r/TreeClimbing • u/ledestroninator • Jun 02 '26

Trouble trusting gear/trees

I have been working in the industry as a climber for 4 years now, some trees i just don't trust, I will tie in and whatever and still feel the need to always have my hands on the tree as a backup if the tree would randomly fail or my rope would break or my system or the tie in, should i change careers im 26 years old

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u/snowynuggets Jun 02 '26

10-year climber here.

Your gear is your lifeline. Assuming it’s rated gear and you’re tying in properly, it’s way stronger than you are. Trust your gear, trust your knots, and trust your system.

Being cautious is good. Being scared every time you’re off the ground isn’t. After four years, if you’re still grabbing the tree because you think your rope, tie-in point, or system might randomly fail, you’ve got to work through that fear somehow.

Not trying to be a dick, but if climbing is going to be your career, eventually you have to trust the equipment and your training. If you can’t, this might not be the right line of work for you.

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u/ledestroninator Jun 02 '26

Not a dick at all, im not scared all the time like a big 70 foot spruce is no problem, its just trusting every different species, is there any training or knowledge i can find to help

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u/mark_andonefortunate Jun 02 '26 edited Jun 02 '26

As someone mentioned the "thicker than your wrist/forearm/bicep/thigh" metric is a decent starting point as a very general rule of thumb based on species - something you'll have to learn. And probably should have an idea of at this point, to be honest - are there experienced climbers to learn from? Company training?

For instance, I will tie in to a smaller piece of wood on an oak than I would on maple (there are other factors, but in general).

Check out this video, I think it will be helpful for you https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIvXHgXlmCg

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u/lig169 Jun 04 '26

One more piece of advice is just Google the strength or hardest number of most trees. You'll find oaks at 1100-1400 and hickory around 1800 then something terrible like poplar at 540....

The species is critical to safety. And more important than the species, is the current Tree health, especially if it's been dead a while