Southern Sweetgums

39Buick

39Buick

Branched out member
Location
Alabama
Are Sweetgum trees safe to climb? I have always been told they were brittle and not a very strong tree. Staying near branch unions on 4 or 5 inch limbs looks safe to me.
Any thoughts on this species of tree?
 
39Buick said:
Are Sweetgum trees safe to climb? I have always been told they were brittle and not a very strong tree. Staying near branch unions on 4 or 5 inch limbs looks safe to me.
Any thoughts on this species of tree?
Click to expand...
On so a sweet gum tree is totally safe to climb. I have climbed 100ft sweet gums and been tied around the main wood but held up by 3 suckers. They are a "weaker wood" but not as week as the tulip poplar. I have climbed them also 160 plus feet and actually ridden a wrapter up on a sucker before. Given I am only 155-165lbs so if you weigh more you gotta think about that. I have seen my coworkers go up on small wood in poplars and nothing happen they are about 200. But every tree is differnet. Not to self never go smaller then your wrist or forearm. That's the way I was taught by climbers from Davey Tree. #climbhighdontgethigh

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We have a hunting lease around 400 acres and 1/3 of it is separated by a large deep creek. This 3rd is all natural undisturbed Forrest. Some of the biggest trees on it are Sweetgum. Many in excess of 100 feet. Also some really tall sycamores and yellow pine. Beautiful place.
I’m really wanting to climb in those sweet gums and sycamores. The old guys I hunt with won’t even put a deer stand in them because they say they are dangourous.
 
39Buick said:
We have a hunting lease around 400 acres and 1/3 of it is separated by a large deep creek. This 3rd is all natural undisturbed Forrest. Some of the biggest trees on it are Sweetgum. Many in excess of 100 feet. Also some really tall sycamores and yellow pine. Beautiful place.
I’m really wanting to climb in those sweet gums and sycamores. The old guys I hunt with won’t even put a deer stand in them because they say they are dangourous.
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Where are you located?

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I'm near huntsville so we should have pretty similar sweat gum trees. I've climbed them repeatedly with no issues and I'm just over 200 lbs. I try to stay 6" branches plus and tie in at the unions. I've dropped some pretty good sized tops from them and had to catch them on rope. They will move around a lot in that kind of situation. Obviously letting them run can help.
 
We are the epicenter of sweetgums. I use the same climbing practices and diligence in choosing my TIP as I would in any other tree. Just keep in mind the wood is very stringy so hinges tend to take a little longer to snap than other hardwoods. Also very easy to catch a saw pinch with spintering wood. They are awesome trees but everyone hates them because of those damn gum balls.
 
I was up 90 feet in a sweetgum a few weeks ago - emergency Friday afternoon cat rescue... I advanced to a 90 ft. tie-in with a good 30-40 feet of limb above me. I was anchored on ~6", felt great (obviously). Chucked my hook 35' laterally to 3" and traversed down to 5", then climbed to 3-4" to retrieve the hook. I was supported by the hook on a leggy 40 ft. long branch. Totally fine, but I was glad for the tie-in point, lol.

@39Buick are you using a Stationary Rope Technique system? In the circumstance you describe, SRT is ideal because you can establish multiple branches for the tie in point, then speadily ascend 1:1. Spend your day hunting instead of worrying and climbing slowly. :)
 
@colb I am learning SRT. Learning to climb in general. I really like using the movable rope system mainly because my zigzag is so dang smooth and responsive. The drawback is that I am not in the best shape of my life and it takes twice the effort to get where i am going. I have a Rope Runner and have been trying to find that sweet spot so that I can be as confident with it as I am with the zigzag. I have used basil anchors in the past but have switched to canopy ties to lessen the load at my tie in.
Your cat rescue sounds like an enjoyable climb! What on earth possesses a silly cat to go up in a tree i will never understand!
 
39Buick said:
@colb I have used basil anchors in the past but have switched to canopy ties to lessen the load at my tie in.
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Avoid thinking that there is twice the pressure at the TIP.

Sometimes your base-tie stays almost slack.

I've had many redirects through multiple trees trees that almost prevented rope-retrieval, so there is definitely NOT an "equal and opposite force", due to friction.

Compression of wood, rather than lateral loading can make all the difference. Might be better to have 1000 pounds compressing a branch, rather than 200 pounds side-loading, especially if there is a bad fork.


All in time. One step at a time. Test. Test. Test your TIPs.

Base-ties are not evil. Canopy ties are great, too.
 
Termites love Sweet Gum trees here in Southern Louisiana. They are very strong and resilient. I would be very cautious of old storm damaged Sweet Gums with the tops that have blown out. Sometimes one large limb or multiple smaller limbs reaching 20’ - 30’ continuing to grow from only a few inches of trunk wood left. The center will be completely gone from the top and sometimes all the way down to the base. We should all know that new growth on storm damaged tree is an obvious hazard. In my experience I see many Sweet Gums new growth hiding the decay and/or growing long branches from a hollow section. Just a reminder to always do a thorough inspection of the tree. Sound it out, look for termite tunnels, holes in trunk, dead limbs, possible root problems, canker, fruiting bodies, and when in doubt of the crown? break out the binoculars.


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southsoundtree said:
Avoid thinking that there is twice the pressure at the TIP.

Sometimes your base-tie stays almost slack.

I've had many redirects through multiple trees trees that almost prevented rope-retrieval, so there is definitely NOT an "equal and opposite force", due to friction.

Compression of wood, rather than lateral loading can make all the difference. Might be better to have 1000 pounds compressing a branch, rather than 200 pounds side-loading, especially if there is a bad fork.


All in time. One step at a time. Test. Test. Test your TIPs.

Base-ties are not evil. Canopy ties are great, too.
Click to expand...
I have been exploring anchor options and learning about the forces not only in tying in but in rigging scenarios as well. At this point in my climbing journey based on my height and weight i like the cinched anchor because so far I primarily ascend and descend along the stem of the trees i have been in. Have not done many redirects or limb walks. I see your point in adding redirects and friction in the system where the load is shared at all those points. @yoyoman has a few very interesting and informative videos covering the forces and sharing the load in anchoring.
You mentioned compression and lateral side loading, I have so much to learn but I think these would be foundational fundamentals that a climber should study! Don't be surprised if you see me asking questions along this line as I start to explore these aspects in greater detail.
 
I appreciate all the input you all have provided. I love this forum and the willingness of all you folks that provide the most valuable feedback and tips to us guys learning all the aspects of climbing and trees in general. I can't express my gratitude enough for all the help and guidance. Climb on safely!!
 
39Buick said:
I have been exploring anchor options and learning about the forces not only in tying in but in rigging scenarios as well. At this point in my climbing journey based on my height and weight i like the cinched anchor because so far I primarily ascend and descend along the stem of the trees i have been in. Have not done many redirects or limb walks. I see your point in adding redirects and friction in the system where the load is shared at all those points. @yoyoman has a few very interesting and informative videos covering the forces and sharing the load in anchoring.
You mentioned compression and lateral side loading, I have so much to learn but I think these would be foundational fundamentals that a climber should study! Don't be surprised if you see me asking questions along this line as I start to explore these aspects in greater detail.
Click to expand...


Think about the boom of a crane when rigging and climbing. They get all their strength in compression, the moment you side load (strong gust of wind) bad things can happen. Keeping angles in mind, you can get some pretty strong rigging that is not entirely in compression. If your climbing line is side loading as TIP at an angle of less than 30 degrees, you will have almost the full strength of the limb.
 
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