Today my bee suit saved the day, and the queen in her hollow oak trunk.
One of the many stone dead Quercus agrifolis elders succumbing to SOD in our east county here, trees over 100 years old.
This one had grown up against a two story house sized granite boulder.
The trunk's buffer callous ran up the boulder four feet of solid ancient contact.
The trick was to top it above the boulder and bee hive entrance about 25-30 feet up, from the boulder. So tying in behind the boulder to a stout chaparral bush, I put on my suit, rappelled down the boulder, just above the hive, and let fly with my 365 Special, was promptly swamped by furious bees, particularly my double gloved hands.
So I calmly rappelled down to the ground, unclipped and calmly walked a hundred yards away and methodically killed every bee still on me, at least two dozen or so.
A half hour later things had calmed down, and I retrieved my rope n saw without being attacked again.
A no haul, just put it on the ground client, who knows better than to mess with bees, or stone dead ancient hollow oaks lightly.
Yu ain't equipped without a bee suit!
Jemco