Zipline tree advice...

[climbstihl]

This is the damage that a sling has done to a beech, I just came across this example today. This one was just left on too long, but you can see that it's not great for the tree. This in not a very bad case, because beech grows relatively slowly. The spruce that we have a lot will bulge much quicker. All in all this is a great method of attaching to a tree semi-permanently, but you will have to move the sling regularly. The advantage is that there will be no damage to the tree after you're done with it, if maintained properly.

 

[southsoundtree]

Trees from a distance can be hollow and rotten, without showing it. I just went to a house this morning where I keep telling the old lady that Ganoderma applanatum is rotting her maples away, even if the crown is green. I show her the 'mushrooms'/ fruiting bodies, and bark features that point to internal decay.

If you are interested in better evaluation of the trees, get a competent arborist there. Second to that, more pics up close, including the very base of the tree, on the 'far' side, and where those leaves are accumulated.

Looks like the top may have broken off in the past, allowing decay fungi to enter.

Might be just fine.


I don't have Beech in my area to speak of. If that beech that is pictured above was a local maple, with that vertical seam, I'd expect internal decay.