter what other limbs you go through like a base anchor system but you use less rope to do it.


I really wish this thread was around earlier this year when I was setting presets. I passed on multiple trees because I couldn't figure out a way to fish my throwline through the myriad of limbs and skipped a few areas as a result. With this base-hybrid setup, you could still do presets. (1) preset would be around the lower limb you plan on anchoring from with a second preset over the target peak.

Good thing Labor Day is coming up. Guess I need to buy more paracord.

 

[gcr0003]

Exactly.

In this first picture, I've circled to peak where I want to get my rope through. In a "classic" canopy anchor, I'd have to fish both end of my throwline through all of the limbs so that only that top, single limb was wrapped by the throwline.
View attachment 50991

A base anchor resolves the fishing since it doesn't matter how many limbs are between the base and the peak since you're girth hitching around the base. As mentioned, the downside is that it takes double the rope. In a hybrid setup, you set you anchor on a lower, easy to reach limb (rectangle) then throw over your target limb. Since your anchor is set lower that the peak, it doesn't matter what other limbs you go through like a base anchor system but you use less rope to do it.
View attachment 50992

I really wish this thread was around earlier this year when I was setting presets. I passed on multiple trees because I couldn't figure out a way to fish my throwline through the myriad of limbs and skipped a few areas as a result. With this base-hybrid setup, you could still do presets. (1) preset would be around the lower limb you plan on anchoring from with a second preset over the target peak.

Good thing Labor Day is coming up. Guess I need to buy more paracord.

You keep mentioning throwing to the next limb after you climb the first canopy anchor. My thought was why not
1. throw ball and get rope over short first crotch.
2. throw the ball over the higher crotch that you want to climb.
3. climb to first crotch. (I guess hang from a tether)
4. run your rope through your second crotch
5. transition to your main rope and climb to higher crotch using the first crotch as your base anchor.

I guess I am saying why try throwing the ball while in the tree? That seems problematic. If you hit the highest crottch you want to climb first and have the pull rope on it, then once you climb to the first crotch you can pull the rope up to the highest crotch without throwing while in the tree.

Does that make any sense?