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I'm lost

Muskyhunter said:
If you own a lone wolf hand climber you already own a climbing method and platform. If not in my opinion I would be to start with climbing sticks.
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I have a hawk self climber and used the bottom of that a couple times. I had to put the foot loops closer to the tree though, otherwise my leg position didn’t work well.


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Welcome to the dark side . I live in the upstate of SC ,if you would like to try out some gear let me know .
 
Youngblood said:
Just started looking into the whole saddle idea this past week. Found this forum, joined up and have been reading, alot. I think I am getting dumber. Thought I was ready to pick a saddle, I'm not even close. Also found I need to figure my ascent gear, climbing style, I need a new pack, blah, blah, blah. Still very excited about this, but have 2 or a million questions. Have come across several posts stating that bridge length can affect hip pinch, which I do not want. I am curious why no one uses a ropeman or something similar on a bridge. I assume it must be safety?
I am looking for the best comfort in a saddle, but I am concerned about temperature as well. It's nasty hot in NC during bow season. Would I be better off with mesh? Thanks in advance. Seems like a ton of helpful people here.
Click to expand...

Being north of the border with shipping costs being a problem I’ve opted to use a rock climbing harness and fleece saddle.

For climbing I started with 3 sticks I already bought for my hang on climber. Then I tried 1 sticking and also using the base from my self climber. Am currently doing SRT or one stick depending on the tree. Pre-set paracord left in the tree for SRT is my favourite method.

I bought a ropeman which got replaced with a safeguard. Then I put the ropeman on my lineman but switched to a prusik. Now it’s in my bag as spare gear. It gets used as a progress capture pulley when hauling my gear up.

The number one piece of advice I will give you is to watch arborist and tree camping videos on YouTube, especially the ones that talk about techniques and safety!

The second piece of advice is that no matter what climbing method you end up with, climb with a 30-40’ rope as your tether rope and learn how to rappel down safely. This will save your butt if you have an issue when in the tree like your platform falling.

Lastly, I always climb with a couple screw in steps. They come in handy for self rescue and rules about using them go out the window if you are stuck.




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Buy Oplux as your rope/tether first.
doublesteps.com

Sterling OpLux

NOTICE: Due to supply issues with Oplux, we are recommending a rope from Teufelberger called Resc Tech. This rope is almost indistinguishable from Oplux and when you first see it, you won’t n…
doublesteps.com doublesteps.com
You will get it eventually, so go ahead and bite the bullet.

robstewart is right. Get at least 35’ and at minimum, a mini figure 8 and learn to rappel.
Rock Exotica MiniEight Descender https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004BQ6GZC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_e6ieEbVEY1W15

I’m not saying use the mini8 as a primary rappel device, although you could. It makes a nice lightweight emergency setup, though.

I got myself in some uncomfortable situations just a few feet off the ground when I was messing around with different climbing techniques and gear.

If you don’t want to carry two screw in steps, lightweight climbing slings/ runners or even two lengths of mule tape can work for self rescue, but you have to decide what would be reasonable for yourself to be able to deploy under pressure.


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I live pretty close to Ft Bragg and have a crap ton of stuff you could try before you buy lol.

I have a Kestrel, WE stepps with knaider/swaider, Beast sticks, Poor man beast sticks, Poor man one stick, Treehopper and bolts, Predator gen 2, Squirrel steps, homemade SHT steps.

Got a couple buddies with their own unique equipment you could take a look at as well.


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Welcome to the forum! I also live in NC, Chocowinity, so if you want to try some gear just let me know! I have alot of different gear then @tim_dawg22 so between me and him you could probably try just about everything before you buy!!!
 
Welcome to the forum! I have been on the same journey since summer.

Started with primal steps and an old school leather greens saddle I picked up locally. Loved the saddle (even though heavy) hated the climbing method.

Practiced with those steps a lot just couldn't make them work safely and quietly for me. Others seem to use them fine but just wasn't for me.

Moved on to 3 helium hawk steps. Loved them but hunted some remote spots with a lot of uphill late in the season and just had to lighten and debulkify (that's my word and I'm sticking with it).

Modified one of my sticks to 1 stick and got myself a tethrd mantis. Also got a 30" oplux tether and a madrock safeguard to repel down. Haven't looked back. Have a top step platform from artisan outdoors en route and can't wait to get it!

I can still carry my 3 sticks if I don't want to 1 stick but the combo of light saddle, one stick climb, and rapel down is a winner in my book. My whole system is sub 7 lbs and extremely packable/comfortable. I still want to experiment with bridge length but once I do that's all she wrote.

Best wishes finding stuff that works for you. If you are ever down to the northwest side of metro Atlanta feel free to hit me up.
 
CrackbottomLouis said:
Welcome to the forum! I have been on the same journey since summer.

Started with primal steps and an old school leather greens saddle I picked up locally. Loved the saddle (even though heavy) hated the climbing method.

Practiced with those steps a lot just couldn't make them work safely and quietly for me. Others seem to use them fine but just wasn't for me.

Moved on to 3 helium hawk steps. Loved them but hunted some remote spots with a lot of uphill late in the season and just had to lighten and debulkify (that's my word and I'm sticking with it).

Modified one of my sticks to 1 stick and got myself a tethrd mantis. Also got a 30" oplux tether and a madrock safeguard to repel down. Haven't looked back. Have a top step platform from artisan outdoors en route and can't wait to get it!

I can still carry my 3 sticks if I don't want to 1 stick but the combo of light saddle, one stick climb, and rapel down is a winner in my book. My whole system is sub 7 lbs and extremely packable/comfortable. I still want to experiment with bridge length but once I do that's all she wrote.

Best wishes finding stuff that works for you. If you are ever down to the northwest side of metro Atlanta feel free to hit me up.
Click to expand...
Lol. I need to debulkify myself this year
 
robstewart said:
Being north of the border with shipping costs being a problem I’ve opted to use a rock climbing harness and fleece saddle.

For climbing I started with 3 sticks I already bought for my hang on climber. Then I tried 1 sticking and also using the base from my self climber. Am currently doing SRT or one stick depending on the tree. Pre-set paracord left in the tree for SRT is my favourite method.

I bought a ropeman which got replaced with a safeguard. Then I put the ropeman on my lineman but switched to a prusik. Now it’s in my bag as spare gear. It gets used as a progress capture pulley when hauling my gear up.

The number one piece of advice I will give you is to watch arborist and tree camping videos on YouTube, especially the ones that talk about techniques and safety!

The second piece of advice is that no matter what climbing method you end up with, climb with a 30-40’ rope as your tether rope and learn how to rappel down safely. This will save your butt if you have an issue when in the tree like your platform falling.

Lastly, I always climb with a couple screw in steps. They come in handy for self rescue and rules about using them go out the window if you are stuck.




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Click to expand...
Where is a good place to buy rope?

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Btw I would not lean towards rappelling or other self rescue methods right out of the gate! Also would stay away from technical climbing methods as well. If you are just getting setup, create a really simple system & hunt with it you can go down the rabbit hole later! I guess I’m saying just learn to saddle hunt then start adding pieces.......
 
DIYBOWHUNTING said:
Where is a good place to buy rope?

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Click to expand...

I’m in Canada so I won’t give you anything specific, but I bought rope at a local outdoor store.

Then I went back and talked to a guy who turned out to be an arborist. He advised that climbing rope and arborist ropes are different in the way the strength is spread between core and sheath. Essentially arborist rope will handle the running on the tree much better.

So my advice is to look for an arborist supply store in your area and NOT an outdoor store.


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Bigterp said:
Btw I would not lean towards rappelling or other self rescue methods right out of the gate! Also would stay away from technical climbing methods as well. If you are just getting setup, create a really simple system & hunt with it you can go down the rabbit hole later! I guess I’m saying just learn to saddle hunt then start adding pieces.......
Click to expand...

I would absolutely recommend you learn how to rappel safely from a low height before every climbing into a tree. The 3rd time up my stick came loose from sideways pressure and I had to self rescue. If I’d climbed with a 30’ tether like I do now it wouldn’t have been an issue. Instead I ended my hunt, lowered my gear with my haul line and messed around with a screw in step and some webbing I had until I was able to inch my way down the tree enough to hook the stick with the webbing and get it set again. Then I came down and went home.


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robstewart said:
I’m in Canada so I won’t give you anything specific, but I bought rope at a local outdoor store.

Then I went back and talked to a guy who turned out to be an arborist. He advised that climbing rope and arborist ropes are different in the way the strength is spread between core and sheath. Essentially arborist rope will handle the running on the tree much better.

So my advice is to look for an arborist supply store in your area and NOT an outdoor store.


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Click to expand...
Awesome thanks for the info!

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www.h2saddles.com

Quality saddles at a fair price. Quick turnaround. Supposedly he's coming out with a mesh saddle soon. Personally I'd get quality ropes right off the bat. I've been using my HSS tree strap as a tether. It's functional but bulky and the stock biner is heavy. Going to replace it and my lineman's belt with Sterling Oplux probably in the offseason.
 
Sorry if I missed this, but have you mentioned if you hunt private or public land?
The answer will have an influence on a large percentage of your gear and climbing methods.
 
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