Tether climbing?

[sweats]

So tried climbing with the two tethers pictured above today on the type of tree I would actually hunt and I've concluded it's just not practical.

The climbing rope by itself isn't very stiff and the bark of the tree was a little rough so I needed both hands to move the tethers up. This isn't really an issue when moving the lower tether while sitting in the saddle. However, it was tough to move the upper tether since I needed one hand on the back of the tree to stay vertical. I tried using my linemans belt to stay vertical and that made it considerably easier, but it was still no picnic.

Granted it was my first time doing this, but i got maybe 6-8 feet off the ground in around 10 minutes and never felt very comfortable or stable when standing on the lower tether. I may still carry the second tether in my bag as a backup in case I lose a stick up high, but I don't see this working for me as a primary climbing method unless I can figure out a way to mitigate the problems I had.



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[slonstdy]

The guy in the video in post #39 has the upper tether attached to his right thigh and not his foot, if you look real carefully when he is climbing you will see it. That is what's supporting him and he uses his right foot against the tree to stabilize himself as he moves the lower tether. Not sure if I would be comfortable climbing like that but it works for him.

 

[eightwgt]

Id like try this method... MY QUESTION TO YOU GUYS... What is the negatives to this method in regards to safety ? Im trying to throw ideas out here to see if Im thinking clear about it before try

 

[slonstdy]

Safety wise none, you're tethered in the entire way.

 

[sweats]

The guy in the video in post #39 has the upper tether attached to his right thigh and not his foot, if you look real carefully when he is climbing you will see it. That is what's supporting him and he uses his right foot against the tree to stabilize himself as he moves the lower tether. Not sure if I would be comfortable climbing like that but it works for him.

Yeah, after trying what I had setup, it made sense why he hooks his heel on that side around the tree to hold him close and free up his two hands.

I don't have any sewing skills so I don't foresee me DIY'ing up a thigh loop. It would also have to be adjustable for different layers depending on the time of the year.

It was an interesting experiment, and I wanted a slightly shorter tether than what I had been using anyway, so all I'm really out is the cord I used to tie the prussik/foot loops on the lower tether, which I can probably untie and re-use. I think there is some stuff I could do that maybe would make it better like a short bridge and experimenting with different distances between the tethers and spacing.

I'm tempted to keep at it because man was the pack light without my sticks. However, my gut tells me it's probably never going to be smooth enough for my liking using just ropes and knots. I already use a predator platform, so it may just make more sense for me to use a LWHC seat.

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[sweats]

Safety wise none, you're tethered in the entire way.

You are tethered in the whole way, but you are introducing slack when you stand up. The tree I was messing with today was rougher barked than what is in that video, but I did have to loosen the tether more than I liked to move it up.

While it's probably not very likely, I think it is possible you could fall at least some before being caught by your tether.



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[Cain]

I basically use this method as a self rescue to come down incase I loose my stick while one sticking. It works well for that. But compared to one sticking, it is slower and a lot more work in my opinion.

 

[eightwgt]

I basically use this method as a self rescue to come down incase I loose my stick while one sticking. It works well for that. But compared to one sticking, it is slower and a lot more work in my opinion.

You really think this method is slower than one sticking ? I cant grip that...
There is a lot going on one sticking...and your still sliding tethers up, belt... this eliminates messing with the hardware on step... so SEEMS like less work load, and hence my interest... hmmm

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[sweats]

You really think this method is slower than one sticking ? I cant grip that...
There is a lot going on one sticking...and your still sliding tethers up, belt... this eliminates messing with the hardware on step... so SEEMS like less work load, and hence my interest... hmmm

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I don't one stick so I can't speak with authority on that. However, I feel a lot more stable standing on a climbing stick than the loops on the lower tether. The stick also gets your feet further away from the tree and it's probably less time to move the stick than the second tether. I also wasn't able to advance the tethers as much as I thought I would be able to with each move, but I'm not sure how much you gain with each move of a stick either

I really do hope someone figures out a way to make climbing efficiently with two tethers work as it's very light to carry. Scott Adkins, whose YouTube videos are posted above seems to have it dialed in pretty well. In one of his videos, he timed himself walking up to the tree, connecting, climbing up out of frame, climbing back down, and disconnecting in a little over 3 minutes. I'm hoping he eventually posts a detail video of his setup. He went through it a little in one video and the tethers weren't exactly like what we use in saddle hunting. He had doubled up rope, put hoses around parts for more stiffness, and I don't know how he attached the webbing foot loop.

So I'm sure it's possible, but I don't sew so I don't see me fabricating a leg strap. I also thought about trying a foot loop on the bottom of the top tether so i would have one foot on each side, but i think I would still have issues staying vertical.

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[slonstdy]

I one stick climb with a two step aider on the stick and I'm almost certain it's quicker than tether climbing. With tether climbing you need to move the tether on every rise in height whereas with one stickin I set the stick on the tree climb to the top step (about 7') set my tether as high as I can reach then sit in the saddle grab the stick and reset it as high as I can reach again, then climb up the stick and repeat. I usually only need five resets to get to hunting height. There may be more steps in the process than strictly tether climbing but I am gaining elevation quicker due to the fact I am covering a larger distance each time I climb the stick before I need to reset my tether.
The trees I climb always seem to have a few limbs for me to navigate around and having to remove one tether while stickin as opposed to two with tether climbing also helps the climb progress quicker.