Saturday, November 26, 2011

The Treeman’s New Tree Climbing Blog

This is an introduction to my new blog that’s all about tree climbing and trees. Rope and saddle tree climbing has become much more popular in the time since I created the world’s first recreational tree climbing school in 1983. I was a tree worker and Certified Arborist with my own small tree care company when I decided to combine some of the skills of rock climbing with the skills tree workers use daily to create a new recreational activity. I began with one student. Now there are recreational tree climbing schools all over the world.

I’ve got a world of stories, facts, techniques, and gear knowledge locked up in my head. It’s time I get them out in my blog.

Here are some of the things I want to talk about:
  • Personal stories. The life of a tree climber is a string of happenings.
  • Climbing adventures. Adventure involves risk and doing unusual things.
  • Climbing in weather. From wind tossed trees to steamy days.
  • Climbing the seasons. Every season brings a new perspective in the treetops.
  • Tree gear. Hundreds of different kinds of colorful gear for your every need.
  • The trees we climb. Every tree and every tree species has a different feel.
  • Useful facts about trees. Why do trees behave like they do?
And I’ll talk about the astonishing assortment of characters that climb up into the treetops.

But I’m not going to just talk about myself. I want to hear from you too.
  • What are you doing in the trees?
  • What incredible trees are you discovering?
  • What is tree climbing bringing to your life?
So don’t be a stranger. Let’s talk trees and tree climbing.

If you like what is being said here, subscribe now. That way the blog will be delivered to your inbox every time a post is put up. It’s free! Just click the subscribe button. Thanks for stopping by. I’ll be talking to you soon!

Yours waving from a treetop,
Peter “Treeman” Jenkins
Posted by at 6:27 AM

18 comments:

  1. The blog looks great Treeman! I look forward to future topics. Weather permitting I've been tree climbing here in Washington State and studying lichens. I've also been accepted for a Biology Internship with Kalu Yala in Panama. I get the chance to do tree canopy research there, a dream come true! If you ever want to check out what I'm doing, I have a blog http://terrafilmer.blogspot.com/ and I will most likely get a blog through yaluyala.com
    Happy Holidays!

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  2. Looks interesting Pete. I'll look on with great curiosity and hope to learn much.

    Do you ever dance with the trees?

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  4. Hi Peter, we folks here in England have been recreational tree climbers for many years - in my own case, since a child. I never started, 'cos I never stopped. I'm pure primate. We never rope in and we prefer to travel from tree to tree rather than just go high. Check out Heath's net stuff. - http://duo.irational.org/international_tree_climbing_day/

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  5. Thanks for all of the great comments. Getting comments can be the most longed for, but hardest fought, part of blogging. Getting three with my first post makes me feel like a rock star!

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  6. Hi Peter,
    Good luck with your blog, I'm sure you will continue to bring in new interest.

    I have a weird thought to share with you just to start things off.

    My kids are little and avid climbers in the old fashion sense, but Christmas promises to bring them more into the sport of climbing as you describe.

    Here's the weird but I am convinced true thing. We have/had 2 maples out front prior to the Halloween storm. My kids favored one of them for climbing. In fact they favored one tree and specifically repeatedly climbed up one side of that tree. During the storm which completely wiped out the other tree and wiped out the side they do not climb. I theorize that the repeated climbing actually strengthened the one side, the only surviving side. I think them climbing was like exercise for the tree..no kidding. I think climbing makes the trees stronger.

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  7. Woof Treeman,

    I look forward to hearing the tall tales of your intrepid stories that I know you have. Lets hear them all. peaceful climbing - tengu

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  8. Whaddya mean you "feel like a rock star?" In tree-climbing circles, you *are* a rock star!
    I am happy you've started a blog which I know folks will enjoy. It's a great way to share your years of expertise, your wonderful stories, and to keep in touch with friends and fans around the world.

    All the OTHER rock stars have blogs.... don't they?

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  9. Hi Peter,
    I have been looking forward to your blog. This is a great start. I really like the sounds of your list of things you'll be talking about.

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  10. Thanks Navigator,

    It will be interesting to see what turns up in the comments. It's great hearing from some of my students and from people that I do not know.

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  11. Joybo,
    Just don't let me sing in front of you. It's been over 40 years since I sang in a rock band.

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  12. Tengu,

    Thanks for stopping by. I might even tell a few stories about when we were working together taking down nasty dead trees here in Atlanta.

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  13. Hey Trish,

    In the world of bio-mechanics, there is a term called "reaction wood". This is where a tree reacts to an environmental condition. An example would be a tree that leans. It reacts by building up wood at the points where it needs the wood the most to keep itself standing. If your kids climbed the tree a lot, maybe the tree did build up some extra wood to support the climbers. But I sort of doubt that because it would take a lot of climbing for a tree to decide to lay down extra wood to brace itself. But then again, maybe the tree left those branches just for your kids. Maybe you can ask the tree.

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  14. So my 1st reaction to your post was well...... just another free climber. So being that I am a little bit Internet savvy, I decided to follow your link. What a cool website! So here's a group of people internationally that go climb a tree on a given day each year. Make sure you click on the images. This is an image website. It's best to start with 2011 and work backwards.

    I am definitely a rope and saddle tree climber. It's a climbing style. Free climbing is another tree climbing style. Most of us start as free climbers as children. But that is changing now. The point is I can't discount free climbing; however unsafe it might be at times.

    You've inspired me for a new blog topic: roped climbing versus non-roped climbing. Keep an eye out for my post.

    Thanks for your post Mick Mack.

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  15. Bareroots,

    Yeah. I dance with the trees, especially when the winds are around 25 mph. Those pine trees just wiggle like a snake in the wind. And when I'm hanging from a rope, is like being on a fly rod. Everybody's moving! It's a natural dance with a little bit of adrenaline mixed in. Cheap too. All you have to do is climb up to the top and enjoy the ride.

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  16. Hope,

    I'm so proud of you. It’s great that you found a way to climb trees and follow a scientific path. That is awesome! You certainly were one of my best students at Tree Climbers International. You absorbed every technique that I taught you.

    Who were you working with when you were studying lichen in Washington state? College related?

    What will you be studying in Panama? Animals or plants? It sounds great. Not everyone gets to follow their bliss. Way to go! Keep me posted.

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  18. This is a great blog! There are a lot of very interesting topics about trees. You really have a lot to share since you were once an arborist.

    tree removal long island

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