Topping at 200 + feet

[RC0]

Thanks all.

 

Tim, yes we avoided damage where possible. One of the reasons why I climbed so high to top that tree in the vid. 15ft logs there after. Didnt want to slam the bases of the adjacent trees.

 

teepeat....creating habitat stumps in such an environment is pretty standard....and blasting does that perfectly it seems. Also, some of the trees were judged too dangerous to fall in a safe manner. Even trying to put a face cut in at ground level can result in the tree just sinking and trapping your saw. Then what ? Some of the dead trees they blasted were over 200ft. I personally wouldnt want to be strapped to a decayed monster at 40 ft cutting through it.

 

Yeah Martin has a good setup Rich, wouldnt hesitate to work with him again.

 

Mark, I was up there less than an hour and a half, so didnt need to clench that hard.

 

SteveB, the 250 tree had a big head lean. From the ground it looked about the same as its neighbours....but upon getting up there it went way above. But still fair to say it was probably more like 235 with the lean....just 250 ft long judging by my rope length which was routed along the curvature of the tree.

 

I copied and pasted something I wrote on another forum, regarding the second tree....gives you an idea as to how that unfolded....if anyones interested. I got some footage of it too, although I made the mistake of using the chestmount for the camera....it was rubbish. Hard to see anything the first few shots as a result, but you it does get better, and hope you get a sense of what I'd described.

Well that was a shite day, guys. Rained throughout. I got 2 big ones done, and knocked out a couple smaller ones. First tall one was about 220 and pretty simple....second was more like 250....slight lean for about 150, and then took on a longbow shape for the remainder.....full of conks, looked like fommes pini. 0nly 15 ft from the highway, with the remaining 70/feet or so hanging over two other big ones. A truly nasty tree to be stood at the bottom looking up. What made it look all the more precarious is that it was only about four and a half feet DBH. You just know there s gonna be lots of movement up there.

 

I decided to bypass all the branches to the very top....this way I could fold 20 ft section, rather than individual branches....which otherwise might drift down onto the road or get hung up in the other trees.....which were both 200+. We had flaggers on the road controling the cars, of which there were lots as its main highway. Consider also that they were dynamiting and falling trees further down the road.....so there'd soon be 50-100 cars each lane stopped at any one time.....and then all going at once, fast, in the rain

 

When I eventually got to the top of that second tree and was ready to take a 15/ft top, blow and behold the radio wasn't working....it seemed I could hear them, but they couldn't hear me. And because of the height, the noise of traffic and saws, the rain....and the fact that I left all the branches on below, no ****** could see or hear me. Took me 25 minutes of yelling and waving before I finally caught someone's eye....and thankfully the understood the problem and anticipated what I was about to do. From there on I just folded the sections, stopping the traffic each time. Unreal amount if sway for the first few.....but not scary like you might expect, just slow and extended. I got it to about 140 ft, by which time the flaggers had gone and it was getting pretty dark. I'm soaking wet now too, as is all my gear. I did get some head cam, but not sure how good it'll be....maybe the first tree came out OK....but by the second one everything was wet through. I asked the kid who was assisting me from the ground to take some pictures.... But having lookd through them quickly, they mosly full of raindrops, or he shook the camera He's not definitely not a Roger Barnet.

 

So I got one more day here tomorrow....although I think between myself and the other climber Ryan, the big climbs are done. Perhaps I can try to video some if the dynamiting tomorrow, which is just horrific when it goes off if you've never seen that before.

 

But in regards to the well wishes and encouragement I got in the thread, thanks, I appreciate it. Although it should be pointed out there is nothing glamorous or remotely satisfying about a day like today. I had to be on the road at 5am to get here....then scrambling about in overextended, wet, mossy, wobbly firs. Hard work....even just having the weight of a wet 200/ft rope hanging 30/ft short of the ground below....and then that radio screwup and having to yell at the top if my voice for 25/mims....that about pushed me over the edge. So, yous missed nothing, really.

 

The vid is Unlisted, so you need the link to find it in otherwords:

[silky fox]

Those really are miserable working conditions! And a very different angle because of the chest cam but still a very interesting video. Having to shout from that height but nice to know your ground crew could still effectivlely know to hold the traffic which all look like matchbox toys from up there...thanks for sharing Reg and have a great Xmas!

[atree]

Big day then Reg,

 

Chest cam view is crap by the way..just saying.

[Shane]

So impressive - not just how long the top took to fall but how it fell into the darkness of oblivion. Was there acrually any ground down there at all?

 

It must take quite a throw with the rope in a monkeys fist to get into some of them trees.

[JaySmith]

Quality work Reg, out of interest what gaffs do you use? There reason I ask I did a mature abies fir the other day and it was a beast to spike the lower sections!

[RC0]

Quality work Reg, out of interest what gaffs do you use? There reason I ask I did a mature abies fir the other day and it was a beast to spike the lower sections!

 

Long gaffs on that sort of old, mature tree.

 

Some more footage from the job. One of the other climbers on site was Ryan Murphy....not to be mistaken for Gene Wilder:

 

[paddyvero]

Nice work. Whats the thinking behind the 550? So you can avoid a change of saw when you are blocking down?

Paddy.

[atree]

Cool Video.Massive trees!

[RC0]

Nice work. Whats the thinking behind the 550? So you can avoid a change of saw when you are blocking down?

Paddy.

 

I'd have soon run out if bar length with the top handle....but my rope wouldve still been off the ground. 550 is one a couple pounds heavier than the 540, but is 50 cc....so you do make much better progress cutting logs. I probably didn't need the 372 until I was down to about 160. I had a strap with micropulley already in mind to set above my head, so I could pull down on the climb line to raise the saw up into the tree.

Edited December 14, 2014 by RC0

[TOMLEAF]

Amazing videos as always Reg.