Took me 4 hours to untangle a rope from a 40 foot oak

I had a job last Wednesday trimming a big red oak in a customer's backyard. Everything was going fine until my throw line got wrapped around a branch and pulled tight into a knot. I thought I could just yank it free, but that only made it worse by twisting it around another branch. After 30 minutes of tugging and climbing partway up, I finally gave up and got my pole saw to cut the line. But then I dropped the pole saw and it got stuck in a crotch of the tree. So I had to climb up and get that, then spend another hour cutting and pulling the rope out piece by piece. By the time I was done, the sun was going down and I had only trimmed half the tree. Has anyone else had a throw line get this tangled up and have to just sacrifice the rope?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryan65315d ago

Dropping the pole saw is what REALLY hurt you - that extra climb probably burned another hour of daylight. Next time just cut the throw line right away instead of fighting it, a $12 rope is WAY cheaper than losing half a day's work.

the_kevin14d ago

Oh man, I feel your pain on this one. Next time (and I learned this the hard way too) just cut the line first thing when it gets that bad. A cheap throw line is like 10 bucks, not worth fighting for an hour while your arms get tired and the light fades. Also, get yourself a decent pole saw with a little lanyard or wrist strap - I use a bungee cord looped around my wrist so dropping it just dangles there instead of falling into a crotch and making you climb for it. That extra climb is what really killed your day.