This is a "for what it's worth" post. It's probably been discussed before, but I want to share my experience with everyone, especially those new to saddle hunting, as I am also. Your experience may be different, & that's fine.
The good news is that it's not about an injury I sustained. It's about what I do to prevent that. When you look at your hands, & realize that they are pretty much the most important appendage that you have, and you have gone thru the healing process of just minimal damage to skin that's so flexible, and can move in multiple directions, I think you'll agree that any injury to a hand is a real bummer!
I've read a few threads where the discussion about the use of gloves while climbing/descending has come up. Some say that it removes too much feeling from the fingers, so they don't wear them. That's OK. To each his own.
I guess I look at it a different way, probably due to my former career working in power plants, (I'm retired now) where there were PLENTY of super hot, super cold, and super sharp objects around to mess up your hands if you weren't careful, & didn't have your gloves. Plus, I grew up in an old farmhouse that was heated with wood stoves, so wood cutting & splitting was a "spring-to-fall" chore. We always wore gloves when we did that, and mostly when we did all of the other chores associated with "farm living."
So, when I decided to try saddle hunting a couple of years ago, I didn't even think about it-2 pairs of gloves go with me every time I go up a tree (they don't weigh that much, & if I drop one, no problem-I have a spare & I'll pick it up when I get down!
)
Now, the "standard" leather work glove is pretty thick, and usually doesn't fit well enough to prevent getting caught in carabiners, knots, etc...I get that. I can use them, but the "fiddle factor" is high.
The synthetic gloves, like Mechanix, HyFlex, MaxiFlex, etc are good choices, but can be cut on incidental contact with sharp things, like the bark or thorns on some trees. They are WAY better than nothing, though, in my opinion.
If you want to go with a "2nd skin" around your hand, I would suggest deerskin, or elkskin gloves. Elk skin is a little thicker than deerskin, & more pricey, but deerskin gloves can be found at alot of places (my local Tractor Supply stocks them) and they are also on Amazon. As far as "degree of thickness" goes, there's leather (thickest,) then Elk skin, then Deer skin (thinnest.)
I use deerskin gloves when I climb. I also use Wild Edge Stepps most of the time (I do have Helium & Skeletor stix also, but prefer the stepps.) Those require an amount of dexterity to tie the knot which secures the step, but after some practice, I can do it just as easily as I can "bare-handed." I punch a hole (with a grommet punch) in each glove near the edge of the wrist band so I can clip them onto a spare carabiner-then they are always where I can get to them.
As I stated in multiple posts, this year, I'm learning how to rappel out of the tree, instead of climbing down. I'm also experimenting with aiders, the knaider/swaider method, and 2TC (I like playing with my gear-it's also great exercise!) In every case, the first thing I do when I approach one of my "practice trees" is put on my gloves. That happens without me even thinking about it.
I hope my ramblings are found to have some value to you....Stay safe out there!
The good news is that it's not about an injury I sustained. It's about what I do to prevent that. When you look at your hands, & realize that they are pretty much the most important appendage that you have, and you have gone thru the healing process of just minimal damage to skin that's so flexible, and can move in multiple directions, I think you'll agree that any injury to a hand is a real bummer!
I've read a few threads where the discussion about the use of gloves while climbing/descending has come up. Some say that it removes too much feeling from the fingers, so they don't wear them. That's OK. To each his own.
I guess I look at it a different way, probably due to my former career working in power plants, (I'm retired now) where there were PLENTY of super hot, super cold, and super sharp objects around to mess up your hands if you weren't careful, & didn't have your gloves. Plus, I grew up in an old farmhouse that was heated with wood stoves, so wood cutting & splitting was a "spring-to-fall" chore. We always wore gloves when we did that, and mostly when we did all of the other chores associated with "farm living."
So, when I decided to try saddle hunting a couple of years ago, I didn't even think about it-2 pairs of gloves go with me every time I go up a tree (they don't weigh that much, & if I drop one, no problem-I have a spare & I'll pick it up when I get down!
)Now, the "standard" leather work glove is pretty thick, and usually doesn't fit well enough to prevent getting caught in carabiners, knots, etc...I get that. I can use them, but the "fiddle factor" is high.
The synthetic gloves, like Mechanix, HyFlex, MaxiFlex, etc are good choices, but can be cut on incidental contact with sharp things, like the bark or thorns on some trees. They are WAY better than nothing, though, in my opinion.
If you want to go with a "2nd skin" around your hand, I would suggest deerskin, or elkskin gloves. Elk skin is a little thicker than deerskin, & more pricey, but deerskin gloves can be found at alot of places (my local Tractor Supply stocks them) and they are also on Amazon. As far as "degree of thickness" goes, there's leather (thickest,) then Elk skin, then Deer skin (thinnest.)
I use deerskin gloves when I climb. I also use Wild Edge Stepps most of the time (I do have Helium & Skeletor stix also, but prefer the stepps.) Those require an amount of dexterity to tie the knot which secures the step, but after some practice, I can do it just as easily as I can "bare-handed." I punch a hole (with a grommet punch) in each glove near the edge of the wrist band so I can clip them onto a spare carabiner-then they are always where I can get to them.
As I stated in multiple posts, this year, I'm learning how to rappel out of the tree, instead of climbing down. I'm also experimenting with aiders, the knaider/swaider method, and 2TC (I like playing with my gear-it's also great exercise!) In every case, the first thing I do when I approach one of my "practice trees" is put on my gloves. That happens without me even thinking about it.
I hope my ramblings are found to have some value to you....Stay safe out there!
